BALTIMORE, Md. (Aug. 26, 2026)--The Morgan State volleyball team will open the 2026 campaign on the road this weekend when the Bears travel to Bethlehem, Pa., to compete in the Lehigh Steel Classic (Aug. 28-29), hosted by Lehigh. The Bears will face Cleveland State in the season opener on Friday, Aug. 28. On Day 2, Morgan State will face Gardner-Webb on Saturday morning, before closing out the tournament against host Lehigh. The Lehigh match will air live on ESPN+.
 
Morgan State last visited Lehigh in 2013 for the Crosstown Invitational. The Bears would hold off the host Mountain Hawks in five sets on the opening day.
 
This weekend's matches will serve as a homecoming for Morgan State head coach Xiomara Ortiz, who spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Lehigh. Despite getting married around the area, Ortiz hasn't returned to the campus since she left, following the 2020 season and is looking forward to being back.
 
"I'm really excited. It's a unique gym space. I think it does replicate a little bit of what we see in like a Norfolk or certain gyms," said Ortiz of Grace Hall. "They're going to be competition, and I always enjoyed seeing where that program has leapt since I've been gone. With the new coach (Shawn McLaughlin), he's knowledgeable and doing good things with the program but I'm ready to compete against him. I want to win, so hopefully we'll be good competition. I want to get some wins in Grace Hall."
 
MORGAN AGAINST THE FIELD: Morgan State volleyball is a combined 6-7 against this weekend's opponents (Cleveland State, Gardner-Webb and Lehigh), having recorded wins against both Gardner-Webb and Lehigh. Cleveland State holds a 3-0 mark against Morgan State. The Vikings won the last meeting over the Bears, 3-1 in the Cleveland State/Akron Invitational (9/9/22). It was the Bears' first set win over Cleveland State in the series' three meetings…Gardner-Webb: Morgan State holds a 3-0 series lead over the Bulldogs. The two last met in the Patriots Invite (9/20/24), a five-set win for the Bears. The last two meetings have gone five sets…Lehigh leads the all-time series, 3-4. The two schools last met in Baltimore in the 2024 season- and home-opener in the Morgan/Towson Invitational (8/30/24). The Mountain Hawks would win in four sets.
 
OPENING SERVE: Morgan State improved to 10-23 in season openers since the 1993 season, following last year's season opening 3-0 win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (8/29). It was the Bears' first opening day victory since a 3-2 win at home against Seton Hall in the opener of the Morgan/Towson Invitational (8/30/19).
 
NEXT UP: The Bears return home for their home season opening weekend (Sept. 4-6) at Hill Field House. Morgan State will welcome Saint Peter's for the season opener on Friday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. The Bears will take on Loyola Maryland in a battle of Cold Spring Lane on Saturday at 4 p.m., before wrapping up the weekend against another local foe Towson, on Sunday at 2 p.m.
 
LAST TIMEOUT: Third-seeded Morgan State concluded the 2025 season with a 3-0 loss to the sixth-seeded Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks in the quarterfinal round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Volleyball Tournament. Playing in her final collegiate match, senior Daniela Ferreira led Morgan with 13 kills, while adding eight digs, two assists, an ace and a block. Sophomore Aubrey Wilson hit .700 with seven kills, three blocks and a dig. Junior Mya Karrick and freshman Isabelle Brown each recorded a team-high 12 assists and Karrick added six digs. Freshman Tameary Wardlaw led the team with 11 digs and had three assists and a kill.
 
FOLLOW THE BEARS ON TWTTER: Morgan volleyball fans can follow the Bears on Twitter. Check out regular updates on the team which will feature live tweets from games and on road trips. To follow the Morgan State Athletics Twitter page visit Twitter.com/MorganStBears.
 
MORGAN PICKED FOURTH IN MEAC PRESEASON POLL: Morgan State was picked to finish fourth this season in the eight-team Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) preseason poll, as voted by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. Last season the Bears were picked to finish sixth and ended the season in third place, their highest league finish since the 2019 campaign.
 
COACH ORTIZ RETURNS TO LEHIGH: Morgan State head coach Xiomara Ortiz spent four seasons at Lehigh University as the primary assistant coach for coaches Alexa Keckler (2018-20) and Bob Bertucci (2017), as a defensive and libero coach with the Mountain Hawks. Ortiz, who also served as Lehigh's recruiting coordinator – serving as the school's first contact with prospects and club directors. Her national recruiting efforts resulted in 11 new commits to the Mountain Hawks over a two-year span. While at Lehigh, Ortiz was also an advisor to Lehigh's Student-Athletes of Color (SAOC) leadership group.
 
LOOKING TO STAY UNBEATEN: Morgan will look to add to its perfect 3-0 record and remain unbeaten against Gardner-Webb. The two teams will meet on Day 2 of this week's Lehigh Steel Classic on Saturday, Aug. 29 in Bethlehem, Pa. The Bulldogs are the lone team on the schedule this season that Morgan State has previously played and never lost to.

WILLIAMS, WARDLAW NAMED AS LEADERS: Senior Jada Williams and sophomore Tameary Wardlaw have been named as this season's leadership council. Williams, who enters her fourth season at Morgan State, was named to the 2025 All-MEAC first team after leading the MEAC in attack percentage (.348) and finishing fifth in blocks with 79. A native of Fredericksburg, Va., she currently ranks fifth all-time on the Morgan charts with 286 career blocks. A native of Miami, Fla., Wardlaw averaged a team-leading 2.08 digs per set, finishing with 193 digs, 46 assists, 10 service aces and three kills last season.
 
