Jeniqua Moran had a career-high 24 kills and added 18 digs in Thursday night's win at UMES.
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. (Nov. 9, 2006)-Jeniqua Moran tallied her sixth double-double, finishing with 18 digs and a career-high 24 kills, including the game match, while Ivanti Bush recorded her 13th double-double with 24 kills and 10 digs to lead Morgan State to a 3-2 (30-27, 26-30, 30-19, 30-32, 16-14) victory over Maryland-Eastern Shore in a non-conference match at Hytche Center on Thursday evening.
With the victory, Morgan State improved to 20-8, giving the program its 10th 20-win season and its first since the 2004 season. The win over UMES also gave the Lady Bears a perfect 10-0 mark against MEAC North Region teams this season. It was the first time Morgan swept the season series against its MEAC North foes since going 10-0 in 2002.
Moran and Bush were just two of four Lady Bears who earned double-doubles, as Esther Johnson totaled 11 kills and a career-high 25 digs, while Jentri Fullove notched a career-high 63 assists and added a career-high 14 digs. Camille Coleman and O’Tasha Williams had 11 kills each, as Morgan State finished with a season-high 83 kills. Ashley Preston finished with a season- and match-high 27 digs.
As a team, the Lady Bears set season highs in kills (83), total attempts (217), assists (76) and their 100 digs tied their outing at Saint Francis (Pa.) on Oct. 25. Morgan State finished with a .258 hitting percentage to the Lady Hawks’ .227 hitting percentage and also held an 8.5 to 7.0 blocking advantage.
Morgan State cruised to a 30-19 victory in the third game to take a 2-1 advantage, but Game 4 was back-and-forth, as neither team held more than a three-point cushion. The Lady Bears broke a 25-25 tie with two kills by Moran and Williams, respectively, to claim a 27-25 lead. The host Lady Hawks responded with a 3-0 run to pull ahead, 28-27. Twice the Lady Bears fought off game-point before UMES finally put them away on a block assist by Adora Luster and Holiday Eller followed by a kill by Melanie Durimel for the 32-30 victory.
The fifth and final game was a series of runs. Morgan scored the game’s first three points, but the Lady Hawks countered with four straight to pull ahead, 4-3. The Lady Bears took a 9-6 lead on a kill by Johnson, but UMES responded with a 7-4 run to even the game at 13 apiece. Coleman’s kill made it a match-point situation for Morgan, but the Lady Hawks tied the score at 14 all on an attack error by Moran. Moran and the Lady Bears regrouped, and Moran, who tallied six of Morgan’s 14 kills in the game, recorded the next two kills to give the guests the 16-14 win.
Maryland-Eastern Shore (17-14) was led by Durimel’s 20-kill performance. Eller had 18 kills and Luster and Caylin Woodward added 12 kills each. Woodward finished with a team-high 23 digs to record a double-double, while Stephanie Braxton added 22 digs. Yael Rozner also had a double-double with 56 assists and 14 digs.
The Lady Bears return to action on Saturday, Nov. 11, when they host Winston-Salem State for Senior Day at 2 p.m. at Hill Field House. The match will be the home finale for the Lady Bears and will mark the final home match for Morgan’s lone senior, O’Tasha Williams.
