Volleyball MEAC Media Relations

Lady Hawks, Lady Rattlers Advance to MEAC Volleyball Championship Final

The Maryland Eastern Shore Lady Hawks and Lady Rattlers of Florida A&M advanced to the finals of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Volleyball Championship Tournament Friday night on the campus of Hampton (Va.) University.

Maryland Eastern Shore advanced to the championship match with a 3-2 win over Delaware State. The Lady Hawks will make their first MEAC championship final appearance since the 2004 season.

Whitney Johnson, the 2007 MEAC Player of the Year, led all with 24 kills. The Lady Hawks had two other players score double-digits in kills and three tally double-digit digs for the win.

Delaware State took the Lady Hawks to five games behind the play of senior Ayana Dyette, freshman Erica Tajchman and sophomore Cassandra Joyner. Dyette led her team with 19 kills and 14 digs and hit .245 from the floor. Tajchman was just shy of a double-double with 14 kills and nine digs. Joyner posted a team-high three blocks and added nine kills in the defensive effort.

Florida A&M, the top seed in the south, advanced to the MEAC Championship title match for the 18th time in school history. The Lady Rattlers, winners of the seven consecutive MEAC Volleyball Championships, were led by Jovana Blazeski and Iva Lakic. The duo tallied 36 kills and 21 digs. Freshman Susan Egoavil provided a defensive spark with a match-high 28 digs.

The MEAC Volleyball Championship will continue tomorrow beginning at noon. The event is free and open to the public.

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