PRINCESS ANNE, Md. (Oct. 17, 2021)-Madison Grace recorded a match-high 17 kills and Gabriela Hiciano and Makila Billingsley each added 10 kills, but it wasn't enough as the Lady Bears fell on the road to Maryland Eastern Shore, 3-1 (25-19, 25-27, 25-16, 25-22) on Sunday afternoon at Hytche Athletic Center.
 
Mackenzie Jefferson finished with a match-high 39 assists to go with six digs, two kills and a block assist, while Jadore Hayes collected a team-best 12 digs in the loss. Morgan State tallied 20 assisted blocks. Jasmin Perry led the way with five assisted blocks, while Melanie Battle and Hiciano both recorded four assisted blocks.
 
Morgan State (3- 1-6 MEAC) finished the match with 47 kills and hit .163 as a team. The Lady Bears hit a set-best .304 in the opening set with 11 kills in a 25-19 loss. Maryland Eastern Shore (9-9, 4-3 MEAC) would finish the opening set with 18 kills and hit .536 as a team.
 
In Set 2 the Lady Bears bounced back to even the match at 1-1 by recording a set-high 18 kills with an attack percentage of .279 to earn a 27-25 victory. Trailing 23-19, the Lady Bears rattled off five straight points to take a 24-23 lead. The Shore would score the next two points to take a 25-24 lead, following an ace by Derionah Abner. Morgan State would score the final three points to earn the 27-25 victory.
 
MDES finished the match with 60 kills and had a team attack percentage of .300. Maya Hendricks had a team-high 15 kills, while Marina Cruz and Abner added 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Jalynn Robinson tallied a double-double with 25 assists and 11 digs and Stella Johnson had a match-high 15 digs.
 
Charlize Williams recorded a match-high seven assisted blocks and Abner added six, as the Hawks totaled 22 assisted blocks in the match. MDES also totaled six service aces, but committed 11 service errors. Morgan State had six service errors, but only one service ace.
 
The Lady Bears return home for two MEAC matches during Homecoming weekend. First up for Morgan State will be a 4 p.m. contest on Friday, Oct. 22 against North Carolina Central (5-11, 4-3 MEAC). The Eagles defeated Morgan State, 3-1 in the first meeting in Durham, N.C. (9/24). It was NCCU's first win over the Lady Bears in the series' four meetings.
 
Morgan will conclude its two-match homestand on Sunday, Oct. 24 with its annual Homecoming contest on Sunday, Oct. 24 at 1 p.m. when it welcomes South Carolina State (0-17, 0-7 MEAC). The Lady Bears swept the Bulldogs earlier this season on the road in Orangeburg, S.C. (9/26) to remain unbeaten in 24 meetings against S.C. State.