Hampton Volleyball Wins DePaul Invite, Strakova Named MVP
CHICAGO – Now that's a successful road trip.
The Hampton University volleyball team won the DePaul Invitational on Saturday at McGrath-Phillips Arena, sweeping Stony Brook 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-19) and taking care of the host Blue Demons 3-1 (15-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-22).
Senior Vendula Strakova (Brno, Czech Republic) was named Tournament MVP.
This marks the second straight year in which the Lady Pirates have won their first three matches of the season; they last won four straight to open a season in 2005.
Saturday morning's match against Stony Brook saw the Lady Pirates (3-0) hit .518 – thanks to 51 kills and just seven errors in 85 attacks. It was the first time Hampton hit .500 in a match since 2009, when the Lady Pirates hit a program-record .533 against Winston-Salem State.
Strakova had 15 kills to lead the Lady Pirates against Stony Brook, while senior Krista Kraskura (Kuldiga, Latvia) added 14 kills and 13 digs on defense. Senior Sonja Maksimovic (Belgrade, Serbia) was the third Hampton player in double figures with 12 kills.
For complete story, visit www.hamptonpirates.com
Simon Shines for Bethune-Cookman at FAU
BOCA RATON – Rhea Simon posted a career-high 20 kills in her first career double-double as Bethune-Cookman dropped a 3-1 decision to McNeese State in the FAU Invitational Saturday afternoon.
The junior outside hitter from the U.S. Virgin Islands , who also had 14 digs, was named to the all-tournament team along with junior setter Hazel Ortiz-Rosado, who had 38 assists, nine digs and four kills.
Freshmen Rachez Lindsay and sophomore Jill Arlaud had 13 and 12 digs, respectively.
B-CU concluded the tournament 0-3.
For complete story, visit www.bcuathletics.com
Georgetown Sweeps Women's Volleyball at DC Challenge; American Stops Women's Volleyball, 3-1
FAIRFAX, VA --- A trio of Howard women's volleyball outside hitters logged eight or more kills but the Lady Bison were unable to pull the upset against No. 24 American University, conceding a 3-1 decision to the Eagles on Day 2 of the DC Volleyball Challenge Saturday, before a 3-0 sweep from Georgetown.
In the match against Georgetown, sophomore outside hitter Katherine Broussard and senior middle blocker Assata Conway each logged five kills for Howard (1-2), who lost back-to-back games for the first time since October 18 & 20, 2013. Broussard added nine digs and both players had two block assists.
Senior libero Allyson Lods had a team high 12 digs while senior setter Stephanie Shultis assisted on 19 kills.
Against the Eagles, freshman Khaila Donaldson posted double digit kills for the second straight match, posting 16 kills on the day. Broussard had nine kills and senior Meagan Lagerlef had eight.
For complete story, visit www.hubison.com
Lady Bears Pick Up First Win Of Season, Defeat Sacramento State, 3-1
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (August 30, 2014) - Samantha Prescott tallied a match-high 16 kills, while Zuri Smith and Arianna Hayden added 13 and 11 kills respectively, to lead Morgan State to a 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 25-23, 25-23) non-conference victory over Sacramento State on Saturday morning at Halton Arena, prior to an evening 3-1 setback to UNC Greensboro.
The win, which was the Lady Bears' first of the season, as well as the Charlotte Invitational, was also Morgan State's first win ever over the Hornets in four meetings.
In Saturday's finale against UNCG (21-25, 25-19, 18-25, 25-19), Hayden paced the Lady Bears with 11 kills, just ahead of Evely Macedo with 10. With nine apiece, Prescott was both a kill and a dig shy of reaching double-digit totals statistically.
Minja Rankov contributed a team-high 15 digs.
For complete stories, visit www.morganstatebears.com
Despite Late Rally, SC State Falls 3-1 to Southern University
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Down 2-0, the South Carolina State women’s volleyball team posted a convincing third-set win, but eventually fell 3-1 to Southern University on Saturday morning at the ISTAP Collegiate Cup I Tournament presented by Doubletree by Hilton hosted by Alabama State University. Southern (1-2) won the match 25-20, 25-18, 14-25, 25-15.
SC State (0-3) got a slow start in the first set and was down 14-7 after an attack error by Marissa Lawrence, but the Lady Bulldogs went on a 10-4 run to get within one (18-17). The Jaguars snuck away with the first set 25-20.
Set 2 was close from the beginning with four ties early on. Down the stretch, SC State got within two, 20-18, but Southern scored five straight points for the win.
The Lady Bulldogs carried over the momentum from the second set into the third one. They took a quick 2-0 lead and did not trail at any point in the set. They led by as many as 13 points along the way.
Spartans Drop Two on 2nd Day of JMU Classic
HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball team suffered a pair of losses during the second day of the JMU Classic, hosted by James Madison on Saturday at Sinclair Gymnasium.
Villanova swept NSU by a 3-0 score in the morning match, winning 25-16, 25-23 and 25-20. In the second contest of the day in the late afternoon, the Spartans won the first set over Charleston Southern before the Buccaneers took the last three for a 3-1 victory over NSU.
CSU won by scores of 19-25, 25-22, 25-19 and 25-17.
Junior Jessica Johnson sparked NSU in the second match of the day, finishing with 15 kills as the Spartan offense continued to improve for the third straight contest. Freshman Hope Forsythe had a solid day as well. She had a match-high 14 kills against Villanova and added 12 in the loss to CSU.
For complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com
NCCU Volleyball Drops Two During Final Day of NCCU Invitational
DURHAM, N.C. – The North Carolina Central University volleyball team wrapped up the 2014 opening weekend, dropping an afternoon match to the Wofford Terriers 3-0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-17) before falling in the nightcap to the Valparaiso Crusaders 3-1 (25-14, 25-18, 23-25, 25-19) during day two of the NCCU Invitational, on Saturday, Aug. 30 in Durham.
