Hampton sweeps UMES, still unbeaten in MEAC
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – The Hampton University volleyball team remained unbeaten in conference play Sunday afternoon, beating Maryland Eastern Shore 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-20) at the W.P. Hytche Athletic Center.
The Lady Pirates (10-8, 5-0 MEAC) have won five straight matches.
Senior rightside Vendula Strakova led the way with 17 kills, hitting .367 and tying the team high with nine digs. Senior outside hitter Krista Kraskura added 12 kills and hit .375.
Senior setter Kitija Megne had 36 assists; she also had five kills in six chances, hitting .833.
The Lady Pirates hit. 309 (45 kills, 15 errors in 97 attacks) for the match, while holding UMES (8-12, 1-4 MEAC) to just .093 (28 kills, 20 errors in 86 attacks) hitting.
The Lady Pirates will return to Holland Hall on Tuesday to take on VCU at 7 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.hamptonpirates.com or www.umeshawks.com
Delaware State Earns 3-0 Win over Norfolk State
DOVER, Del. – Delaware State was brilliant on offense, and the Hornets took care of the Norfolk State volleyball team by a 3-0 score on Sunday afternoon in a conference matchup at Memorial Hall.
Delaware State hit .315 for the match in winning 25-18, 26-24 and 25-22. Nevershi Ellis and Jasmine Jackson combined for 21 kills and 13 digs to lead the way for DSU (1-15, 1-4 MEAC).
Sophomore Dominique Parker had nine kills, and junior Angie Darcus and freshman Clarke Tyler each had eight to pace the way for NSU (0-17, 0-5).
The Spartans fell behind in the first set, 12-4, and only got as close as four at 17-13 on a service ace from sophomore Kayla Cason.
It was a much more entertaining second set, though, as the lead went back and forth. NSU erased a four-point deficit thanks to a 6-1 run, forcing a DSU timeout with the Hornets down 9-8. The Spartans called timeout a little later down 13-10, but a kill from Tyler capped a short 5-1 spurt and gave NSU a 17-16 advantage.
After DSU grabbed the lead back for one play, a service ace from Darcus and a block by Tyler put NSU in control, 22-19. Jackson kept the Hornets alive when the Spartans needed one more point for the second-set win, and DSU ultimately won seven of the last nine points in the stanza.
The Spartans had a chance in the third set as well. Following a DSU timeout, senior Jasmin Flowers threw down a kill for a 7-4 NSU lead. The Hornets won the next five points, but a block from Parker and Tyler finished a 5-1 run for a 12-10 advantage. Delaware State took the lead back and eventually went ahead by two, 19-17. Down 21-19, the Spartans won three straight, capped by a Parker kill, but DSU won the last four points of the match to make it a clean sweep.
As a team, NSU hit .134 and committed 22 attack errors. Flowers finished with five kills, and junior Darcy Moore added 20 assists and six digs.
NSU will head back out on the road next Friday when the Spartans travel to UMES for a 6 p.m. matchup.
For complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com or www.dsuhornets.com
Savannah State Falls In Two Hard Fought MEAC Battles
SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Lady Tigers were unable to secure their first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) win this weekend, despite two well fought matches against North Carolina Central and North Carolina A&T State.
On Friday, the Lady Tigers fell to North Carolina Central in three sets, 21-25, 19-25 and 22-25. Junior Justice Dilworth led the field with her second double-double of the season, recording 12 kills and 11 digs.
Ashley McCarthy led the Lady Eagles with 12 kills, followed by Denni Johnson with 10. Kelsey Murphy led in digs with 11.
On Sunday, the Lady Tigers looked to break a two-game losing skid and earn their first MEAC win as North Carolina A&T State paid a visit to Willcox-Wiley Gym.
Dilworth led the Lady Tigers on Sunday with seven kills. Libero Alexis Washington led in digs with 10. Samara Brown led the Lady Aggies with eight kills, followed by McDaniel with seven. Liz Martino led in digs with 12.
The Lady Tigers hit the road for two nonconference matches against Mercer and Georgia Southern. They return for a four-game home stretch beginning on October 24 against MEAC Southern Division rival Bethune-Cookman.
