BALTIMORE – Coppin State's volleyball team won its second MEAC Championship in the last three seasons with a 3-1 (25-21, 25-22, 18-25, 25-20) victory over Howard on Saturday night at PEC Arena. The Eagles (23-11) earned the conference's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament, which will be hosted at various campus sites beginning on December 4.
TaKenya Stafford, who was named the Tournament's Most Outstanding Performer, led the way with a match-high 16 kills on .387 hitting to go with 11 digs. A redshirt senior from Los Angeles, Calif., Stafford finished the Tournament with 39 kills on .266 hitting to go with 31 digs, three aces and five blocks.
Cherisse Atilano also finished in double figures with ten kills along with nine digs, followed by
Ayanna Pharoah with nine kills and three blocks. The Eagles also got seven kills apiece from
Ivanna Luna and All-Tournament Team recipient
Kayden Cupid. Cupid also matched
Ahzhi Coleman with four blocks to lead the Navy & Gold.
Setter
Azul Pilahg went over the 1,000 career assists mark in her two seasons at Coppin, tallying 27 assists with four digs and a pair of aces.
Andrea Serrano added another 15 assists and four digs as the Eagles outhit Howard, .256 to .203.
Coco Figueroa led all players with 15 digs.
The NCAA Selection show will air live on Sunday, November 30 with more details to follow.