TOURNAMENT EXPOSURE: The Bears will take part in three regular season tournaments this year. Following this weekend's Lehigh Steel Classic, the Bears will host the Battle of Beltway (Sept. 11-13). Morgan State will conclude its non-conference slate with a trip to Athens, Ohio to compete in the Bobcat Invitational (Sept. 18-19) hosted by Ohio University.
 
SOMEONE NEW: Morgan State will square off against two first-time opponents this season, when the Bears face host Ohio (9/18) and Mercyhurst (9/18) in the Bobcat Invitational (Sept. 18-19) in Athens, Ohio.
 
WILLIAMS MOVING UP BLOCKS LIST: Senior middle blocker Jada Williams enters the season ranked fifth all-time at Morgan State with 291 career blocks. The Fredericksburg, Va., native is 22 blocks away from passing Tiffany Pickens (312 from 1995-98) for fourth on the career charts.
 
WEEMS NAMED SEMIFINALIST ARTHUR ASHE FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Senior Tyrah Weems was a semifinalist for the 2026 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars Female Athlete of the Year. Students named Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars must maintain at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average, be at least a sophomore academically and participate in community service. Over 900 scholar-athletes were nominated.

MSU WINS 2026 DITSALA CUP: Seven members of the Bears' volleyball team (Tameary Wardlaw, Hanna Nemeth, Jada Williams, Isabelle Brown, Daniela Ferreira, Aubrey Wilson and Tyrah Weems), along with head coach Xiomara Ortiz, represented Morgan State and the MEAC this summer participating in the third annual Ditsala International Cup in Botswana (June 1-13). The premier women's volleyball tournament brought together collegiate student-athletes from the United States with national teams from across Southern Africa. They spent time in Botswana taking part in clinics, training sessions, community engagement and got to experience safaris and explore Southern Africa. On the court, Team Morgan would go undefeated with wins over the Botswana and Zambia National Teams, before capping it off with a thrilling five-set gold medal match victory against Team HBCU, whose roster was comprised of fellow Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) athletes and two from predominately white institutions.
  
WELCOME TO THE CAVE: Morgan State welcomes the addition of seven newcomers to the 2026 squad, three transfers: Azra Arslanoglu (Mugla, Turkey), Kira DeVrieve (Chapel Hill, N.C.), Tre'Niya Miller (Greensboro, N.C.), Nathalia Morais (Brasilia, Brazil), Michaela Panekova (Zilina, Slovakia) along with two freshmen in Bailey Swinton (Odenton, Md.) and Alaina Walker (Charlotte, N.C.).
  
2026 MEAC CHAMPIONSHIP: This year's MEAC Volleyball Championship will take place November 20-23 in Baltimore at the Physical Education Complex on the campus of Coppin State University.
 
WILLIAMS NAMED TO 2025 ALL-MEAC FIRST TEAM: Jada Williams led the Bears this season with an attack percentage of .350, service aces (32) and blocks (79), including 31 solo blocks. She totaled 187 kills, 48 digs and 22 assists. A native of Fredericksburg, Va., Williams would also finish the regular season leading the MEAC in attack percentage and was fifth in blocks and ninth in service aces. Williams, who currently ranks fifth all-time at Morgan State with 286 career blocks, set a career-high 10 blocks this season at Maryland Eastern Shore (11/9).
 
FERREIRA NAMED TO 2025 All-MEAC SECOND TEAM: A native of Lisbon, Portugal, Ferreira ranked sixth in the MEAC in both kills (3.02) and points (3.26) per set. She led the Bears in kills (266) and was second in service aces with 28, while recording 142 digs, 14 assists and 29 blocks. Ferreira reached double figures in kills 14 times, including setting a career-high 23 kills at Howard (9/28). Ferreira's 17^th kill in the match against Howard, gave her 1,000 kills for her collegiate career.
 
BROWN NAMED TO 2025 MEAC ALL-ROOKIE TEAM: Brown assumed the setting duties and totaled 595 assists, which was third in the MEAC. A two-time MEAC Setter of the Week selection, Brown averaged 7.26 assists and 1.89 digs per set. The Avon, Ind. native, hit .250 with 44 kills, was third on the team in digs with 155 and totaled 23 service aces and 21 blocks. Brown produced three double-doubles and reached double figures in assists in 21 of the 24 matches she played, including a season-best 49 assists against Southern (8/30).
 
FERREIRA NAMED TO 2025 MEAC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Daniela Ferreira concluded her career at Moran State being named to the All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament Team. It was the second consecutive season she earned the honor. With her 2024 selection, Ferreira became the first all-tournament team selection under head coach Xiomara Ortiz and the first Bear player since Zoe McBride and Tylar Roberson were named in 2019. A native of Lisbon, Portugal, Ferreira finished with a match-high 13 kills, eight digs, two assists, a block and an ace in Morgan State's quarterfinal loss to Maryland Eastern Shore (11/20).
 
EIGHT NAMED TO MEAC ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM: Morgan State had eight players (Jada Williams, Mya Karrick, Hannah Chappelle, Daniela Ferreira, Tyrah Weems, Mikaela Esparza, Selah Brashear and Aubrey Wilson named to the MEAC Volleyball All-Academic Team during the 2025-26 school year.
 
BLOCK PARTY: Last season the Bears out blocked 20 of their 29 opponents. Morgan State would lead the MEAC and finished the 2024 campaign ranked 95th in the nation among NCAA Division I teams in blocks with 260.5. Jada Williams also led the MEAC in blocks with 118.
 
LET'S GO FIVE: Last season Morgan State went the distance in five matches, recording a 2-3 mark. The previous season, the Bears played in 10 five-set matches during the 2024 campaign, winning only two of them.
 
 
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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.