Nov. 19, 2009
Game Notes | Live Audio
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - The University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball team (22-6, 10-0 MEAC) heads into the quarterfinals of 2009 MEAC women's volleyball tournament to take on Norfolk State (8-21, 3-5) Friday at 1 pm in Baltimore, Md.
NO. 1 UMES FACES NO. 4 NORFOLK STATE IN TOURNEY: UMES plays Norfolk State in the quarterfinals of the MEAC Tournament Friday at 1 p.m. at the Coppin Center. Since 1984, the Hawks have a 27-31 record in the conference tournament, including an 0-5 mark in the championship matches.
LAST TIME OUT: UMES SWEEPS: N.C. CENTRAL Last Saturday, the Hawks swept N.C. Central on Senior Day at Hytche Center. Christine Edwards led the way with 12 kills as UMES picked up its 22nd win of the season and 12th in non-conference play. The Hawks limited the Eagles to -.014 hitting percentage, their lowest opponets' percentage of the season.
NORFOLK STATE-UMES SERIES: UMES leads the series with Norfolk State, 14-0, since the 2002 season. The Hawks swept the Spartans in both meetings this season (at the Delaware State Invitational on Sept. 12 and at the UMES Invitational on Sept. 26.).
EDWARDS, ROMERO TAKE MEAC WEEKLY HONORS: For the fourth consecutive week, UMES earned at least one of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's weekly volleyball honors as Christine Edwards was named Player of the Week and Bella Jade Romero Rookie of the Week Monday for the second week in a row. Edwards had a .417 hitting percentage with one ace and one dig. Romero earned her fifth Rookie of the Week selection with 22 assists, five digs one ace and one kill.
OPPONENTS' HITTING PERCENTAGE .083 IN LAST EIGHT: The Hawks have limited their opponents an .083 hitting percentage in the last eight matches. UMES had held its competitior to below .100 from the floor in five of those contests and posted a season-low oppoents' hitting percentage (-0.14) Sunday against N.C.Central.
HAWKS RANKED 170 IN LATEST DIVISION I RPI: UMES is ranked 170th out of 330 in the latest Ratings Percentage Index for Division I volleyball teams as of Nov. 15. The RPI is a tool utilized by the NCAA selection committee when choosing NCAA Tournament participants. The Hawks are the second highest ranked MEAC school in the RPI (Florida A&M, 157).
HAWKS ON 13-MATCH WINNING STREAK: After losing two straight matches to Pittsburgh and Sacred Heart in late September, the Hawks have reeled off 13 wins in a row. During the stretch, they have won 39-of-40 games. The only game UMES lost was to Delaware State on Oct. 11. It is the second time in two seasons the Hawks have strung together at least 10 consecutive victories.
PROTECTING THE HYTCHE CENTER: The Hawks have a 21-1 record at the Hytche Athletic Center over the last three years. Their lone loss was the opener this season against Sacred Heart. In 2006, the Hawks went 10-4 at home. Therefore, UMES is 29-5 over the last four seasons at Hytche. The last time the Hawks lost to a MEAC opponent at home was on Nov. 9 vs. Morgan State (3-2).
35 STRAIGHT MATCHES OVER THE MEAC: The Lady Hawks have won 35 straight regular-season matches over MEAC competition. In 2007, the Hawks won 11 regular-season matches over the MEAC, dropping just seven sets. Last season, the Hawks won 11 regular-season matches over the MEAC, winning all 33 sets. This season, the Hawks have won 39 of 40 sets over MEAC opponents.
METIL EARNS 150TH CAREER WIN AT HOWARD: Third-year head coach Don Metil recorded his 150th career victory in a 3-0 win at Howard on Oct. 23 at Burr Gynasium. In eight seasons as a collegiate head coach, Metil is 156-104 and 71-19 in three seasons at UMES.
JOHNSON REACHES 1,000 CAREER KILLS: Hawks senior Whitney Johnson reached 1,000 career kills with nine against La Salle on Sept. 12. With 280 total this season, Johnson has 1,195 kills in her illustrious career at UMES. In 2007, Johnson had 525 kills en route to being named the MEAC Player of the Year. Last season, she recorded 387 kills.
WOODWARD PUTS UP TRIPLE-DOUBLE AGAINST DSU: Caylin Woodward posted the first triple-double of the season for UMES, recording 10 kills, 10 digs and 10 assists versus Delaware State at the Hytche Center on Oct. 30. Graduate assistnat coach Christine Estebane had the Hawks' only triple-double in the 2008 season.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS: Norfolk State comes into Friday's match having lost their last two regular-season matchups, both road contests at Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M. Elayne Greer leads the Spartans in kills with184, just edging out teammate Charlotte Armstead by a single kill. Norfolk's team attack percentage is just .120, ranking the Spartans ninth in the MEAC. Nicole Kessner is the team's setter and leads the squad in assists with 722, good for seventh amongst the conference leaders. Solange Honore has the most digs for Norfolk with 245. Honore's is averaging 2.58 digs per set, good for a top-10 MEAC ranking. The Spartans are coached by Jennifer Fry.
