BALTIMORE – Coppin State's volleyball team fell just short against league-leading Howard, falling 3-2 (25-19, 21-25, 25-21, 18-15, 15-7) on Sunday afternoon at PEC Arena. The Eagles fell to 14-15 overall and 10-3 in the MEAC while the Bison, who dropped their first sets in conference play this season, improved to 20-5 on the year and a perfect 13-0 in the MEAC.
With the loss, Coppin's home winning streak of 14 matches ended, establishing a school record.
Prior to the match, seniors
Sophia Bertotti Metoyer and
Ahzhi Coleman were recognized.
TaKenya Stafford notched another double-double with a team-high 14 kills on an impressive .406 hitting on 32 attempts, along with 18 digs and three blocks. A redshirt junior from Los Angeles, Calif., Stafford moved into a tie for sixth place with
Shauniece Steward ('05) on Coppin's all-time kills list with 738 in just two seasons with the Eagles. Stafford is just eight kills away from matching
Paola Caten ('23) for fifth on the all-time list.
Ezgi Kucuk followed Stafford with 12 kills on .290 swinging along with a couple blocks.
Sophia Bertotti Metoyer also eclipsed double-digit kills with ten while adding a career-high five aces to go with four blocks.
Ahzhi Coleman also had nine kills while hitting .333 and matched Bertotti Metoyer with four blocks.
Bertotti Metoyer eclipsed the 500 career kill mark and now has 501 in her career.
Also, on the offensive end,
Gabriela Zuquelo finished with six kills and eight digs, and
Deviana Walker tallied five kills with three blocks.
Azul Pilahg led Coppin setters with 26 assists and added six digs with two aces while
Kahea Carvalho recorded 24 assists and ten digs for a double-double. Carvalho also had a pair of kills on four attempts.
Coco Figueroa had a match-high 23 digs, two of which turned into kills.
Howard outhit Coppin, .294 to .250 with three players with 10+ kills, including Rya McKinnon with a match-high 22 on 57 swings.
In the opening set, Coppin took an early four-point lead as Stafford had three kills and a block over the first five points. Howard bounced back to tie the score at 13 before kills from Bertotti Metoyer and Walker gave the Eagles back the 15-13 advantage. The Bison responded with an 8-0 run to go up 21-15 and traded points the rest of the frame to take the opener.
Coppin used a series of runs to put some distance between the teams, leading by as many as 16-9 following a block from Kucuk and Bertotti Metoyer. Howard did not go away, pulling to within 23-21 before a pair of kills by Stafford tied the match at one set apiece.
Howard scored the first four points of the third set and Coppin was never able to tie the score. The Eagles did get to within 19-17 after a 4-0 run but were unable to get over the hump.
Coppin used an early 7-0 run to go up 10-4 in the fourth as Bertotti Metoyer recorded a kill and four aces. Three of the aces went back-to-back-to-back to finish the stretch. Howard got no closer than five points the rest of the way as CSU extended its advantage to as many as 23-13 after Walker led a stretch of four-straight points with two kills and a block.
The Bison scored five of the first seven points of the deciding set, but Coppin made it interesting with back-to-back points to cut the deficit to 5-4. A 7-1 run by Howard put the frame out of reach at 12-5 and the Bison closed it out with three of the final four points.
The Eagles close the regular season at Morgan State on Friday, November 15 at 6 pm. The MEAC Tournament will be held in Dover, Del., on November 22-24 as Coppin defends its conference crown.
