MEAC Announces 2024 Volleyball Preseason Awards
NORFOLK, Va. – Howard University junior outside hitter Rya McKinnon was selected as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Volleyball Preseason Player of the Year for the second straight season. The Bison were selected as the preseason favorites to win the conference.
All awards were voted on by the conference’s head coaches and sports information directors.
McKinnon, a two-time MEAC Player of the Year awardee, led the MEAC with 3.59 kills per set, totaling 406 kills last season for 435 total points and a per set average of 4.01 points. McKinnon received American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America Honorable Mention and East All-Region Honorable Mention for the second straight season. She led the Bison to their third straight winning season with a record of 17-15 and an appearance in the 2023 MEAC Championship match.
Howard was selected as the preseason favorite in the predicted order of finish with 124 points, collecting 14 of 16 first-place votes. The 2023 MEAC Champion, Coppin State, was predicted to finish second, earning 101 points. Delaware State ranked third in the preseason poll with 93 points. The University of Maryland Eastern Shore placed fourth with 78 points, while Norfolk State was close behind in fifth place. North Carolina Central, Morgan State, and South Carolina State round out the predicted order of finish in sixth, seventh, and eighth place, respectively.
Joining McKinnon on the Preseason All-MEAC team is Coppin State’s TaKenya Stafford, (2023 MEAC Championship Outstanding Performer), Norfolk State’s Gabrielle Gilbert, (2023 MEAC Rookie of the Year), Delaware State’s Kelsie Dawson and Alondra Maldonado, Howard’s Cimone Woodard and Maryland Eastern Shore’s Ranyla Griggs.
The 2024 season will begin Aug. 29, with South Carolina State at the Alabama State Volleyball Tournament.
The 2024 MEAC Volleyball Championship will take place at Delaware State University’s Memorial Hall on November 22-24. All eight teams will compete in the championship tournament.
About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is in its 54th year of intercollegiate competition with the 2024-25 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of eight outstanding historically black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University. For more information about the MEAC, visit www.MEACSports.com.
2024 MEAC Volleyball Preseason Honors
As voted on by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors
Preseason Player of the Year: Rya McKinnon, Howard
PRESEASON ALL-MEAC TEAM
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| Name | Class | Pos. | School | Hometown |
| Rya McKinnon | Jr. | OH | Howard | Hoover, Ala. |
| TaKenya Stafford | Jr. | OH | Coppin State | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Gabrielle Gilbert | So. | OH | Norfolk State | Indianapolis, Ind. |
| Cimone Woodard | Sr. | MB | Howard | Missouri City, Tx. |
| Alondra Maldonado | Gr. | OH | Delaware State | Patillas, Puerto Rico |
| Loren Johnson | Sr. | DS | North Carolina Central | Charlotte, N.C. |
| Kelsie Dawson * | Sr. | MB | Delaware State | Nashville, Tenn. |
| Ranyla Griggs * | Sr. | OH | Maryland Eastern Shore | Atlanta, Ga. |
* – indicates tie
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
| School (First-Place Votes) | Points |
| 1. Howard (14) | 124 |
| 2. Coppin (1) | 101 |
| 3. Delaware State | 93 |
| 4. Maryland Eastern Shore | 78 |
| 5. Norfolk State (1) | 75 |
| 6. North Carolina Central | 46 |
| 7. Morgan State | 38 |
| 8. South Carolina State | 21 |