DOVER, Del. – The North Carolina Central University volleyball team won the first set but couldn't hold on to advance to the semifinals of the 2024 MEAC Volleyball Championship falling 3-1 (26-24, 15-25, 20-25, 23-25) to hosts Delaware State University on Friday night at Memorial Hall Gym.

The Eagles' offense was paced by junior Tayah Little, who finished with 14 kills on the day. Sophomore Kayden Cupid added 11 and junior Kamren Harper chipped in with 11 as part of a balanced NC Central attack. Senior Bella Dearinger had a match-high 34 assists.

The Eagles defense did all it could to contain the Hornets but DSU finished with a .249 hitting percentage. Two players reached double figures in digs as Dearinger had 15 and junior Gabriela Felix-Baeza had 10. From the front row, Cupid contributed five blocks.

DSU's Gerren Tomlin finished with a match-high 17 kills and 17 digs.

How It Happened

The Eagles endured a back-and-forth first set to win 26-24 in a stanza that featured six lead changes and was tied 14 times. Neither team led by more than three points in the set.

NCCU's opening set win came in a stanza where they hit .300 and 17 of their 26 points came from kills. The Eagles got a solid defensive performance from a front row that blocked four Delaware State attacks in the stanza.

The Maroon and Gray then lost set two 25-15, tying the match at a set apiece. The Eagles fell behind on the first point and never clawed back into the lead before dropping the set.

NC Central then lost their second set in a row, falling behind in the match two sets to one. The Eagles came up short by the score of 25-20. NCCU trailed by as many as six points as Delaware State grabbed the advantage for good at 14-13 in a set that was knotted up 10 times.

The Eagles lost set four and the match, falling 25-23. The Eagles trailed by as many as six points as Delaware State grabbed the advantage for good at 22-21 and NC Central wasn't able to recover in a set that was tied five times before the Hornets came out on top.

Delaware State (15-13) moves on to play Coppin State University on Saturday for a chance to advance to the championship final.

NCCU ends the season with a 7-19 record overall.

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