NORFOLK, Va. (Oct. 15, 2023)--The Morgan State volleyball team returned to action on Sunday afternoon with a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) contest at Norfolk State. The Bears would fall, 3-1 (21-25, 18-25, 25-21, 23-25) at Gill Gymnasium. It was Morgan State's first contest in a two-week span.
 
Norfolk State improved to 6-8 overall, 5-2 in the MEAC, while Morgan dropped to 5-14, 1-4 MEAC.
 
The Bears were paced by Justyus Jackson, who finished with 11 kills and had four total blocks, including two solo. Makila Billingsley added 10 kills, eight digs, three service aces and two blocks. Gabriela Hiciano finished with 19 digs, while Trinity Carruthers had 19 assists and Mya Karrick had 15 assists, five digs, an ace and a kill.
 
Trailing 2-0 after two sets, Morgan State got back in the match with a 25-21 Set 3 victory. The Bears recorded just nine kills and had six attack errors in the set. However, 13 Norfolk attack errors, helped Morgan's cause. Tied 17 all, Morgan would score the next two points to take a 19-17 lead, which it would not relinquish. After a kill by Norfolk's Gabrielle Gilbert cut the Bears' lead to 21-20, Morgan countered with a 3-0 run to go up 24-20. Billingsley slammed the door with a kill to give Morgan the 25-21 set win.
 
In Set 4, Morgan State appeared as if it would force a fifth and decisive set. After fighting through 10 ties in the set, the visiting Bears held a 19-17 advantage following a kill by Ainara Fernandes. But the Spartans would score five straight points to take a 22-19 lead. Shonte Seale would close out the set and match with a kill to give the host Spartans the win.
 
The Spartans were led by Gilbert, who recorded a double-double with a match-high 21 kills and 11 digs. Seale had 10 kills and Fabiana Mucciola led Norfolk State with a match-high 24 digs. Sydney McCree, who reached the 1,000-assists plateau today, tallied a match-high 32 assists.
 
Morgan State recorded 46 kills, but hindered its chance with 33 attack errors, leading to a team hitting percentage of .089. Despite finishing with eight service aces, the Bears also had 14 service errors.
 
Norfolk State finished the afternoon with 45 kills and 26 errors for a .126 attack percentage. The Spartans also finished with three aces and six serving errors.
 
Morgan State will be back on the floor on Wednesday, Oct. 18 when it hosts Howard in a rescheduled match, which was originally to take place Oct. 6 for Homecoming. First serve is at 6 p.m. at Hill Field House.


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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, 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.