BALTIMORE, Md. (Sept. 24, 2016)-Decked out in their brand new alternate orange jerseys and playing in front of an energetic home crowd, the Lady Bears volleyball team earned their first win of the season, following a 3-1 (13-25, 25-23, 27-25, 25-20) Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Northern Division victory over visiting Hampton on Friday night at Hill Field House.
 
With the win, the Lady Bears ended a 15-match losing skid, dating back to last season's MEAC semifinals, and improved to 1-14, 1-0 in the MEAC. Hampton fell to 1-11, 0-1 MEAC. The contest was the MEAC opener for both teams.
 
Keana Browne appeared to have returned to her form from a year ago, as she led the Lady Bears with a season-best and match-high 16 kills, while hitting for a team-high .393 percentage on 28 attempts. Browne also led the Lady Bears with two blocks, including one solo.
 
"It seems like the last few matches we played she's played well and she played well for us tonight," said Morgan State head coach Ramona Riley-Bozier. "She put up some descent blocks and had a great hitting game. We know that we need Keana to be scoring for us if we want to have an opportunity to get ourselves to the MEAC Tournament."
 
Natashia Barker added 11 kills and Jasmine Hubbard tallied a match-high 13 digs for the Lady Bears. Roi Wallace set a new high in assists with a match-high 40, as Morgan State captured its third straight over Hampton and improved to 40-7 all-time in the series.
 
The Lady Pirates were led by Ellicott City, Md. native, Reeana Richardson, who recorded her first double-double of the season with 14 kills and 12 digs, both team highs. Lena Washington added 11 kills and eight digs, while Micah Leavell finished with 10 kills. Brianna Lilly totaled a match-high 40 assists. Sisters Ravyn Richardson and Reeana Richardson disrupted Morgan State hitters all evening. Ravyn recorded a match-high four blocks, while Reeana finished with three.  
 
On paper Hampton held the advantage over Morgan State in nearly every stat. The Lady Pirates finished with five more kills (50-45) than the Lady Bears, a .246 hitting percentage compared to .186 for the Lady Bears and four more assists (47-43). The visiting Lady Pirates also dominated Morgan State in the blocks category totaling 12, while the Lady Bears had just three.
 
Both teams recorded seven service aces for the match. Summer Humes led Hampton with three aces, while Reeana Richardson had two. Morgan State was led by Haley McClure, who finished with a match-high four aces.
 
The Lady Bears will host Norfolk State in a MEAC contest on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 3 p.m. at Hill Field House. The Spartans (2-10, 1-0 MEAC) defeated Coppin State in five sets on Friday.