Box Score

HAMPTON, Va. – What is almost always an intense match was all that and then some as the Norfolk State volleyball team rallied from a 2-1 deficit to take down Hampton, 3-2, Friday evening in the Battle of the Bay at Holland Hall.

Tied at 1-1 after Hampton won the first set, 25-18, and NSU won the second, 25-20, the Spartans struggled in the third set, a 25-16 Hampton win. NSU came back with a solid fourth set win, 25-17, keeping the team's hopes alive. NSU trailed just one time in the deciding fifth set, but Hampton gave the Spartans all they could handle before they won in extra points, 16-14.

The win allowed NSU to split the regular season series after Hampton won round 1 in late September, but more importantly improved the Spartans' record to 3-3 in the MEAC, 7-11 overall. NSU entered the match tied for fourth in the Northern Division. The Spartans also gained ground on Hampton in the standings, as the Pirates fell to 4-3 in league play, 9-11 overall.

Aside from having 38 attack errors, NSU led on the stat sheet, including match highs of 15 kills and eight blocks from junior Charlotte Armstead. Freshman Adriana Ramos and junior Beatriz Ferreira added 13 and 12 kills, respectively, while Ramos completed the double-double with 12 digs.

Junior Kristen Burt led the offense with 40 assists, and senior Tracey Copley had a game-high 19 digs. Senior Jasmine Frazier added nine kills, and Frazier, Ferreira and freshman Jasmin Flowers each had five blocks on the night.

The Spartans held a 13-11 advantage in blocks as well as a 53-45 edge in digs. NSU hit .123 for the match, compared to .138 for the Pirates, but Hampton also committed 11 fewer attack errors.

The Pirates were led by Krista Kraskura with 12 kills and 15 digs, while Juliana Chavez and Lihi Elkayam combined for 40 assists. Petra Parros had 10 kills and four blocks, and Ornela Cadavid had a team-high six blocks.

Armstead scored NSU's first four points of the first set as NSU found itself down by an early 7-4 score. NSU fell behind by six, 12-6, and then again at 16-10. Armstead had a pair of blocks and a kill to cut the deficit to three, 17-14, but NSU got no closer than three the rest of the way as the Pirates took the opening set, 25-18. Armstead, meanwhile, had six kills in the opening frame.

Ferreira and Ramos each had two kills, and Copley added a service ace at the end of a 10-3 run to open the second set, but Hampton quickly got back into it on a 7-1 run to make it 11-10 NSU. Within a span of seven points, Ramos had three kills and Armstead had two blocks and a kill for an 18-12 Spartan lead. A 5-0 run got Hampton to within one at 18-17, but junior Maatra Henderson had a kill and a block to keep NSU ahead. The Spartans made that lead last in a 25-20 second set win. Ramos had six kills in the set.

Hampton came out of the break with some strong play, as NSU had to call timeout down by an 8-3 score early in the third set. Ferreira had two kills to put the score at 9-6 Hampton, and a kill by Armstead and service ace from junior Megan Lavo cut the Pirate lead to two, 12-10. Hampton, though, used a 7-0 run to gain a big advantage, 21-13, which ended up being the deciding factor in the Pirates' 25-16 win.

NSU hit six kills as the Spartans opened the fourth set with a 7-3 lead, and Ramos knocked down another kill for a 9-4 lead, forcing the Pirates to call timeout. Armstead had a couple of key kills to keep NSU up by several points, but Hampton clawed its way back to tie the score at 13-all. The Spartans responded with a 6-0 run to earn the lead back at 19-13. The Pirates got to five at 22-17, but Ferreira and Frazier each added a block and kill over the last three serves for the final 25-17 margin.

Ramos got things started off on the right foot for the Spartans in the third set, but the Pirates won five of the next seven points for a 5-4 advantage. Frazier and Ferreira then put NSU on their backs, as two straight blocks by the pair and a kill from Ferreira put NSU back on top, 8-6, prior to both teams switching sides on the court.

Two straight kills off the hands of Frazier made it 10-6, and the pair put NSU on top 12-8, before Hampton went on a 4-0 run to tie the set at 12-12. NSU had control at 14-12 after a block by Armstead and Flowers, but after Hampton tied it at 14-14, a kill by Armstead and an error on Hampton gave NSU the hard-fought win, 16-14.

NSU will make its first trip out of the Hampton Roads area in nearly a month as the Spartans head to Baltimore to take on Morgan State Sunday at 3 p.m.