BALTIMORE, Md. (August 31, 2019)-The Morgan State volleyball team began the opening weekend of the 2019 season with a pair of five-set victories on Day 1 of the Morgan/Towson Invitational on Friday at Hill Field House. With the victories, the Lady Bears begin the season 2-0 for the first time since 1997, when they started 3-0 and captured the MEAC title.
 
Morgan State (2-0) defeated Seton Hall, 3-2 (28-18, 19-25, 25-23, 22-25, 15-5) to claim its first season opening victory since the 2011 campaign, before then defeating William & Mary, 3-2 (25-21, 21-25, 25-17, 26-28, 15-13) in the finale.
 
MSU's win over Seton Hall was the first over the Pirates in the series' three meetings and also marked the first time Morgan State has won a season opening match since 2011. The victory over William & Mary evened that series at 1-1.
 
Match 1 (Seton Hall)
After alternating victories the first four sets, Morgan State took control in the fifth and decisive set, by scoring eight consecutive points to close out the contest.
 
Sophomore Zoe McBride recorded a career-high 30 kills and added 13 digs to record a double-double in the win over Seton Hall. McBride would also add three blocks and two assists to lead the Lady Bears over the Pirates.
 
Junior transfer Tylar Roberson collected 16 kills and seven digs in her debut as a Lady Bear. Sophomore Jasmin Perry, who was also making her debut after missing last season due to an injury, totaled 11 kills to help Morgan State collect 71 kills for the match.
 
Roi Wallace finished with a match-high 58 assists, falling two shy of equaling her career high. Wallace also had seven digs and had two kills on two attempts. Junior transfer Jennevy Santos finished with a match-best 18 digs and added three assists, while fellow junior transfer Sophie Pajevic tallied five of Morgan State's six service aces.
 
Seton Hall (0-2) was led by Amada Rachwal, who hit for a team-high .625 with a team leading 11 kills and Reece Koehler added 10 kills and a team-best three solo blocks. Haylee Gasser recorded 14 digs to lead the Pirates. Elizabeth Sottung and Maggie Cvelbar totaled 11 and 10 digs, respectively.
 
Match 2 (William & Mary)
Zoe McBride and Tylar Roberson each had a match-high 18 kills and Mykaela Ross added 13 to lead the Lady Bears to a win over visiting William & Mary on Friday night.
The Tribe (1-1) held a 10-8 lead in the fifth set, but Morgan State responded with three straight points to trigger a 5-1 run and take a 13-11 advantage. After William & Mary evened the score at 13 all, McBride recorded back-to-back kills to give the Lady Bears the 15-13 victory.
 
Roi Wallace had a match-high 49 assists to go with 14 digs to record her first double-double of the season. McBride added 10 digs to earn her second double-double of the season. Jennevy Santos led the way with a match-high 22 digs.
 
The Tribe's Lauren Merrill fell shy of a double-double, finishing with a team-high17 kills and nine digs, while also adding three service aces and a team-high four blocks. Julia Brown had 11 kills and Anna Porter collected a team-high 20 digs.
 
The Lady Bears will conclude the tournament on Saturday against crosstown rival Towson in the final match of the evening. First serve will be a 6 p.m. at Hill Field House. It will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2012.