Box Score DOVER, Del. – With each set, kill, dig and subsequent victory, Coppin State's wonderful senior quartet of
Cindy Okpegbue,
Chelsee Sauni,
Denali Sturgeon and
Kendra Ireigbe will continue adding accomplishments to their historic careers while raising the bar of excellence for the volleyball program.
They may be focused on bigger goals and team accomplishments, but they did pause to acknowledge the significance of Coppin State's 3-0 dismissal of Delaware State in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) match at Memorial Hall Friday night. The Eagles cruised to victory 25-9, 25-18, 25-16 to improve their overall record to 6-9 and conference mark to 3-1.
That triumph was the 46th in the awesome careers of Okpegbue, Sauni, Sturgeon and Ireigbe, making them the winningest class in Coppin State volleyball history. They surpassed the total of 45 victories set by last year's graduating class of
Nicole Malave-Adams,
Kandace Thomas,
Ariel Richard and
Gabrielle Otero.
"To be able to come in and help turn the program around and achieve all of these historical marks is a really good feeling," Sturgeon said. "I am really proud of us. We came in with such a young team. Our expectations were to improve everyday, but we never expected to do as well as we did."
If the Mount Rushmore monument was on Coppin State's campus instead of South Dakota, the faces of Okpegbue, Sauni, Sturgeon and Ireigbe would be sculptured into the gray granite as a lasting symbol of their consistent brilliance during their distinguished careers. Sauni and Ireigbe are program record holders in their specialty areas of assists and blocks, respectively.
Meanwhile, Okpegbue moved past Brittany Arvin and into second place all-time in program kills during a dominant first set, which saw Coppin State sprint to leads of 7-0 and 16-4. Though the second and third sets were competitive, Coppin State was never in any danger of veering off course even when it trailed 7-5 early in the second set.
"It feels great because coming in as freshmen we didn't know what to expect," Okpegbue said. "To achieve an accomplishment like this makes us feel really good and makes us feel like we improved Coppin State volleyball. Our expectations when we came in here was to make small adjustments, but we didn't really know our talent. To come in and surpass everybody's expectations is just a great feeling."
The triumph helped Coppin State first-year head coach
Kyetta May conclude a wonderful day even if she didn't get a chance to taste the delicious feast she cooked for her family prior to arriving to campus. She enjoyed the desert that her team's performance provided her so much that she didn't use a timeout during the match and used all 10 players on the roster.
The seniors shined as usual with Okpegbue finishing with 10 kills, the 52
nd time in her career she finished with double digit kills in a match. More impressive was Okpegbue's efficient and effective .412 hitting percentage. She was one of three CSU players with at least 10 kills as sophomore
Bailee Jackson had a team best 11 kills and freshman
Samantha Polk adding 10 kills.
Sauni delivered 29 assists while Sturgeon had five blocks.
During their careers, Okpegbue, Sauni, Sturgeon and Ireigbe have helped revive the Coppin State program and turn it into one of the best in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They participated in the MEAC Tournament championship as sophomores and advanced to the semifinals last season. Along the way, there's been plenty to celebrate like a school record win total in 2013, a program record eight-match winning streak, defeating teams for the first time and winning in hostile environments for the first time in 10 years. There's more but that's for another day.
"When the season is over, we'll probably pay more attention to what we have accomplished," Sturgeon said. "Right now we're so focused on the rest of our season and the team aspect. Definitely it's going to be nice to look back and show our families what we done during our four years here."
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For now, they want more and are hungry to bring a championship to Coppin State.
However, their immediate focus is Maryland Eastern Shore Saturday afternoon at home in a key match beginning at 3:00 p.m. UMES swept Morgan State, 3-0, Friday night to force a four-way tie for first place with Coppin State, Morgan State and Howard.
