Maryland Eastern Shore tops Norfolk State in four sets

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. — As the sun sets on the regular season the Hawks volleyball team will take plenty of momentum into their postseason play. That’s because after they honored four outgoing seniors, the players from Princess Anne earned a decisive 3-1 (25-23, 25-7, 19-25, 25-11) victory over the Norfolk State Spartans at the Hytche Center Friday night.

The win gives the Hawks a 22-6 record (9-3 MEAC) to close out the year. Norfolk State finishes their campaign at 4-21 (3-9 MEAC).

Seniors that were honored prior to the start of the match included student assistant Amanda Hanson along with setter Petra Jerabkova, outside hitter Ashley Smith and libero Andjela Reljic. Each one was given a warm reception by the Hawks faithful, their teammates and head coach Toby Rens.

Lucia Babic was the team leader in kills with 16 while Zuzana Ondruskova reached double figures with 12. Three players also reached double figures in digs, with the libero Andjela Reljic leading the way with 17, followed by Petra Jerabkova with 11 and Smith with 10. Fink delivered a solo block and four assists, earning a spot in over half the team’s blocks. Ondruskova’s four aces led the team, but overall the Hawks earned ten. UMES hit .312 for the match against Norfolk State’s average of .128.

Angie Darcus paced the Spartans with 15 kills, and three players delivered eight digs a piece for Norfolk State.

For complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com or www.nsuspartans.com

Resilient Lady Hornets Hold Off Lady Pirates

DOVER, Del. – A deciding fifth set was needed to determine a winner Friday night at Memorial Hall, as the Delaware State volleyball team (3-24, 1-11 MEAC) pulled out a thrilling 3-2 (25-21, 22-25, 25-21, 21-25, 19-17) victory at home over the Hampton Pirates (3-22, 3-9 MEAC) in its final Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) contest of the season.

With this win, the Hornets not only picked up their first victory since a 3-1 win over Quinnipiac on Sept. 5, but DSU avenged a 3-1 road loss last Friday at Hampton.

The Hornets finished with a .227 hitting percentage, whereas Jae Jackson (18) and junior Janessa Helu (11) tallied double figure kills.  Also, turning in a stellar performance was freshman Marisol Arredondo with a game-high 60 assists, while sophomore Alliyah McBean added a game-high 21 digs.

Coming up, the Columbia Blue & Red will look to close 2015 on a high note against Towson this Sunday at 1 p.m.  Earlier this season, Delaware State fell on the road to the Tigers on Aug. 30, 3-0.

For complete story, visit www.dsuhornets.com or www.hamptonpirates.com