DBU (3-8, 1-0) at St. Mary's (5-6, 0-1)
September 17 | 12 PM | San Antonio, TX | Bill Greehey Arena
 
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THE LEAD
The Lady Patriots are on the road again facing another Heartland Conference rival at St. Mary's University. DBU is coming off a much-needed win against Texas A&M International. The Lady Patriots of a wonderful mixture of upperclassmen leadership and underclassmen talent. The key for this DBU team is putting together consistent performances from the entire game. The Lady Patriots have displayed glimpses of greatness after some early struggles and hope to find their groove, as conference play is under way. An upperclassman DBU will be counting on is Senior Carly Hess. Hess creates headaches for opposing teams with her experience and power. With Freshman Strealy Sizelove setting up her teammates the way she has been, DBU will be counting on her as she leads the team with 7.97 assists per set.
 
ONE WIN TO GO FOR KOKEL
Coach Kokel has had amazing career with DBU as head coach. In Kokel's 14 seasons with the Lady Patriots she has not only led DBU to multiple appearances in the NCAA Division II and NCCAA tournaments, as well as a National NCCAA tournament runner-up in 2009, she has been a catalyst for developing strong leaders within her teams. She is currently sitting at 199 wins and only needs one more to reach the 200-career win milestone.
 
LOOKING TO IMPROVE ON BLOCKS
The Lady Patriots have a strong defense team that is looking to get better at blocking their opponents' shots. DBU has recorded 50 blocks this season, 23 of which have come from Sidnee Jo Fitzpatrick and 22 from Madeline Dolberry. The Lady Patriots are trialing their opponents by 24.5 blocks on the season. DBU hopes to narrow that difference moving forward.
 
SCOUTING ST. MARY'S
St. Mary's poses as a strong threat to DBU in conference play. StMU has won 4 of their last 6 games as they are looking for some Heartland Conference redemption as they fell to St. Edwards in five sets on Thursday. St. Mary's has a very tough defensive attack that DBU will be going up against. The Lady Patriots hold the historical advantage with a 18-5 all-time record against StMU.
 
LAST TIME OUT
DBU last faced St. Mary's back in October 2015 on St. Mary's home court. The Lady Patriots won the match in three sets. DBU is hoping for a similar result tomorrow at the Bill Greehey Arena.