Dover, Del. (Aug. 26, 2021) --- The Delaware State volleyball team begins its much anticipated fall 2021 season by hosting a four-team tournament in Memorial Hall this weekend.
The Hornets will open the tournament with a Fri. (Aug. 27) match against St. Peter's. Start time is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.
Bucknell and St. Francis Brooklyn are also competing in the tournament.  They will play in the second match on Fri. at 7:00 p.m.
The tourney continues with four contests on Saturday.
St. Francis Brooklyn and St. Peter's will tip off the Saturday action at 11:00 a.m.
Also on Saturday's schedule, the Hornets will face Bucknell at 2:00 p.m. , followed by St. Peter's vs. Bucknell at 4:30 p.m. and DSU battling St. Francis Brooklyn at 7:00 p.m.
Delaware State posted an 11-5 overall record during an abbreviated spring 2021 schedule and qualified for the MEAC Tournament for the first time since 2010, falling to eventual champion North Carolina A&T in a five-set tourney thriller.
The Hornets' 7-3 MEAC regular season record in the spring was also the team's best since posting back-to-back 8-2 conference marks in 2009 & 2010.
DSU is picked to finish third in the fall MEAC regular season race.
Delaware State returns all of its key contributors from the spring season.  The veterans will be joined by what is considered the Hornets' best class of newcomers in recent memory.
DSU middle blocker Sydney Lewis (jr.) and outside hitter Valeria Otero (so.) were named to the 2021 Preseason All-MEAC Team.
Lewis was a spring '21 All-MEAC First Team and MEAC All-Tournament selection. She was No. 1 in the conference with a .395 hitting percentage (101 kills/24 errors/195 att) and No. 2 in the league in blocks at 1.08 per set.
Otero was a spring '21 All-MEAC Second Team and MEAC All-Rookie selection. She was DSU's spring leader and fourth in the MEAC in kills at 3.17 per set (184 total). In addition, Otero was a three-time MEAC Rookie-of-the-Week and once selected as Player-of-the-Week last spring.
The Hornets return all of their major contributors from the spring squad, which made DSU's first MEAC Tournament appearance since 2010. The Hornets fell to eventual champ North Carolina A&T in five sets in the tournament semifinals.