West Texas A&M (4-2-1, 1-2) vs. St. Mary's (2-4-1, 1-3)
Date	Thursday, October 2th | 6:00 p.m.
Location	Canyon, Texas | Happy State Bank Stadium
Live Statistics	Link
Live Video	FloCollege (Pay-Per-View)

CANYON, Texas – The Lady Buffs of West Texas A&M host their first Community Night on Thursday as the Rattlers of St. Mary's comes to town for Lone Star Conference action beginning at 6:00 p.m. The contest will be played at Happy State Bank Stadium in Canyon.
 
COMMUNITY NIGHT
This special event is more than just a game—it's a chance for local schools and communities to raise funds, rally school spirit, and cheer on the Lady Buffs. Groups & Schools will have the opportunity to compete against each other in a fundraising effort for their schools! Each school group will receive 100% of the proceeds from their sales, minus service fees, and the group that has the highest number of ticket buyers/attendees will receive an additional reward! Learn more here.
 
SUL ROSS STATE REWIND
The Lady Buffs picked up their first LSC victory in style last Saturday afternoon with a 2-0 shutout of Sul Ross State at The Pitch in Canyon. Aaliyah McPeak put the Lady Buffs on the board in the 17^th minute followed by a Sarah Hernandez Lopez goal in the 48^thminute.
 
A LOOK AT THE RATTLERS
St. Mary's enters the week with an overall record of 2-4-1 including a 1-3 mark in LSC action as they snapped a three-game losing skid last Saturday with a 1-0 victory over St. Edward's in the annual "Battle of the Saints". Marily Garza Contreras scored the game-winner in the 54^th minutes off an assist from Shelby Paniagua.
 
Paniagua and Malia Dominguez have both scored a pair of goals this season to lead the Rattlers, Paniagua has also registered two assists to lead the team with six points. The Rattlers have been outscored 14-8 so far this season as they have registered 13.4 shots per game for a percentage of .085.
 
StMU HEAD COACH KEVIN DRIGGS
Kevin Driggs is now in his sixth season at the helm of the St. Mary's women's soccer program. He has led the Rattlers to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances (2022, 2023) along with five straight trips to the LSC Championships. Driggs is no stranger to the Texas Panhandle as he spent five seasons as the top assistant for the Lady Buffs.
 
THE SERIES
Thursday night will be the 18^th all-time meeting on the pitch between the Lady Buffs and Rattlers, WT is 11-3-4 in the series that dates back to 1996. The Lady Buffs are 6-1-2 in the series when playing at home. The last meeting between the two teams ended in a 2-0 shutout win for the Rattlers back on September 28, 2024 in Canyon.
 
WT HEAD COACH TURK OZTURK
Bulut "Turk" Ozturk was named the third head coach in the history of the Lady Buff Soccer program on December 19, 2024. Ozturk brings an impressive nine-season track record of collegiate coaching experience to WT.
 
Ozturk was most recently on the coaching staff at Iowa State University for the 2024 season as the Soccer Development Coordinator. In this role, he was involved in all aspects of assisting a power four program that competes in the Big XII conference. Some of coach Turk's major duties included: Game Day coaching, video analysis for team members, scouting reports, recruiting, travel coordination and leading training sessions for the team.
 
Before Iowa State, Ozturk served as the Head Coach at Michigan Tech University for four seasons. During his tenure, he led the Huskies to their first NCAA tournament appearance in nearly a decade in 2023. Under his guidance, Michigan Tech achieved remarkable success with 17 players earning GLIAC All-Conference Awards, one All-American, over 60 players named to the All-Academic Excellence Team, and eight to the All-Academic Team.
 
LSC PRESEASON POLL
The Lady Buffs were selected 10th in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll announced on August 27th. 
 
Dallas Baptist claimed 29 of the possible 45 first place votes for a total of 650 points to sit atop of the poll followed by Angelo State (13 first place, 634), Texas Woman's (one first place, 556), Midwestern State (511), St. Mary's (468), St. Edward's (435), Lubbock Christian (392), Oklahoma Christian (358), UT Tyler (347), West Texas A&M (284), Texas A&M International (one first place, 244), UT Dallas (168), UT Permian Basin (146), Eastern New Mexico (124) and Sul Ross State (one first place, 83).
 
Annie Rocha of St. Edward's was tabbed the league's Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. DBU senior Parker Coe was named the Defensive Player of the Year while Amanda Farris of TWU claimed Goalkeeper of the Year accolades.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Wednesday night's contest will be broadcasted on FloCollege. The LSC and FloSports reached a historic agreement in August of 2024 for the largest streaming rights deal in NCAA Division II history. Fans have two different subscription options: $19.99 per month or $107.88 per year ($8.99/month). Additionally, those who use an .edu email address from an LSC member institution will be able to sign up at a discounted subscription price of $9.99 per month or $71.88 per year ($5.99/month).