For complete story, visit www.ssuathletics.com or www.ncataggies.com
Pritchett, Lawrence Lead SC State to 3-1 Win Over NC Central
ORANGEBUG, S.C. – Senior Erica Pritchett had a match- and career-high 18 kills, while teammate Marissa Lawrence had 14 kills to lead the South Carolina State women’s volleyball team to a 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-22) Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference win over North Carolina Central on Sunday afternoon at Dukes Gymnasium.
NC Central (1-21, 1-4 MEAC) took the first set 25-23, but SC State (2-18, 2-3 MEAC) posted three straight set wins to take the match. Each set was very close as neither team led by more than eight points at any time during the match.
Denni Johnson led the Eagles with 14 kills and she added a match-high five service aces. Ashley McCarthy had 12 kills. Setters Paige Phillips and Alice Genna split time throughout the match, tallying 20 and 17 assists, respectively.
In addition to Pritchett’s career performance, she added six digs and four block assists. Lawrence had eight digs, three block assists and two aces. Melanie Williams had a match-high 38 assists to go with her four digs and three kills, while Tyler Ockleberry had a team-high 13 digs. Kirby Anderson contributed nine kills, four block assists, three digs and two service aces.
The Lady Bulldogs take a break from MEAC play when they travel to Spartanburg, S.C. to take on Wofford College on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.scsuathletics.com or www.nccueaglepride.com
Coppin State suffers 3-1 setback to Howard
BALTIMORE, Md. --- The Coppin State volleyball team concluded the first half of its Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Northern Division schedule with a 3-1 setback to visiting Howard University Sunday afternoon in the Auxiliary Gym.
With seven regular season matches remaining and six against conference opponents, Coppin State slipped to 3-3 in the MEAC North and 9-10 overall. Howard (11-9 overall, 4-1 MEAC North) expanded its edge over Coppin State in the MEAC North standings by two in the loss column by winning 21-25, 25-20, 26-24, 25-20.
While the defeat was tough, the Eagles know there’s plenty of volleyball remaining this season to achieve their ultimate goal of being the last team standing. The second half of the conference schedule offers Coppin State an opportunity to deliver some punishing paybacks beginning with its next two matches Sunday afternoon at home against Morgan State and Friday, Oct. 24 on the road at Hampton.
Leading the Eagles against Howard was junior Cindy Okpegbue, who had 18 kills. Senior Kandace Thomas added 12 kills and a .438 hitting percentage. In Coppin State’s two matches over the weekend, Thomas averaged 10.5 kills. Freshman Maya Horner (nine kills) and Kendra Ireigbe (eight) combined for 17 kills. Overall, the Eagles finished with 53 kills for the second consecutive match. It was also the fourth straight match in which the Eagles had at least 50 kills.
Junior setter Chelsee Sauni was solid delivering 47 assists. Ireigbe also had two blocks to raise her career total to 200, the second Coppin State volleyball player in program history to reach that magical mark.
For the second time in four matches, senior Gabrielle Otero collected 21 digs. It was the fourth time this season she had 20 or more digs in a match this season. Nicole Malvae-Adams tied a season-high with 12 digs.
Howard finished with 18 blocks. Assata Conway had 13 kills and seven blocks to lead Howard. Katherine Broussard had a double-double (10 kills, 14 digs). Khalia Donaldson led the Lady Bison with 15 kills.
The major highlight of the day came from senior setter Stephanie Shultis, whose 45 assists gave her Howard's career assists record. Shultis now has 2,742 assists, passing former Lady Bison Shannon Grant (2003-06) and her 2,705 assists.
Shultis is averaging 9.66 assists/set this season (4th in the MEAC), with her numbers increasing to a league-best 11.76 assists/set in conference matches. She has posted 15 games with 30+ assists, six with 40 or more and a 50-assist performance against UMES on October 3.
Coppin State remains home to face rival Morgan State Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. Howard hosts Morgan State Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. The loser of that match will have two conference losses.
For complete story, visit www.coppinstatesports.com or www.hubison.com