DURHAM, N.C. – With the volleyball regular season winding down, North Carolina Central will host two important MEAC matches this weekend. The Eagles will take on Morgan State on Friday (Oct. 31) at 6 p.m. and league leader Coppin State on Sunday (Nov. 2) at 1 p.m. inside McDougald-McLendon Arena.

Victories in both matches would elevate the Eagles from their current position of sixth place in the MEAC standings. Only two matches separate NCCU from Morgan State, which is second in the eight-team conference. Coppin State sits atop the MEAC with an unbeaten conference mark.

Five league matches remain in the regular season before the MEAC Championships, which will be held Nov. 20-22 in Baltimore, Md.

RECORDS
NCCU – 4-5 in the MEAC and 7-15 overall
Morgan State – 6-3 in the MEAC and 9-10 overall
Coppin State – 9-0 in the MEAC and 16-10 overall

NCCU vs. MORGAN STATE

• This will be the second meeting between both teams this season.
• Morgan State came back to win the first matchup 3-2 (18-25, 19-25, 25-22, 25-19, 15-11 at home after the Eagles held a 2-0 lead on Oct. 3.
• Kamren Harper led the Eagles with 23 kills and added eight digs in the first match against Morgan State. Makenzi Searcy added 14 kills and Manuela Cripa Nasser contributed 43 assists and nine digs. Loren Johnson tallied 18 digs and three service aces while Tayah Little had seven kills and two total blocks.
• The Eagles are 7-5 in the season series since 2007.
• Morgan State is second in the MEAC in hitting percentage, blocks per set and service aces per set. They are third in kills per set.
• Jada Williams of Morgan State leads the MEAC in hitting percentage (.358) and Mya Karrick is the MEAC leader in service aces per set (0.42).

NCCU vs. COPPIN STATE

• The match will be livestreamed on ESPN+.
• This will be the second meeting between both teams this season.
• In their previous meeting, NCCU dropped a four-set road match to Coppin State (17-25, 15-25, 25-23, 14-25) on Oct. 5.
• Harper finished with 15 kills, 13 digs and two total blocks to lead the Eagles. Allyson Rouse added eight kills and four total blocks and Leanna Beaty had six kills and five total blocks. Cripa Nasser totaled 31 assists and two service aces and Loren Johnson chipped in 11 digs.
• The Eagles are 5-13 in the season series, including eight straight losses, since 2007.
• Coppin State leads the MEAC in kills per set, assists per set and digs per set.
• TaKenya Stafford of CSU ranks fourth in kills per set (3.62) and Coco Figueroa is first in digs per set (4.72).

ABOUT NCCU

• NCCU has beaten three non-conference opponents, which is the most in a season by an Eagles' team since becoming a full MEAC member in 2011.
• With seven wins, the Eagles are tied for the most season victories since 2021.
• The Eagles are second in the MEAC in digs per set.
• Harper is 27 digs away from reaching 500 digs in her four-year career. Her 1,057 career kills are the most by an NCCU player in the Division I era.
• Harper is second in the MEAC in kills per set (3.77) and third in points per set (4.11).
• Cripa Nasser ranks second in the MEAC in assists per set (9.01).
• Rouse (.276) and Beaty (.254) are fifth and sixth, respectively, in attack percentage in the MEAC.
• Johnson ranks third in the MEAC in digs per set (3.82) and tied for second in service aces per set (0.41).

For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com.