| DATE |
OPPONENT |
TIME |
| Friday, August 28 |
vs. William & Mary |
1:00 PM |
| Friday, August 28 |
vs. Kent State |
4:30 PM |
| Saturday, August 29 |
at Virginia Tech |
3:00 PM |
EAGLES DIGEST
- Coppin opens its 40th season of NCAA Division I volleyball with a trip to Blacksburg, Va., for the Hokie Invitational on August 28-29.
- The Eagles start the weekend classic against William & Mary and Kent State on Friday, followed by the host Hokies on Saturday. Coppin's match against the Hokies will air on ACCNX while live stats will be available for each match.
- CSU was picked to win the MEAC in the preseason poll after winning two conference titles over the last three seasons.
Coco Figueroa was named the Preseason Player of the Year while
Cherisse Atilano and
Kayden Cupid were also placed on the Preseason All-Conference Team.
- Head Coach
Tim Walsh enters his 10th season at the helm of the program and is the winningest coach in CSU history with a 145-125 (.537) record. In MEAC play, Walsh's teams have gone 85-32 (.726) over his nine seasons.
- Since 2022, Coppin has gone an impressive 89-44 (.669) overall and 49-7 (.875) in conference games.
- Among the top returners for the Eagles are MEAC First Team selections
Coco Figueroa and
Kayden Cupid along with MEAC Rookie of the Year and Second Team honoree
Cherisse Atilano. Figueroa was also the league's Defensive Player of the Year.
- Also returning are junior rightside hitter
Ivanna Luna along with classmates
Andrea Cintron (S),
McKenzie Parks (MH),
Aya Rawlins (DS) and
Deviana Walker (OH).
- Additions for the Eagles include 1st Team All-FCSAA selections
Eva Rovello (S) and
Pamela De Jesus Tejedor (OH) who played together at Hillsborough CC.
Rori Gray (MH), who did not play in 2025, was a C-USA All-Freshman Team selection at Louisiana Tech in 2024 while graduate student
Kendall Minta (MH/RS) played two seasons each at Bradley and Towson.
- Four freshman are all expected to make an immediate impact, led by
Nia Curry (OH),
Karina Diaz (DS),
Haley Holbert (S) and
Isabella Ortiz (OH/DS).
- The Eagles will play its first 15 matches away from the friendly confines of PEC Arena and will play at Navy's Kristen Dickmann Invitational next weekend.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
William & Mary is guided by first-year head coach Kellie Catanach Johnson who spent the last six years as an assistant at Duke, her alma mater, including the last three as the associate head coach. Her father, Chris, won four National Titles at the helm of the University of Tampa (D2) program. The Tribe, who finished 12-15 overall and 7-9 in the CAA, welcome a pair of DI transfers in libero Maya De Los Reyes (Oregon) and middle blocker Ally Bolden (UC Irvine), both graduate students. Three of its top four hitters return, including seniors Audrey Brcka and Katherine Arnason, along with starting libero Avery Horejsi and middle blocker Olivia Westfort.
Kent State recorded a 8-21 overall record while going 3-15 in the MAC under head coach Haley Eckerman. Four of the Golden Flashes top five hitters return from a year ago in Macie Moreland, Mercedez Brown, Nadia Miller and Adalynn Ginley, as does setter Christina Vigil. Ginley, Miller and Vigil were also the team's top blockers last season and five players who averaged over two digs a set also return. Among the top newcomers is D1 transfer Vanessa Imoh who was a Summit League All-Freshman selection in 2024 before transferring to UC Riverside.
After going 12-19 (4-16 ACC) last season, Marci Byers' Virginia Tech Hokies are looking up with eight returners, including Izzy Mishler who hit a team-high .349 last season. Camilla Brandlise and Reese Hazelton appeared in every set last year and the Hokies welcome pin hitters Destiny Walker (EIU) and Frances Torres-Esperanza (Colgate). Also new to the Hokies are two-time NJCAA National Champion Sara Gasparini, middle hitter Layla Moore (Cal State Northridge) and seven freshman.
CSU STORYLINES
Coppin State Volleyball By The Decade
1987-89 13-62 (.173)
1990-99 28-233 (.107)
2000-09 35-252 (.122)
2010-19 90-192 (.319) - Walsh took over in 2017
2020-pres. 116-61 (.655)
40 Seasons 282-800 (.261)
MEAC PRESEASON POLL
The defending conference champions were picked to repeat in the 2026 MEAC Preseason Poll. Receiving more than half of the first-place votes, Coppin was followed by Howard, Delaware State, Morgan State, UMES, Norfolk St, NC Central and South Carolina State.
