DURHAM, N.C. – The North Carolina Central University volleyball team returns to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Volleyball Championship and will try and pull off an upset in the quarterfinals on Friday when the Lady Eagles face defending champions Howard University at 1 p.m.
 
The 2016 MEAC Volleyball Championship will be contested at Hytche Arena on the campus of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in Princess Anne, Maryland from Friday-Sunday, Nov. 18-20. Tickets will be available the day of the event and prices are $8 a day or $20 for all three tournament days. All rounds of the tournament will have live stats for those that cannot attend the event.
 
The NCCU/Howard winner will play the winner of Bethune-Cookman vs. Morgan State match in the semifinals on Saturday at Noon. The other half of the eight-team bracket features Florida A&M vs. Norfolk State and Maryland Eastern Shore vs. North Carolina A&T. The championship, which will be broadcasted live on both ESPNU and ESPN3, will be played at Noon on Sunday and the winner will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Fans can follow NCCU volleyball all season by visiting NCCUEaglePride.com and on social media at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
MATCH INFO
 
Friday, November 18 | 1 p.m.
NCCU vs. Howard
LIVE STATS
 
N.C. Central Volleyball
 
The Lady Eagles return to the MEAC Tournament after missing the event last season. NCCU (6-16 Overall, 5-5 MEAC) defeated North Carolina A&T in its regular-season finale to finish fourth in the Southern Division with a .500 league ledger.
 
Three maroon and gray players continue to average over two kills per set in senior Casey Curran (2.41), senior Kelsey Murphy (2.22) and sophomore Whitney White (2.10). Curran tops NCCU with 2.41 points per set and is the reigning MEAC Player of the Week. White follows her with 2.64 points per set, which includes a team-high 0.74 blocks per set. White has a .252 hitting percentage that ranks eighth in the MEAC. Murphy is coming off her third double-double of the season and she is second on the team with 2.54 digs per set.
 
Junior setter Paige Phillips is fifth in the league with 7.29 assists per set and garnered MEAC Setter of the Week honors for the final week of the season. Sophomore libero Bree Simmons is 10th in the conference with 3.07 digs per set and classmate middle blocker Jazmine Daye is ninth in the MEAC with 0.69 blocks per set.
 
NCCU is 0-3 against Howard since joining the DI ranks in 2007. The Lady Eagles last played the Bison on Sept. 10, 2013, with Howard winning in straight sets.
 
Howard Volleyball
 
The Bison have won 13 straight games, including all 12 games in league play to secure the top seed in the Northern Division. Howard (23-5 Overall, 12-0 MEAC) is the defending conference champions and are attempting to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for a second straight season.
 
Junior Khaila Donaldson was named the MEAC Player of the Year earlier in the week and is a three-time All-MEAC honoree. Donaldson tops the conference with 3.99 kills and 4.65 points per set. She has registered 10 double-doubles in kills and digs, ranks in the top-50 nationally in points and is ninth in the MEAC with 0.32 aces per set.
 
A pair of specialists joined Donaldson on the All-MEAC First Team for 2016. Sophomore setter Tamia Dockery has paced the league with 9.71 assists per set and senior libero Morgan Marlbrough has done the same with her conference-best 4.15 digs per set.
 
Howard leads NCAA Division I by holding its opponents to a measly .124 hitting percentage. The Bison also lead the MEAC in hitting percentage (.233), kills per set (12.66), blocks per set (2.11) and assists per set (11.63).
 
Other MEAC Volleyball Tournament Teams
 
No. 1 Howard, No. 2 Maryland Eastern Shore, No. 3 Morgan State and No. 4 Norfolk State represent the Northern Division and No. 1 Florida A&M, No. 2 Bethune Cookman, No. 3 North Carolina A&T and No. 4 North Carolina Central represent the South.
 
The Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (17-12, 10-2) leagues the league with 2.09 aces per set and is second in the MEAC with a .230 hitting percentage and 1.98 blocks per set. Sophomore outside hitter Lucia Babic (2.52 kills/set) and freshman setter Ivana Blazevic (7.66 assists/set, 0.44 aces/set) were named Second Team All-MEAC while Blazevic and outside hitter Iva Vujosevic (1.99 kills/set) were named to the MEAC Rookie Team.
 
The Morgan State Bears (7-20, 7-5) did not have any all-conference honorees despite posting a winning record in league play. Sophomore outside hitter Natashia Barker and junior middle blocker Keana Browne both average just under 2.5 kills per set.
 
The Norfolk State Spartans (7-19, 5-7) are the only team to made the MEAC Tournament that was not predicted to make it in the preseason poll. Senior outside hitter Jessica Johnson is a Second Team All-MEAC award winner after averaging 3.70 kills per set (second in the league).
 
The Florida A&M Rattlers (15-11, 10-0) went undefeated in conference contests and has won 12 straight matches. Senior middle blocker Ginna Lopez-Chavez (2.10 kills/set, 0.87 blocks/set) and freshman outside hitter Maria Yvette Garcia (3.37 kills/set, 0.30 aces/set) were named First Team All-MEAC while freshman outside hitter Nicole Abreu (3.22 kills/set, 2.72 digs/set) and sophomore libero Valentina Carrasco (4.06 digs/set) notched Second Team All-MEAC honors. Abreu also collected Co-MEAC Freshman of the Year acclaim.
 
The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (9-20, 7-3) were the MEAC runner-ups last season, advancing to the championship match. Senior middle blocker Phylecia Armstrong secured All-MEAC laurels for a second time in 2016 after ranking second in the league with 0.99 blocks per set and a .335 hitting percentage. Freshman outside hitter Alana Handy (3.34 kills/set, 2.80 digs/set) and junior middle blocker Rakaya Neely (1.95 kills/set, 0.66 blocks/set) were voted Second Team All-MEAC. Handy shared Co-MEAC Freshman of the Year honors with Abreu.
 
The North Carolina A&T Aggies (9-14, 6-4) is the only team to enter the tournament on a losing streak (three straight). Junior outside hitter Samara Brown secured First Team All-MEAC honors after ranking third in the league with 3.53 kills per set and fifth with a .274 hitting percentage.