BALTIMORE – The Coppin State volleyball team dropped its second-straight MEAC match in five sets as the Eagles fell to North Carolina Central (13-25, 25-9, 22-25, 26-24, 15-13) on Sunday afternoon at PEC Arena.
The Basics
Final Scores: Coppin State 2, North Carolina Central 3
Records: Coppin State (6-12, 2-2 MEAC), North Carolina Central (3-14, 2-2 MEAC)
Location: Baltimore, Md. (PEC Arena)
Series History: North Carolina Central Leads, 4-3
First Set
- The opening frame was all Coppin State as they recorded 16 kills with zero errors to hit .667.
- CSU got out to a 8-0 start as Brianna Lang tallied five aces during the stretch.
- NC Central got on the board with a kill on an overpass to cut the score to 8-1, but the seven-point deficit was as close as the visitors got the remainder of the set as Coppin used another 4-0 run to pull away even more.
Second Set
- As good as Coppin was in the first, that's how North Carolina Central played in the set as they notched 15 kills without an error to hit .714.
- NCCU got out to a 8-1 run before a kill by Christa Johnson stopped the bleeding for Coppin.
- After trading points, NCCU put together a few mini-runs and closed the frame on a 13-3 run.
Third Set
- Coppin regrouped in the third set which belonged to Sydney Hicks who recorded six kills in the frame.
- After Coppin scored the first two points, NCCU came right back, taking a 6-2 lead to force a Coppin timeout.
- CSU slowly clawed its way back into the match and eventually retook a 14-13 lead with three kills by Hicks.
- Central came right back and regained a 18-16 lead before Coppin answered with three-straight to go back on top 19-18.
- A timeout by the visitors got NCCU back on track and it took a 22-21 lead. Following an error and a bad set by Central, it called another timeout.
- The teams traded service errors but Hicks notched back-to-back kills to give Coppin the set, 25-22.
Fourth Set
- The teams played virtually even for the first half of the set, but after an ace by Brianna Lang tied the score at 12-12, NC Central scored four-straight to go up 16-12.
- Coppin pulled within 22-20 to force a timeout and they regained a lead at 24-23 on a block by Christa Johnson and Lauryn Harrell to force match point.
- Central tied it up with a kill and following an ace, which forced a CSU timeout, took the set 26-24 with a kill.
Fifth Set
- Central used the momentum to go up 4-1 early in the fifth to force a timeout.
- Coppin responded with a 6-3 run to tie the score at 7-7, but an error gave Central an 8-7 lead as the teams switched sides.
- Miajavon Coleman tied it up with a kill and following a kill by Sydney Hicks as well as an ace by Paola Caten, CSU led 10-9 as Central called a timeout.
- Caten recorded another ace to put Coppin up 11-9.
- The teams traded points as Central call another timeout trailing, 12-10.
- NC Central got back-to-back kills to tie the score at 12-12 and then scored another two-straight to go up 14-12 and force a match-point.
- Hicks recorded a kill to pull within 14-13, but Central earned the victory with a kill.
Inside the Numbers
- Sydney Hicks led all players with 18 kills on 40 swings to hit .350 and was one of three Eagles players with double-digit kills. Hicks also added a pair of aces.
- Miajavon Coleman notched 15 kills and just missed a double-double with nine digs.
- Christa Johnson stayed hot, tallying 11 kills without an error to hit a five-set CSU-record .611. Johnson also recorded a team-high three blocks.
- Brianna Lang assisted on 51 of the team's 61 kills and added a career-high nine service aces and five digs as the Eagles hit .287 for the match. Her nine aces was a CSU-record for a five-set match.
- Ashley Roman was credited with a match-high 27 digs.
Up Next: Coppin is on the road for five-straight matches, starting with MEAC clashes at Norfolk State on Friday, October 11 and Howard on Sunday, October 13.
