The women’s volleyball team finished third in the conference last season but is ready to take home the championship title.
The 2017 fall season will begin Aug. 25 at the Texas A&M Invitational.
“Right now we are making a huge emphasis—and huge strides might I add—on team chemistry,” Erin Hoppe, senior setter, said. “We know in order to get things done on the court, we need to all be on the same wavelength both inside and outside the gym. It’s so much fun to play with somebody that you know always has your back.”
The Bobcats are scheduled to compete in 33 regular season matches. Of the 33 matches, Texas State is scheduled for 12 home and away matches, and nine on neutral ground.
“I am most looking forward to playing in this program for another season,” Jaliyah Bolden, senior middle blocker, said. “There is nowhere else I’d rather be and the fact that I get to finish my collegiate career here is amazing.”
The Bobcats’ competitors include both conference and non-conference teams. They will compete in at least 16 Sun Belt Conference matchups and teams outside the conference like TCU, A&M and Baylor.
“Everyone on our schedule will be good competitors,” Bolden said. “As far as conference, again, everyone is good but I think our toughest competitors will be Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina and probably UTA. They have some strong returning players, and I’m sure the girls they have coming in are just as strong, but so do we, so these will be good matches for sure.”
The volleyball team will kick off their regular season competing in the Texas A&M Invitational at College Station  August 25-26. At this tournament, the Bobcats will compete against Sam Houston State University, Virginia Commonwealth University and Texas A&M University.
The Bobcats will then compete in another away tournament before the first home game of the season.
The Creeds and Crests Classic tournament will be the first home tournament for Texas State Sept. 8. The teams and competitors are still to be determined.
While the Bobcats will compete against many Sun Belt Conference teams, there are notable non-conference teams that Texas State will compete against.
These teams include Baylor, the University of Texas-San Antonio, Texas Christian University and others.
All regular season games will lead up to the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Championship tournament on Nov. 17-19 at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
“We want the championship ring,” Hoppe said. “I’ve been a part of this program for three years now chasing that ring, and we want it bad. I hope to accomplish little goals as a team throughout the season, building that fire and confidence—don’t forget skill—to take us to the top.”
During the 2016 season, the Bobcats finished with an overall record of 21-12 and finished third place in the Sun Belt Conference.
There is a new roster of athletes for the upcoming season. This season’s roster will include five freshmen, six sophomores, two juniors and two seniors.
“As a team, I hope to get a ring by winning the conference outright by playing well together and respecting our competition,” Bolden said. “Overall, I really just want to enjoy my last year playing beside these girls and under this coaching staff. I have a great senior partner in Erin Hoppe and I want to play my best for her.”