Dina Beamon finished with a match-high 14 digs.
Morgan State 0, UMES 3
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. (Oct. 25, 2009)-Entering Sunday afternoon's Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) North Division match at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES), the Lady Bears were looking to start the second half of their MEAC slate on the right track, while searching for back-to-back wins for only the second time this season.
However, Morgan State's bid to accomplish both tasks came to an end, as Morgan State dropped a 3-0 (25-13, 25-20, 25-13) road decision to UMES in a MEAC contest at the W.P. Hytche Athletic Center.
While UMES is a long way from matching Morgan State's MEAC winning streak of 88 consecutive victories against North Division opponents or the MEAC mark of 97 straight conference victories, set by fellow MEAC South member and eight-time defending MEAC champion Florida A&M; the Lady Hawks over the last three seasons have proven to be the team to beat in the North Division.
The Lady Hawks (17-6, 6-0 MEAC) recorded their eighth straight win and earned their 31st consecutive MEAC North Division win. The win also completes a season sweep over Morgan State and is the Lady Hawks sixth straight win over Morgan.
Caylin Woodward tallied a match-high 11 kills and added seven assists, five digs and two blocks for the Lady Hawks. Christine Edwards added 10 kills for UMES, which as a team recorded 40 kills to Morgan State's 24 and had a hitting percentage of .309, while holding the guests to a hitting percentage of .000. Bella Jade Romero recorded a match-high 31 assists and six digs, while Rebecca Prado lead UMES with 10 digs. Karin Vikterlof added eight digs and notched four of the Lady Hawks' eight service aces.
Morgan State (7-19, 2-4 MEAC) fell behind 9-2 early in the first set and trailed 19-7, before trying to make things happen near the end of the set. The Lady Hawks extended their cushion to as much as 14 points (22-8), but the guests pulled within 23-13, before falling 25-13.
The Lady Bears came out strong and focused in the second set. Morgan scored the first two points and kept the contest close. UMES tied the match at 7-7 and regained control at 11-8. But the Lady Bears wouldn't go away, using a 7-5 run to pull within 15-16. However, the hosts countered with an 8-3 spurt of their own to take a 24-18 lead.
In the third and final set Morgan State held a 4-2 lead, before the Lady Hawks scored eight straight points to go ahead, 10-4. UMES extended its advantage to 22-11 and won the set 25-13.
Dina Beamon lead Morgan State with a match-high 14 digs, while Ivanti Bush led the team in kills with nine and added eight digs. Bush is now 15 kills shy of reaching the 1,000-kill plateau for her career. Erin Cox finished with six kills and had a team-high two service aces. Christa Rogers collected 20 assists and Dominique Bozier totaled two blocks for the Lady Bears.
Morgan State will look to get back in the win column, when it travels to Washington, D.C. next Friday, Oct. 30, to take on Howard in a MEAC North Division match. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Burr Gymnasium.