In game one, the Eagles struggled to get things rolling early on dropping the first two sets 25-13 and 25-14.
NCCU relied on the consistency of senior Da'sha Brown (Gaston, S.C.) and junior Kelly Rossip (Port Charlotte, Fla.), as the duo combined for nine kills, on 22 attempts while only committing one error a piece.
A late rally in the third set, led by Rossip's back-to-back solo blocks, sparked the Eagles intensity, but NCCU was unable to close the gap on the Terriers 3-0 sweep.
For complete story, visit www.nccueaglepride.com
FAMU Volleyball opens season 0-3 in Miami Invitational
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (August 30) – The Florida A&M Women’s Volleyball team, playing valiantly despite being shorthanded, closed the University of Miami Invitational with losses to host Miami and Seton Hall by scores of 3-0 and 3-1, respectively.
In the finale against the Pirates, the Lady Rattlers were tied with Seton Hall after two sets, winning the second set 25-22 after falling in the opening set 15-25. This preceded the third and fourth sets which FAMU dropped by respective scores of 11-25 and 9-25.
Pamela Soriano led with 18 kills, Valeria Lopez dished out 26 assists, while Soriano and Joanie Del Castillo shared team high honors in digs with nine (9) each.
Opening the day against the hosting Hurricanes (14-25, 17-25, 15-25), Soriano led FAMU with 14 kills, followed by Tamar Fowler and Deija Martin with five kills each. Lopez led with 22 assists for FAMU, with Sydni Etheredge finishing with a team-high seven digs.
For complete story, visit www.famuathletics.com
Okpegbue Earns All-Tournament Honors as CSU Drops Pair
PHILADELPHIA – The Coppin State volleyball team knows its best is yet to come this season.
In the meantime, there will be heartbreaking moments like Saturday’s tough 3-2 setbacks to host La Salle and Manhattan on the second day of the La Salle Invitational at Tom Gola Arena.
Coppin State (2-2 overall) dropped a pair of tough matches it believes will yield fruit later in the season. Coppin State lost to La Salle 25-23, 24-26, 25-21, 19-25, 15-13. A few hours later, the Eagles fell to Manhattan 18-25, 13-25, 25-21, 25-22, 15-13.
Coppin State’s effort and energy was strong enough that if he were human, William Penn, the iconic 37-foot bronze statue who overlooks the city of Brotherly Love from atop City Hall, would’ve tipped his cap in the Eagles' honor as they headed home and down Interstate 95.
For complete story, visit www.coppinstatesports.com
Hornets Come Up Short in Syracuse Big Orange Tournament
DOVER, Del. (Aug. 30, 2014) --- Following a sweep from Syracuse, a five-set loss to Niagara highlighted the Delaware State volleyball team’s opening pair of matches at the Syracuse Big Orange Tournament on Saturday.
The Hornets held a 2-1 lead in the Niagara contest, but dropped the last two games to fall to the Griffs.
Delaware State won the first set 25-23. Niagara tied the match with a 25-14 win in game two. The Hornets regained the lead in the contest with a 25-21 victory in the third game before the Griffs forced a deciding game with a 25-14 win in the fourth set; and claimed the match by a 15-7 score in the final game.
DSU’s Jasmine Jackson (jr.) recorded a double-double in the Niagara contest, leading the team with 12 kills and collecting 17 digs.
In the match against Syracuse (25-20, 25-18, 25-16), Jackson led the Hornets with eight kills while Alliyah McBean (fr.) had a team-high seven digs.
For complete story, visit www.dsuhornets.com
UMES Drops 3-0 Decision to UMBC in Final Contest of Home Tournament
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – In the final game of The Hawks Holiday Hulabuloo, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball team dropped a 3-0 decision to the University of Maryland Baltimore County at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center on Saturday night. The decision gives UMBC the championship of the event, where the Retrievers swept the competition and went 4-0. Junior Ashley Smith (Huntley, Ill.) was named to the All-Tournament Team following the conclusion of the match.
UMES (1-3) dropped both of its decisions on Saturday as the women fell to South Dakota State by the same decision earlier in the day. Senior Ksenia Sukhareva (Moscow, Russia) led the Hawks with 10 kills and six digs, while sophomore Precious Manu (Carson, Calif.) had 15 assists and seven digs. Sophomore Allison Woods (Magnolia, Tex.) had a game-high 11 digs as UMES held a 32-21 advantage in digs.
Hawks Comeback Falls Shy Against Jackrabbits
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - In its third matchup on the young season during the Hawks Holiday Hullabaloo, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) volleyball team fought with valor against a tough squad from South Dakota State (SDSU). Trailing in each set, the Hawks mounted defiant comebacks in two of them, but each were thwarted by the Jackrabbits, who ultimately took the set 3-0 at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center earlier this afternoon.
The momentum of the game swung at the conclusion of the first set. After a timeout by UMES with the score 20-17 in favor of the Jackrabbits, the Hawks saw the deficit climb to 22-17 on an ace by SDSU's Margit Hansing. However, following an error on the subsequent serve, the Hawks seized control with libero sophomore Allison Woods (Magnolia, Tex.) leading the charge at the serve position. The Hawks went on a 4-0 run with help from a joint block by senior Lauren Berry (Bloomington, Ill.) and sophomore Haley Robinson (Honolulu, Hawaii) along with a kill by junior Ashley Smith (Huntley, Ill.). The teams traded points to run the score to 24-22 SDSU before Smith and Robinson rallied the Hawks with two kills to tie the score.
For complete stories, visit www.umeshawks.com
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