Photo of Tayah Little, Kamren Harper and Kayden Cupid courtesy of Doug Burt.)
Courtesy of North Carolina Central Athletics
DURHAM, N.C. – The North Carolina Central University volleyball team needed only three sets (25-16, 25-19, 25-20) to knock off South Carolina State University on Friday at home in McDougald-McLendon Arena.
The Eagles (4-14) snapped a five-match skid, claiming their second conference victory this season.
The trio of Kamren Harper, Kayden Cupid and Tayah Little combined for 28 kills on the evening. Bella Dearinger set 32 assists for her team and Neira Joldic recorded four service aces as the team combined for 12 in the match.
On defense, Gabriela Felix-Baeza had a match-high 14 digs. Summer Campbell and Little each had 2 solo blocks.
Head coach Jody Brown was glad to be home and tighten up on the service game.
“We’ve been traveling on the road so much that once we got comfortable back in our gym we could practice and get a little better on our serving,” said Brown. “Both our serving and serve receive were absolutely fantastic; that’s the difference in the match.”
South Carolina State was led by Xaria Pickett in kills (9) and Kaia Barnett had 18 assists.
How It Happened
Powerful serving steered the Eagles in the first set as NCCU never trailed to win 25-16. The Maroon and Gray served up five aces in the set. NC Central opened its biggest lead, nine points, to finish off the set.
After their win in the first set, NCCU put themselves on the cusp of a sweep with a 25-19 victory in set number two. The Eagles led from the first point on in the set to triumph. North Carolina Central opened up as much as a seven-point lead at 12-5 before closing out the set.
The Eagle offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza. NCCU’s front row had a solid defensive performance, blocking four South Carolina State attacks taking the 2-0 match lead.
NC Central closed the match in a 3-0 sweep after taking set three 25-20. NCCU took the lead for good at 10-9 in a set that showcased three lead changes. The Eagles’ offense also got a boost from three aces in the stanza. North Carolina Central’s front row had a solid defensive performance, blocking four South Carolina State attacks in the stanza.
The Eagles won’t have to play their usual Sunday afternoon MEAC match this weekend and will return to the court on Friday, Oct. 25 on the road at Norfolk State University.
