NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball team embarks on its first road trip of the season this weekend when the Spartans take part in the Radford Invitational. NSU will head out of town after starting the year with a home-and-home against Hampton last weekend.
NSU will play in the first match of the tournament this Friday, taking on Fordham at 10 a.m. The Spartans also face Rider on Saturday at 9 a.m. and Toledo later that day at 2:30 p.m.
All matches will be broadcast on ESPN+, available through the ESPN app. Live stats will be available for all three matches as well through Radford's website,
RadfordAthletics.com.
The Spartans began the year 0-2 after Hampton swept both matches last weekend, Friday in Hampton and Saturday at NSU's Gill Gymnasium. Fordham went 2-1 at the Georgia State Tournament in the opening weekend of the 2019 season, earning wins over Western Carolina and Lamar.
Toledo earned a 3-2 win over Loyola Chicago but dropped its other two matches at its own Blue and Gold Tournament. Rider, meanwhile, went 0-4 at the Georgetown Invitational to start its season.
For Norfolk State, senior
Anna Rupertova led the way against the Pirates, tallying 11 kills and hitting .250 over the course of two matches. Junior
Taylor Eichelberger (eight kills, nine digs) and senior
Bojana Bolozan (six kills, four blocks) also played big roles.
Two newcomers, junior
Julisa Carrizosa and freshman
Myleah Carter, combined for half of the team's digs with 27.
Series History
The Spartans have never faced Rider or Toledo. Fordham won the only previous meeting with NSU, a 3-0 triumph in 2013 at the Mountaineer Invitational at West Virginia.
Around the MEAC
Morgan State had the best debut among all MEAC teams, going 3-1 against the likes of Seton Hall, William & Mary and Siena last weekend. Coppin State also beat Siena on the way to a 2-2 weekend, and Maryland Eastern Shore started off the year with a 2-2 mark as well.
Altogether, Northern Division teams picked up nine wins on opening weekend, while Southern Division squads went a combined 1-16.
What's Next
NSU will host American next Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Gill Gym for its only home match in more than a month's span. The following weekend, the Spartans travel to East Carolina for the Pirate Invitational.
After the contest against American, NSU will go exactly one month until its next home match on Oct. 11 against Coppin State.
