Weekly Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team will close out the regular season on the road this weekend, taking on Delaware State on Friday at 6 p.m. in Memorial Hall, before taking on Maryland Eastern Shore on Sunday at 3 p.m. at the W.P. Hytche Athletic Center.

Coming into the weekend, the Lady Pirates (11-12, 6-4 MEAC) are in third place in the MEAC Northern Division, a game ahead of fourth-place Norfolk State. Delaware State (4-19, 3-7 MEAC) is in sixth place in the MEAC North coming into the weekend, while UMES (19-6, 10-0 MEAC) has already clinched the division's top seed.

UMES has also won 22 straight home matches, the fifth-longest streak among all Div. I teams.

The top four in each division advance to the 2011 MEAC Championships, which will be held Nov. 18-20 at the Physical Education Complex at Coppin State University in Baltimore, Md.

Hampton is coming off a three-set win over Howard this past Sunday in Holland Hall, the Lady Pirates' third win in their last six matches. Senior Mianna Armstrong (Lomond, Alberta) recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 11 kills and 12 digs, while freshman Krista Kraskura (Kuldiga, Latvia) added a team-high 12 kills and hit .276.

Delaware State has lost seven of its last eight matches following a four-set loss at Morgan State this past Sunday, while UMES has won 14 straight after beating Coppin State in straight sets.

The Lady Pirates lead the MEAC in team digs, averaging 13.38 per set, while also sitting third in the conference in team blocks with 1.64 per set. In conference play, Hampton is averaging 14.54 digs per set, the best in the MEAC, while also recording 2.00 blocks per set – the third-best average in the conference.

Hampton is only allowing teams to hit .193 this season, ranking fourth in the MEAC.

Sophomore Sheileen Pagan (Rio Grande, Puerto Rico) is third overall in the MEAC in digs with 286 – an average of 3.62 per set – and she sits second in the conference in MEAC play with an average of 4.78 digs per set.

Armstrong is ninth overall in the MEAC with 2.54 digs per set, and in conference play, her average jumps to 2.88 per set – 10th-best in the MEAC. Kraskura is averaging 2.97 digs per set in conference play, which is sixth-best in the MEAC.

Hampton is 31-12 all-time against Delaware State, snapping the Lady Hornets' nine-match winning streak in the series with a five-set win in Holland Hall on Oct. 16. Delaware State has won 12 of the last 14 in the series.

The Lady Pirates are 26-24 all-time against Maryland Eastern Shore, though UMES has won the last 13 meetings between the two teams — including a three-set win in Holland Hall back on Oct. 14. Hampton last defeated UMES on Oct. 25, 2005.

Head coach Pedro Gonzalez is 1-8 against Delaware State and 0-11 against UMES.

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.