ORANGEBURG, South Carolina – It was a full team effort for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball program at South Carolina State University, with the Hawks (3-12, 1-3 MEAC) dropping the Bulldogs (0-15, 0-4 MEAC) in three sets (25-13, 25-9, 25-17) on Friday, October 7.
 
"It's nice to get a tally in the win column but hopefully we can roll it into a little bit of a streak because you can see the way the conference is rolling out (in the standings)," Head coach Trevor Callarman said.
 
It was a close affair in the first set as each team traded points until the Hawks led 12-11 and a swap in of Romina Vacca, Charlize Williams and Sophia Chacon led to a Maryland Eastern Shore charge. The Hawks would go up 15-12 and then shoot to a seven-point run thanks to Sydney Morris' serves and eventually take the set.
 
"It was a combination of Sydney having some nice serves," Callarman said. "Some good defensive plays – we played really well rounded."
 
It was pure dominance in the second set for the Hawks, hitting .684 against the Bulldogs and allowing a .000% against. There was no resistance seen from the Bulldogs with the Hawks jumping to an early 7-2 lead and never turning back.
 
The best run for the Hawks came late in the set, going on a nine-point go fueled by Nkemjika Ikemfuna's serves.
 
"That was just a good set for us, clean volleyball and nice to see our girls get their groove a little bit," Callarman said. "Distribution was good."
 
After two quality sets, the Hawks ran into some trouble in the third due to what would be considered a funky series overall. An odd five-to-ten-minute pause following an error on the rotation gave the Bulldogs life to tie it up at 17-all, only for the Hawks to go on the attack and grab eight-straight for the match win.
 
"Kept our composure, got some nice blocks and finally went on a nice run at the end," Callarman said. "Romi got a couple of aces (two) in the last five (points), she was cranking them."
 
Ikemefuna was a keystone for the Hawks throughout the match, leading both teams with 10 with an outstanding .750 hitting percentage – meanwhile Sophia Chacon and Vacca combined for 23 assists to keep the offense moving.
 
Isil Yilmaz started in the libero for the Hawks on the night, getting 10 digs to the Bulldogs 11 as a team, while also picking up five assists. Charlize Williams, Derionah Abner and Ranyla Griggs combined for eight of the Hawks nine blocks.
 
The Hawks are back in action on Sunday (September 9) at North Carolina Central University with game time set for 1 p.m. before returning home to Maryland. Links for both Live Stats and Streaming are accessible via www.easternshorehawks.com and updates will be provided on Twitter via @ESHawksVBall throughout the match.