NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball team finishes out its 2017 season this weekend when the Spartans host division leading Maryland Eastern Shore for Senior Night and then travel to Hampton for the final match of the year.
 
NSU will welcome the Hawks to Gill Gymnasium on Friday beginning at 6 p.m. in the last home contest of the year. The Spartan program will also honor four seniors – Clarke Tyler, Melvina Brown, Hope Forsythe and Tori Tulensru – prior to the start of the match.
 
Then on Sunday, the Spartans take part in the Battle of the Bay beginning at 1 p.m. at Hampton's Holland Hall. The match has been moved up from the previous start time of 3 p.m. It will conclude the 2017 season for the Spartans, who have been eliminated from the MEAC tournament this year.
 
Live stats and live video for Friday's home match against Maryland Eastern Shore will be available.
 
The Hawks roll into town sporting the league's top record by far. They stand 24-7 overall and 10-0 in the MEAC Northern Division. North Carolina A&T is the only other league school with a .500 or better record at 14-11. Maryland Eastern Shore has all but locked up the regular season title.
 
Hampton, meanwhile, carries a 10-16 record and a 5-5 MEAC mark into the weekend. The Pirates are currently tied with Morgan State for third in the division and can wrap up their spot in the MEAC tournament, without having to resort to tiebreakers, with a home win over either Delaware State on Friday or NSU on Sunday.
 
Norfolk State has dropped 13 in a row and stands 3-21 overall and 0-10 in the league.
 
MEAC Standings
Howard (9-2) will most likely finish alone in second place in the division after falling to Maryland Eastern Shore twice this year. Hampton and Morgan, both 5-5, are trying to hold off Coppin State (4-7) and Delaware State (3-7) for the last two tournament spots.
 
MSU plays at Howard on Friday, and barring an upset by the Bears, they will have to knock off Coppin State at home on Sunday to secure a tournament berth. Hampton just needs one win over either DSU or NSU.
 
In the South, Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman split their season series and stand 7-1 in the division. North Carolina A&T (6-2) and North Carolina Central (4-4) will also be heading into the tournament as, most likely, the No. 3 and 4 seeds, respectively.
 
Senior Salute
Three of Norfolk State's four seniors are the last holdovers from the previous coaching staff in this head coach Dave Albaugh's second year with the program. Fifth-year senior Tulensru and four-year players Forsythe and Tyler will join Brown, a two-year transfer from West Virginia, in what may be NSU's only senior class the next two years. Norfolk State is not expected to have any seniors on next year's team with junior Anna Rupertova a candidate for a medical redshirt.
 
Tulensru began her career in 2013 and received a medical redshirt for the 2015 season after missing all but one match. She was named to the Appalachian Invitational All-Tournament Team in 2013 in her first collegiate matches. After starting off as a hitter, she has transitioned to the backcourt. In 267 career sets played, she owns totals of 328 digs, 197 kills, 35 assists, 31 service aces and 26 blocks. She is tied for 15^th in NSU records in career matches played at 87. She has appeared on the AD's Honor Roll on several occasions.
 
Forsythe has battled injuries throughout her career to play a variety of positions, including mainly at hitter but also setter at times. She also has been a staple in the backcourt for much of her career. Like Tulensru, Forsythe also earned all-tournament team honors in her first collegiate matches when she competed at the JMU Classic to start her freshman year in 2014. She also earned all-tournament accolades at the Phoenix Classic and the MEAC North-South Challenge this year. She has played in 83 matches and 254 sets overall, tallying 410 kills, 366 digs, 209 assists, 68 blocks and 34 service aces. She too has been a regular member of the AD's Honor Roll in addition to the MEAC All-Academic Team.
 
Tyler has been a steady force with the Spartans, and like the previous two, also earned all-tournament team honors as a freshman. She was named to the all-tournament team at the East Carolina Invitational in 2014 as well as at the MEAC North-South Challenge this year. She currently ranks third all-time at NSU in block assists with 143 and seventh with 173 total blocks. She also stands ninth in kills with 575, 10^th in attacks with 1,628 and tied for 12^th in matches played at 99. She has also been a regular member of the AD's Honor Roll and the MEAC All-Academic Team.
 
Brown arrived from West Virginia last year and finished fifth in the MEAC in digs and seventh in aces. She is currently seventh in both categories this year despite playing more time at hitter late in the season. She was named MEAC Defensive Specialist of the Week last year and earned all-tournament honors at the Phoenix Classic last year and the Red Flash Classic this season. She ranks 11^th all-time at NSU in digs with 616 in just two seasons. She also has 131 career assists, 56 aces and 29 kills. Last year she was named to the AD's Honor Roll and the MEAC All-Academic Team and was one of six NSU student-athletes among all sports to be put on the VaSID Academic All-State team.
 
Series History
Maryland Eastern Shore has won eight in a row over NSU, increasing its series lead over the Spartans to 33-10. The Hawks took the first matchup this year up in Maryland, 3-0, via scores of 25-18, 25-15 and 26-24.
 
Hampton won the first meeting this year 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 25-18) to break an NSU win streak of three in the series. The Pirates now lead 49-13 in the all-time series.