Coco Figueroa was named the Preseason Player of the Year and was joined on the Preseason All-MEAC Team by teammates
Cherisse Atilano and
Kayden Cupid.
PUERTO RICO CONNECTION
Nearly half of Coppin's roster is from Puerto Rico as seven Eagles (
Cherisse Atilano,
Andrea Cintron,
Pamela De Jesus Tejedor,
Karina Diaz,
Coco Figueroa,
Ivanna Luna &
Isabella Ortiz) all list it as their hometown.
HELLO CHERISSE
Sophomore
Cherisse Atilano is a 'starling' in the making as evidenced by her freshman campaign which won her MEAC Rookie of the Year and 2nd Team All-Conference honors. Ranking second in the MEAC with 13 double-doubles to her teammate, Atilano led the league with 49 aces while ranking 8th in kills/set and 7th in both digs/set and points/set. Atilano was also 4th in total digs and 5th in total kills and points.
BIG SHOES FILLED AT LIBERO
Coco Figueroa came to Coppin in 2023, playing behind MEAC All-Time leader in digs, Ashley Roman, but its safe to say Roman's shoes have been well filled. Earning All-Rookie Team accolades in her first year, Figueroa has been a First Team All-MEAC the last two seasons and was also the MEAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2025. Figueroa now ranks 3rd in CSU history in digs and matches with 20+ digs.
PLAYING CUPID WITH NC CENTRAL TRANSFERS
Coppin has struck gold twice in a row with transfers from N.C. Central, this time with junior middle hitter
Kayden Cupid. In her first year at CSU after picking up All-Rookie Team honors in 2024, Cupid was a 2025 First Team All-MEAC and All-Tournament Team selection, ranking second in the league with 102 total blocks and third with a .313 hitting percentage.This comes after Coppin acquired Ammaarah Williams from Central in 2022 after she was a 1st Team All-MEAC selection in both 2020 and 2021. Williams was a 1st Team All-MEAC selection in 2022 and was an All-Tournament recipient in 2023.
BREAKOUT SOPHOMORE SEASON
After appearing just 11 sets as a freshman,
Ivanna Luna had a breakout sophomore season with 169 kills and 50 blocks. She came up big on the rightside in several matches, including a career-high 15 kills on 31 swings vs. Maryland. She posted 10+ kills in five other matches, including 11 in a 5-set win over Howard along with a career-high five blocks.
IT MUST RUN IN THE FAMILY
Several Eagles have close relatives who played collegiate sports at the highest of levels.
Nia Curry's father, Ron, was a 1,000 point scorer at Arizona/Marquette and two of her sisters played collegiate volleyball.
Rori Gray's father, Keith, was a four-year starter at American University, helping AU to a 2002 Regular Season Title in its first year in the Patriot League.
Karina Diaz' sister, Kenia recorded 2,200 digs in her career at Judson University and St. Ambrose, and her father, Secundino, played professional basketball in Puerto Rico.
TRADING HAWKS' UNIFORMS FOR EAGLES
Juniors
Eva Rovello and
Pamela De Jesus Tejedor played two seasons together at Hillsborough CC, and the pair will see major playing time this season. Rovello was a First Team All-FCSAA selection at setter while De Jesus earned the same at the pin for the Hawks who finished 13-13 last year. Despite the .500 record, HCC took eventual National Champion Miami Dade College to five sets with De Jesus going for 27 kills and 12 digs in the loss while Rovello put up 55 assists.
TWIN TOWERS
For the first time, Coppin could cause some troubles with their height in the middle. The Eagles brought in a pair of 6-foot-3 transfers in
Rori Gray and
Kendall Minta. Gray was a Conference USA All-Freshman Team selection in 2024 while
Kendall Minta played two years each at both Bradley and Towson. Minta earned Second Team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 2023, tallying over 200 kills on .282 hitting and 125 blocks.
2026 MEAC TOURNAMENT
For the second-straight year, Coppin will host the MEAC Tournament from November 20-22. All eight conference teams will participate with four quarterfinals matches on Friday, followed by the semifinals on Saturday and the Title match on Sunday. The winner of the Tournament will earn the league's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
