ETTRICK, VA- The Virginia State University volleyball team program announces its 2023 schedule. The schedule features the VSU Home Opener Tournament, a home Tri-Match, and two CIAA Roundups over 10 weeks with a full slate of conference series matches.
Head coach
Amanda Walker is entering her sixth season at the helm of VSU Volleyball and her expectations are to start the year off strong at home and build off that momentum as the Trojans progress into CIAA conference play.
The Trojans will start the season off hosting the VSU Home Opener on Labor Day weekend, featuring Limestone University, Alderson Broaddus University, North Greenville University, and Chowan University at the VSU Multipurpose Center Sept. 1-2.
VSU will return to action on Sunday, Sept. 10 to host a Tri-Match with the University of Virginia's College at Wise and Salem University.
Sept.16-17 the Trojans will be on the road in West Virginia for non-conference matches against West Virginia State University and Concord University.
Conference play will begin on Monday, Sept. 25 as the Trojans face the Bulldogs of Bowie State University on the road in Bowie, MD.
Sept. 29- Oct. 1 the Trojans will host the first CIAA Roundup of the season. The roundup will be a great opportunity for the Trojans to play three conference opponents. The second CIAA Roundup is scheduled for Oct. 14-15 at Elizabeth City State University in Elizabeth City, NC. All Roundup opponents and game times will be made available via the govsutrojans.com website.
All home conference games are scheduled for 6 PM.
The CIAA Championship Tournament is scheduled for Nov. 14-19, semifinal and final rounds will take place in Salem, VA.
"We are very excited to get back on the court and compete this Fall," said coach Walker. "We have signed some really talented student-athletes that are excited to be a part of this incoming class. This team will be led by some new setters this season in Leila Jackson from Texas and Peyton Reese from Nevada. Both of these student-athletes are very highly skilled in their craft and we are excited to see the direction they help take us in. We also have Adrianna Bacon, also from Texas and Aaliyah Bethea from Memphis, TN. Adrianna will be both a defensive and offensive addition while Aaliyah will primarily serve as a defensive addition."
A solid core group of last year's roster will be returning for the Trojans, spearheaded by All-CIAA standout
Najlaa Williams to lead VSU's defensive attack. While,
Amaya Cooper and
Helena Eubanks are also expected to make a strong return on the offensive side.
The Trojans hit the gym hard in the off-season and expect to do the same throughout the preseason. Coach Walker and the returning core worked very hard in the spring to focus on their efforts on changing their mindset on how the Trojans approach the game, while building a stronger team chemistry and championship culture in the process.
2022 vs Conference Opponents
Vs. Bowie State the Trojans swept the season series against the Bulldogs, winning 3-0 at home Sept. 15 and 3-1 on the road Oct. 31. VSU is 20-0 against Bowie State since 2012. In the first matchup, Amaya Cooper had a team-high 10 kills and in the final matchup, Kelsea Saulny recorded career-highs of eight kills and five blocks with a .600 hitting percentage.
Vs. Lincoln the Trojans earned a pair of 3-0 victories over the Lions, winning on Sept. 19 and Oct. 13 to improve to 20-0 against Lincoln since 2012. VSU accumulated 16 service aces in the first matchup, a season-high in conference play. Helena Eubanks had a team-high 11 kills in that contest. In the second matchup, the Trojans recorded 34 kills and a stellar hitting percentage of .354, which is a season-high in CIAA action.
Vs. Livingstone the Trojans defeated the Blue Bears 3-0 in Bowie, MD at the Sept. 14 CIAA Roundup to improve to 10-0 against Livingstone since 2012. VSU recorded 37 kills to the Blue Bears' 14, led by a team-high eight kills from Cooper.
Vs. Fayetteville State Since 2012, the Trojans are 7-7 against the Broncos after dropping the Sept. 14 matchup, 3-1, in Bowie, MD at the CIAA Roundup. VSU had one more block (seven) than FSU but could not overcome a .008 hitting percentage in the contest. Najlaa Williams had a team-high 12 digs.
Vs. Claflin the Trojans 3-0 sweep of the Panthers at the Sept. 14 CIAA Roundup improves VSU to 4-1 since Claflin joined the conference. VSU had a 42-27 advantage in kills and Williams had 16 digs.
Vs. Elizabeth City State the Trojans lost to the Vikings twice in conference play last season, dropping an Oct. 3 matchup 3-2 on the road and an Oct. 24 matchup 3-1. In the first contest, VSU took the third and four sets to rally from a 2-0 deficit. Williams recorded a then-career-high 19 digs in that game. In the second matchup, Cooper led the team with 12 kills, followed by Eubanks' 10 kills. Since 2012, VSU is 18-4 over ECSU but has dropped the last four matchups.
Vs. Winston-Salem State the Trojans lost the Oct. 8 matchup against the Rams, 3-1. The loss came despite VSU earning a slight edge in digs, assists, blocks, service aces, and points. Williams logged a then-career-high and then-conference-high 31 digs in the game. The Trojans are 4-11 against WSSU since 2012.
Vs. Johnson C. Smith the Trojans swept the Golden Bulls in their lone matchup on Oct. 8. It was still very competitive as VSU won the second and third sets each by a score of 27-25. Eubanks' 14 kills and Williams' 19 digs led the team. Since 2012, VSU is 13-1 against JCSU with the lone loss coming in 2017.
Vs. St. Augustine's the Trojans lost to the Falcons, 3-2, despite recording season-highs in kills (53) and points (74). VSU won the second and third sets before eventually losing the first set, 15-12 on Oct. 9. Eubanks notched a career-high in kills with 17 and Williams' 34 digs stands as the sophomore's career-high. The loss snapped VSU's seven-game win streak over SAU as the Trojans are 8-3 against SAU since 2012.
Vs. Virginia Union the Trojans completed a clean series sweep of the Panthers, winning Oct. 17 and Oct. 27 matchups, to improve to 19-2 over VUU since 2012. The first match saw Eubanks and Cooper finish with 11 and 10 kills, respectively, while Kennedy Hoge led with 18 digs. In the final matchup, which VSU won 25-21, 25-21, 25-23, featured a 10-3 Trojan advantage in service aces. VSU has consistently gotten the better of its rival to the tune of a 19-2 record since 2012.
Vs. Shaw the Trojans were swept by the Bears in the season series, losing 3-0 at home on Oct. 21 and 3-0 on the road on Oct. 29. The second set was the most competitive in the first contest with Shaw winning 27-25. Williams had 18 digs and Eubanks had eight kills, both leading the team. In the second matchup, the first two sets were competitive as Shaw won each set 25-22. Hoge and Eubanks led the team with eight kills each and Williams tallied a team-high 21 digs.
2022 Postseason
Virginia State earned the fifth seed in the CIAA Volleyball Tournament after finishing the 2022 regular season with a 9-7 mark in conference play. The Trojans went 6-4 against CIAA Northern Division opponents.
Quarterfinals at Winston Salem State on Nov. 7
VSU and WSSU delivered a 3-2 instant classic that featured the Rams taking the fifth seed, 16-14, to advance in the tournament. The Trojans won the second and fourth sets and finished with one more kill (53) and a better hitting percentage (.216) than the Rams (52; .209). Eubanks had 16 kills and Williams had 17 digs, both game-highs.
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