HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team dropped both of its Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) matches over the weekend, falling at Morgan State in straight sets on Friday, before losing to Delaware State at Holland Hall on Sunday afternoon.
Hampton fell in a competitive match on Sunday, as Delaware State won 3-0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-22) in Holland Hall to go to 5-1 in MEAC play. The Lady Hornets won with 28 kills and 21 errors in 124 team attacks for a .056 hitting percentage, while also holding a 7-3 advantage in service aces. The Lady Pirates finished with 31 kills and 31 errors in 128 attacks as a team.
After a tight first set, Delaware State jumped out to a large lead in the second set before the Lady Pirates went on a run to tighten things up, even taking a couple leads.
Mianna Armstrong (Lomond, Alberta) led the Lady Pirates with eight kills on the afternoon, with Aaryn Harrison (Cary, N.C.) adding seven and Ornela Cadavid (Cali, Colombia) chipping in six. Cadavid had just three errors, recording a .214 hitting percentage in 14 attacks.
The Lady Pirates' service aces came from Armstrong, Lihi Elkayam and Adriana Vazquez (Rio Grande, Puerto Rico), who each had one.
Elkayam (Misgav, Israel) had 15 of Hampton's 28 assists, with Mika Chow (Rocky Mountain Home, Alberta) picking up 10. Ivana Suput (Zitiste, Serbia) led the way on defense with 20 digs, while Armstrong added 16.
Cassandra Joyner, the reigning MEAC Player of the Week, led the Lady Hornets with eight kills, while Sarah Wheatcroft added six.
Morgan State defeated Hampton 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-20) Friday evening at Talmadge Hill Field House thanks to 36 kills and just 11 errors in 110 attacks for a team hitting percentage of .227. The Lady Bears hit .282 in the third set, recording 12 kills and one error in 39 attacks, while also recording a .256 hitting percentage in the first set with 14 kills and just four errors.
The Lady Pirates hit .217 as a team with 41 kills and 16 errors, recording a .258 hitting percentage (12 kills, four errors, 31 attacks) in the second set and .233 (16 kills, six errors, 43 attacks) in the opening set of play.
Junior Brittany Wynne (Sacramento, Calif.) led the Lady Pirates with 12 kills, while Armstrong had 11. Cadavid led the Lady Pirates with a .583 hitting percentage after recording seven kills in 12 attacks with no errors. Wynne also had Hampton's lone service ace on the night.
Elkayam had 23 of Hampton's 34 assists, with Chow adding another six. Suput and Armstrong tied for the team lead in digs on defense, with each player recording 18. Wynne, Elkayam and Harrison each added five digs.
Ivanti Bush and Erin Cox each led Morgan State with 10 kills; Christa Rogers had 27 assists for the Lady Bears.
The Lady Pirates (7-16, 2-4 MEAC) will return to action on Friday, when they will play host to Coppin State at 6 p.m. before welcoming Maryland-Eastern Shore to Holland Hall Sunday at 3 p.m. For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.
