Lady Bears sweep Hampton in season finale.
BALTIMORE, Md. (Nov. 7, 2010)-The Morgan State volleyball team entered Sunday evening's home and season finale with one mission on mind – defeat Hampton and advance to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship tournament. Aside from having to defeat the Lady Pirates, who like Morgan State, would also advance with a victory, the Lady Bears would have to also overcome the fact that they were entering the contest having gone winless in its previous seven home contests.
Behind Morgan State junior Erin Cox's match-high 12 kills and freshman #Ngebui (Natalie) Chafeh#'s 11 kills, the Lady Bears defeated visiting Hampton, 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-18) in a MEAC North Division match at Hill Field House to record their first home win of the season and more importantly secure a spot in the MEAC tournament.
Sunday's match marked the third consecutive season that the winner of the Morgan State-Hampton season finale would secure the fourth and final seed in the MEAC North Division and advance to the league tournament. With the win the Lady Bears (6-19, 4-6 MEAC) have eliminated Hampton from reaching the MEAC postseason tournament for the second consecutive year and improved to 34-2 all-time against the Lady Pirates.
“I am glad that we're going to MEAC [volleyball championship tournament] and I'm kind of glad for my daughter too [Dominique],” said Morgan State head coach Ramona Riley-Bozier, following the Lady Bears' sweep of Hampton. “I don't really like the fact of where we could be seeded at, which is fourth, but I'm happy we are going and anything can happen.”
Morgan State finished the match with 45 kills and tallied a season-high .263 hitting percentage. Jourdan Lemons collected 30 assists to go along with her seven digs and five kills on six attempts for a hitting percentage of .833. Sophomore "Ashley Johnson" also had a productive evening, contributing eight kills, six digs, two assists, a block and an ace. Dina Beamon notched a match-high 19 digs, while senior middle hitters Dominique Bozier and Shaundalyn Taylor closed out their home careers each recording four kills and three blocks on Senior Night.
Following the win, Riley-Bozier commented on each of her three seniors (Shaundalyn Taylor, Cheryl Savoy and Dominique Bozier), who played in their final home match at Hill Field House.
“It is just her second year (at Morgan State), but I think Shaundalyn has come in and done a pretty good job for us,” said Riley-Bozier. “Cheryl, watching her go from her freshman year to be where she's at right now is really good. She has really played well and played with a lot of passion and a lot of heart. What people don't know is that she has been a walk-on for all these years.”
“Dominique, it took time to get to the point of where we are today, it didn't happen overnight,” said Riley-Bozier on her daughter. “There have been times that it's got rocky and been times that she's been kicked off for different reasons, but this year she really stepped up for us. She has really done well for the year.”
Hampton (7-23, 3-7 MEAC) was led by Joana Kalfinova, who finished with eight kills and Petra Parros added six. Ivana Suput totaled 13 digs, while Juliana Chavez recorded 19 assists.
While Morgan State will have to wait for the official seedings to come out from the league office, at this time the Lady Bears have secured the fourth and final spot in the MEAC North Division and likely would be paired up against MEAC South Division leader and nine-time defending tournament champion, Florida A&M in the opening round.
The last time Morgan State and the Lady Rattlers met was during the semifinals of the 2007 MEAC tournament, which FAMU won, 3-0. The year before the two teams met in the MEAC title match with the Lady Rattlers also claiming a 3-0 victory.
“I think what we really need to do is get focus and we need to make sure everyone is holding themselves accountable on and off the court,” said Riley-Bozier on her team's preparation for the upcoming conference tournament. “We need to work a little harder in practice and hopefully everyone will realize that we still have a chance to win this, especially with all the different upsets that occurred.”