2008: SECOND MOST WINS EVER: The 2008 Lady Hawks won 25 total games, the second highest win total in school history. The 2003 team won 26 total games, the most in UMES history. The 2003 squad was led by one of the greatest players in UMES history, Jana Milin. She was named MEAC Player of the Year in both 2002 and 2003. Milin still holds the single-season record for kills with 644 in 2003.
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK: The Lady Hawks have led the MEAC conference in total kills and assists the last three seasons. In 2006, the Hawks paced the league with 1,690 kills and 1,482 assists. In 2007, they again led the league with 1,550 kills and 1,352 assists. Last season, the Hawks were atop the conference with 1,513 kills and 1,382 assists.
HAWKS WIN RUNNIN' BULLDOG CLASSIC: In early September, the Hawks won three-of-four matches in Boiling Springs, N.C. to win the Runnin' Bulldog Classic. The Hawks sweep the Wofford Terriers in the final match to win the title. Sophomore outside hitter Christine Edwards was named the MVP of the tournament. Senior Caylin Woodward was named to the all-tournament team along with Edwards.
DOUBLE TROUBLE FOR OPPONENTS: Several UMES players have recorded double-doubles this season. Below is a complete list: Bella Jade Romero - 44 Assists, 10 Digs (8/28 @ William & Mary) Christine Edwards - 22 Kills, 12 Digs (8/28 @ William & Mary) Bella Jade Romero - 25 Assists, 13 Digs (8/29 vs. Rider) Caylin Woodward - 13 Kills, 12 Digs (9/4 vs. Gardner-Webb) Christine Edwards - 14 Kills, 11 Digs (9/4 vs. Gardner-Webb) Caylin Woodward - 10 Kills, 11 Digs (9/4 vs. Wofford College) Bella Jade Romero - 48 Assists, 16 Digs (9/5 vs. Gardner-Webb) Caylin Woodward - 13 Kills, 21 Digs (9/20 vs. Youngstown State) Bella Jade Romero - 64 Assists, 12 Digs (9/20 vs. Youngstown State) Caylin Woodward - 10 kills, 11 digs (9/26 vs. Norfolk State)
BELLA JADE'S PURSUIT OF 1,000: Lady Hawks freshman setter Bella Jade Romero has 890 assists on the season (10.01 per game). She potentially three matches in the MEAC tournament to accomplish the feat. Current graduate assistant coach Christina Estebane recorded 1,118 assists during the 2007 season. Sanda Dzile holds the UMES mark for assists in a single season with 1,322 assists in 2003.
1,000 KILLS AND 1,000 DIGS FOR WOODWARD: Caylin Woodward has joined the 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs club. Woodward has 1,286 career digs and 1,112 career kills at UMES. Woodward has a chance to set her personal marks in both categories. Both of her personal highs came during her freshman campaign when she accumulated 368 digs and 377 kills.
HAWKS SIXTH IN NATION IN HITTING EFFICIENCY: As of Nov. 15, the Hawks rank eighth in the NCAA in hitting perecentage (.289). Individually, Samantha Chukwura is 13th in the nation (.397), while Whitney Johnson ranks 98th in the land (.328).
QUEEN OF THE SOPHOMORES IN THE MEAC: Christine Edwards leads all MEAC sophomores in kills per game (3.32), hitting percentage (.242), aces per game (0.52) and points per game (3.93). Edwards recorded a season-high 22 kills against William & Mary on Aug. 28. She had a season-high hitting percentage of .542 against Navy on Sept. 11 and four aces against Rider on Aug. 29.
HAWKS FIRST IN NATION IN ACES PER GAME: UMES leads the nation in aces per game at 2.61. Karin Vikterlof is second individually in the category at 0.66. Christine Edwards is 10th at 0.52 per game,
HAWKS LEAD MEAC IN MANY CATEGORIES: The Lady Hawks lead MEAC in hitting percentage (.289), assists (1,068), kills (1,147) and service aces (225).
VIKTERLOF TOPS AMONG MEAC FRESHMEN: Karin Vikterlof leads all MEAC freshman in digs per set (2.51) and aces per set (0.66) as of Nov. 15. The Orebro, Sweden, native has tallied double-digit digs on seven occasions and recorded her career high (17) in the Hawks' four-set victory over Delaware State. Vikterlof has 217 total digs on the season. She had a career-high seven aces against Coppin on Nov. 6.
JOHNSON, EDWARDS IN 20-KILL CLUB: Senior Whitney Johnson and sophomore Christine Edwards are the only two UMES players to date to tally 20-or-more kills in a match. Edwards was the first to accomplish the feat this season for the Hawks, recording 22 in a 3-1 loss against William & Mary on Aug. 28. Johnson had 26 against Youngstown State in a five-set win at Pittsburgh on Sept. 20.
CHUKWURA MAKES FEW MISTAKES: Redshirt junior Samantha Chukwura has committed just 40 errors for a team-high hitting mark of .397. She has made just 10 errors in the last 11 matches (111 total attacks). Chukwura has gone without an error in nine matches this season. The most errors she has made in one match was five against Gardner-Webb on Sept. 5.
