NORFOLK, Va. (August 25, 2020)-The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) released its preseason volleyball poll on Tuesday afternoon and Morgan State was picked to finish tied with Delaware State for third in the MEAC Northern Division as voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. This is the fifth consecutive season that the Lady Bears have been picked to finish third.
 
Howard was predicted to claim the Northern Division title, while the Aggies of North Carolina A&T State (N.C. A&T) were picked as the preseason favorite in the southern division. Edie Brewer of N.C. A&T State was selected as the MEAC Volleyball Preseason Player of the Year, presented by TowneBank.
 
Howard, which has won the last five MEAC volleyball titles, went 9-1 in league play last season to take another northern division crown. The Lady Bison, who are picked to do so again this season, tied a league-best 20 first-place votes and tallied a league-high 117 points.
 
Coppin State was picked to finish second in the MEAC Northern Division. The Eagles received 74 points, while Morgan State earned one first-place vote and tied Delaware State with 67 points for third.
 
Maryland Eastern Shore (65 points) and Norfolk State (one first-place vote) and 30 points, rounded out the division poll.
 
Florida A&M secured 10 first-place votes for 88 points, while Bethune-Cookman also had 88 points with five first-place votes to tie as the preseason favorites in the MEAC Southern Division.
 
In the Southern Division, defending regular-season champion North Carolina A&T State racked up 98 points and 20 first-place votes. Florida A&M (73 points) and Bethune-Cookman (57 points) were picked second and third, respectively, with each school picking up a first-place vote.  
 
North Carolina Central and South Carolina State wrapped up the Southern Division predicted order of finish.  
 
Last season the Lady Bears were also picked to finish third in the northern division and tallied an 18-13 overall mark and went 10-5 in MEAC action, including 6-4 in the MEAC North, which was good for second-place. After defeating Bethune-Cookman in the opening round 3-1, Morgan State would advance to the MEAC title match for the first time since 2006, following a five-set victory over N.C. A&T in the semifinal round. The Lady Bears would then drop a heartbreaking five-set decision to Howard in the MEAC final.
 
Morgan State returns 12 letterwinners and four starters from last year's team. In addition, the Lady Bears will welcome eight newcomers this year.
 
The fall 2020 season is currently slated to be played in the spring, pending conditions surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and NCAA scheduling guideline for fall championships being played in the spring.
 
The MEAC Media Relations office contributed to this release.

2020 MEAC Volleyball Preseason Predicted Order of Finish
(first-place votes in parenthesis)
 
 Northern Division
1. Howard (20), 117 pts.
2. Coppin State, 74 pts.
T-3. Morgan State (1), 67 pts.
T-3. Delaware State, 67 pts.
5. Maryland Eastern Shore, 65 pts.
6. Norfolk State (1), 30 pts.
 
Southern Division
1. North Carolina A&T State (20) 98 pts.
2. Florida A&M (1), 73 pts.
3. Bethune-Cookman (1), 57 pts.
4. North Carolina Central, 52 pts.
5. South Carolina State, 20 pts.

2020 MEAC Volleyball Preseason Team
Preseason Player of the Year: Edie Brewer, North Carolina A&T State
 

Name	Pos.	Cl.	School	Hometown
Jordan Jefferson	OH	Sr.	Bethune-Cookman	San Antonio, Texas
Miajavon Coleman	OH	Jr.	Coppin State	San Antonio, Texas
Ashley Roman	L/DS	So.	Coppin State	Isabela, Puerto Rico
Tamar Wells	MB	So.	Howard	Apoka, Fla.
Jurnee Tipton	OH	Jr.	Howard	Ypsilanti, Mich.
Edie Brewer	S/RS	Sr.	N.C. A&T State	West Chester, Ohio
Courteney Pitt	OH	Sr.	N.C. A&T State	Farmville, N.C.

About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference  
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) celebrates its 50^th year of intercollegiate competition with the 2020-21 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of 11 outstanding historically black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Bethune-Cookman University, Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Florida A&M University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University.  
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 100 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.