DURHAM, N.C. – After crashing three-straight “Senior Days”, the Bethune-Cookman volleyball squad continued to make history, this time in Durham, North Carolina, on Sunday, Nov. 9 as the Wildcats took a 3-1 (19-25, 25-19, 25-14, 25-16) victory from North Carolina Central University, to finish the regular-season perfect in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play.
The 10-0 flawless MEAC record is the first in school history, as the 13 B-CU regular-season victories marks the most by the Wildcats since 2004.
After a rocky start in the first, B-CU allowed the Eagles to take only its third MEAC set loss of the season, falling 25-19.
Momentum changed in the second after a Hazel Ortiz Rosado kill opened the set.
After a mid-set 3-0 run for the Wildcats, as they pulled ahead 19-14, NCCU called a timeout, before B-CU finished the set at 25-19 and knotted the match at one.
The intermission worked in favor of the Wildcats, as B-CU jumped out early in the third and never allowed the Eagles a chance in the set.
Late in the third, a 7-0 run propelled the Wildcats to a 24-12 lead, before B-CU captured the 25-14 victory and pulled ahead in the match 2-1.
During the third the Wildcats only committed one hitting error as a team, finishing .419 after going 14-1-31 during the set.
In the fourth and final set B-CU and the Eagles battled back-and-forth early on, as the Eagles last lead came at 11-10.
A 5-0 run ended the set at 25-16, sparked by two Rakaya Neely kills and two huge exclamation Neely/Ortiz Rosado blocks.
A balanced effort anchored the Wildcats offensively, as Rhea Simon led B-CU with 13 kills, followed by 11 from Jill Arlaud and seven a piece from Phylecia Armstrong and Neely.
Running the offense, Ortiz Rosado moved into second place all-time at B-CU in career assists during the match after just two seasons with the Wildcats. She passed Megan Myer's 1,703 assists midway through the first set, and after finishing with a match-best 38, the senior's total has moved to 1,739 during her career.
Defensively, Ortiz Rosado also recorded her twelfth assist/dig double-double of the season, finishing with 13 digs, while Normarie Rolon led the Wildcats picking up 17 digs and Alexas Thomas trailed with 10.
On the net B-CU out blocked the Eagles 13.0 to 6.0, while Neely led the way with eight total blocks including three solo, and Delicia Pierre trailed with four.
Next on the plate for the Wildcats, after finishing first in the south, B-CU awaits Coppin State, who finished fourth in the north, during the first round of the 2015 MEAC tournament in Princess Anne, Maryland.
