Morgan State University Athletics

BALTIMORE, Md. (Oct. 9, 2026)--The Morgan State Bears took the court Friday evening at the Hill Field House and swarmed their Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) rival, the Delaware State Hornets in a thriller, 3-2 (18-25, 25-20, 25-133, 19-25, 15-10) in Morgan's annual Pink Match as well as Homecoming contest.
 
The contest was the Bears' third consecutive five-set match, while the victory provided Morgan its first winning streak of the season. 
 
Morgan State improved to 4-13 on the season and 3-2 in conference play, while the loss dropped the Hornets to 12-7 and an identical 3-2 record within the MEAC. 
 
The Lady Bears won their last two sets against South Carolina State and continued that momentum early, taking a 4-1 lead in the first set. However, this was quickly erased by the Hornets by scoring eight straight points and never surrendering the lead after that. They proceeded to win the first set 25-18. Throughout the first set Delaware State posted a staggering .387% hitting percentage, which would be their highest of the match. 
 
The second set was a back-and-forth affair, but the Bears would bounce back taking this one 25-20. When the score was knotted up at 19, Sophomore Setter Isabelle Brown would get a kill that proved to be the driving force for the Bears. Morgan worked hard as team as they had a whopping four blocks inside of the set. 
 
This was just a sign of things to come for the Bears as the third set was all Morgan all throughout, a dominating 25-13 set win. Morgan would post its match high hitting percentage of .385, while also having three aces and matching four blocks from the set prior. Senior Jada Williams led the Bears through this frame with four kills and added an ace onto her spectacular performance. 
 
Delaware State then stung back in the fourth set, winning it 25-19 in which it had 14 kills. This would then force a winner take all fifth set. 
 
Morgan State came out swinging in this set going up 5-1 early and forcing the Hornets to use their timeout. A Hornets run would ensue, but it was not enough to stop the Bears. Senior Michela Panekova led the way with four kills in the set, including back-to-back kills to increase the Bears' total points from 10-12, and set the Bears up for victory.
 
Williams led the Bears in kills with 12 and .480 hitting percentage and had a season- and match-high eight blocks. Panekova acquired her fourth double-double of the season sporting 11 kills and 11 digs. Senior Hanna Nemeth, who was making her season debut, also joined in on the fun, finishing with 10 kills eight digs, while also being tied with Panekova with a team-high two service aces.
 
The Hornets were led by Aaliyah Mitchell who had 17 kills and two blocks. Jalia Dublin had a team-high five blocks to go with 10 kills, as well as a .316 hitting percentage. Courtney Nix finished with a match-high 19 digs. 
 
Both teams had nine service errors.
 
The Lady Bears will look to enjoy the homecoming festivities, before traveling to Princess Anne, Md., to take on the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks. This match will take place at 1 p.m. in the William P. Hytche Athletic Center and will air live on the MEAC Network. The Bears look to continue their win streak and end a two-match losing skid to the Hawks.
 
 
ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering more than 150 baccalaureate, master's degree, doctorate and certificate programs. 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.