MORGANTOWN, W.V. – In a match that couldn't get any closer, Coppin State's volleyball team fell to Liberty, 3-2 (25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-13) on Thursday afternoon in the opening game of the WVU Invitational. The Eagles fell to 1-3 in the season while the Flames remained perfect at 4-0.
For the first time in nearly four years, Coppin had a pair of players with at least 20 kills as senior
TaKenya Stafford and freshman
Cherisse Atilano put up 21 kills apiece, tying Liberty's Paige Overcash for a match high. Stafford posted her four-straight double-double to open the season with 18 digs while Atilano finished a dig shy of one. Both players had three blocks while Atilano hit .318 to Stafford's .278.
The last time Coppin had a pair of players with at least 20 kills was on September 26, 2021, in a 3-2 loss at NC Central.
Paola Caten had 28 kills in that match while
Miajavon Coleman recorded 24 for Coppin.
Ammaarah Williams, who later played at Coppin, had 19 kills to lead NC Central that afternoon.
Gabriela Zuquelo also had double-digit kills with 11 on .280 swinging and she was followed by
Ahzhi Coleman and
Ayanna Pharoah with six kills apiece. Coleman and Pharoah combined for five total blocks as
Kayden Cupid chipped in with three kills and a team-high four blocks.
Three Eagles put up double-digit assists with
Andrea Serrano tallying a career-high 29 assists along with 16 digs, also a career-high, for her second-straight double-double.
Azul Pilahg dished out 17 assists with seven digs and libero
Coco Figueroa notched the second double-double of her career with a match-high 27 digs and 11 assists to go with a pair of aces. The trio, along with
Andrea Cintron who had seven assists, quarterbacked the offense to a .282 hitting percentage which was matched by the Flames.
Coppin had 69 kills to Liberty's 68, held an 87-61 advantage in digs and took advantage of 14 service errors by the Flames. Liberty out blocked Coppin, 12-8,
The match featured 28 tied scores and ten lead changes with 25 ties in sets two through four combined. Set four, which Coppin took, 25-22, saw seven ties and a match-high five lead changes.
Liberty took a commanding 8-3 lead in the decider, but Coppin rallied back to within 13-12 to force a Flames timeout. Stafford matched a LU kill after the break to pull back within 14-13 before the Flames sealed the match with a kill.
CSU will return to the WVU Coliseum when it plays North Dakota at 3 pm on Friday, September 5, in Day Two of the WVU Invitational.
