Strakova breaks record in win over Coppin State
HAMPTON, Va. – Thanks to a record-setting performance from senior rightside Vendula Strakova – and an epic third-set comeback – the Hampton University volleyball team beat Coppin State 3-1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-19, 25-23) Friday evening in Holland Hall.
In tallying a match-high 22 kills, Strakova became the program’s all-time leader in career kills, surpassing Chavanca Hoskins’ mark of 1,472. After Friday, Strakova has 1,490 career kills at Hampton.
Strakova also racked up 14 digs, for her 13th double-double of the season, and a team-high six aces.
Senior outside hitter Sonja Maksimovic recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 17 kills and a team-high 16 digs. She also hit a match-best .424.
Senior outside hitter Krista Kraskura added 12 digs.
Senior setter Kitija Megne racked up 44 assists, while senior middle blocker Marija Kocevska had six blocks and junior libero Allysa Medina had four aces.
Coppin State was held to .159 hitting for the match.
The Lady Pirates will return to action on Sunday, playing host to Morgan State at 3 p.m. in their annual Dig Pink match.
For complete story, visit www.hamptonpirates.com or www.coppinstatesports.com
Spartans Pick Up 1st Win of Year, 3-1 over Morgan State
NORFOLK, Va. – Bolstered by an enthusiastic crowd and an all-around team performance, the Norfolk State volleyball team earned its first win of the year with a 3-1 victory over Morgan State on Friday night at Joseph Echols Hall.
It certainly did not start off well for NSU, though, as Morgan State cruised in the first set, 25-14. The Spartans picked it up from there, racing out to an early lead in the second set and then holding off a late MSU rally for a 25-23 win.
The Spartans held back the Bears late in the next two sets as well, winning the third and fourth stanzas by identical 25-22 scores.
NSU moved to 1-19 overall and 1-7 in the MEAC. Morgan State dropped to 11-10 overall and 4-4 in conference play.
No Spartan player reached double digits in kills, but five players did have at least six on the night. Junior Jessica Johnson, out the last several matches due to injury, had a bounce-back match with nine kills, tying freshman Clarke Tyler for the team lead against the Bears.
Angie Darcus added seven kills, 22 assists and four blocks, while Kylee Thiim contributed seven kills on just 11 swings with three blocks. As an offense, NSU hit .122 compared to .160 for MSU.
The Bears were led by Zuri Smith with 13 kills and Dinah Jones with seven kills and seven blocks. Jones, though, had five blocking errors, as the teams combined for 15 on the night.
Morgan State had a 40-27 edge in digs, while Norfolk State held a 10-2 advantage in service aces.
The Spartans will stay home for the weekend when they host Coppin State on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Echols Hall.
For complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com or www.morganstatebears.com
Neely paces Lady Wildcats past Lady Tigers
SAVANNAH, Ga. – Rakaya Neely had 12 kills as Bethune-Cookman snapped a five-match losing streak with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-9,25-14) Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference victory at Savannah State Friday night.
The freshman’s attack percentage of .647 tied for the fourth-best single-match in program history. Neely also had four blocks.
Hazel Ortiz Rosado had six services aces, matching the ninth best single-match total. She also had 29 assists and seven digs. Rechez Lindsay led the Lady Cats (7-18,5-1 MEAC) with 10 digs.
Delicia Pierre added eight kills and Jill Arlaud seven for the Lady Cats, who face South Carolina State Sunday.
For complete story, visit www.bcuathletics.com or www.ssuathletics.com
Hawks suffer setback against Howard
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. — On Friday evening at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore looked to even their record on the six game home stand and gain ground in the MEAC standings. However the Bison of Howard University swept in and put to rest the hopes of the Hawks by winning the match three sets to none. UMES now owns a 10-13 record overall with a 3-5 record in conference.
Statistically speaking, senior Ksenia Sukhareva was the premier attacker for the Hawks with seven total kills, and fellow senior Lauren Berry led the Hawks offensive players in attack percentage, contributing six kills at a success rate of 55.6 percent. UMES had two aces on serves, one each from junior Ashley Smith and freshman Kirstin Fink. Freshman Alana Polk helped out on four of the team’s five blocks while sophomore Precious Manu paced the defensive effort with nine digs.
The Hawks hope to rebound in a non-conference matchup against the East Carolina Pirates on Tuesday before two crucial MEAC matchups against Morgan State and Coppin State next weekend. A weekday matinee is scheduled in Greenville with a 1:00p.m. start time.
For complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com or www.hubison.com