It’s always fun to discuss the emerging sport of volleyball with Coppin State head coach Tim Walsh, especially after another run to a MEAC championship as the Eagles await NCAA brackets and a tournament to start December in West Baltimore.
Coppin State University’s volleyball team, led by Coach Tim Walsh, won the MEAC championship. Walsh discussed the team’s success, emphasizing their competitive scheduling against top-tier schools and the benefits of playing against diverse opponents. The team’s consistency and interchangeable players were key to their victory. Walsh also highlighted the importance of academic support and the personalized experience at Coppin State. The team will compete in the NCAA tournament, with potential matches against high seeds. Walsh also mentioned the integration of sign language in their offensive strategies, reflecting his background in deaf education.
Coppin State Volleyball’s MEAC Championship Win
- Nestor Aparicio welcomes listeners to the show and mentions various sports events happening in Baltimore, including the Maryland Crab Cake Tour.
- Nestor congratulates Coach Tim Walsh and Coppin State University on winning the MEAC volleyball championship.
- Coach Walsh discusses the goal of building a recognized volleyball program at Coppin State, emphasizing the school’s mid-major status.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh discuss the importance of scheduling tough competition to prepare players for the MEAC and championships.
Scheduling and Competition in Volleyball
- Coach Walsh explains his approach to scheduling, focusing on exposing players to top-level volleyball to prepare them for the MEAC.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh discuss the growth of volleyball as a sport and its popularity among young athletes.
- Coach Walsh highlights the benefits of starting volleyball at a younger age, which gives players an advantage in skill development.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh talk about the marketing of volleyball and its appeal to young athletes.
Recruiting and Academic Support at Coppin State
- Coach Walsh discusses the importance of academic support and the personalized attention students receive at Coppin State.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh talk about the unique aspects of Coppin State, such as small class sizes and strong relationships with professors.
- Coach Walsh emphasizes the school’s commitment to providing a well-rounded experience for student-athletes, including academic and athletic support.
- Nestor highlights the long-standing partnership between WNST and Coppin State, covering various sports events over the years.
MEAC Tournament and Championship Run
- Nestor and Coach Walsh discuss the MEAC tournament, including the teams Coppin State faced and the championship match against Howard.
- Coach Walsh describes the consistency and preparation that led to Coppin State’s success in the tournament.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh talk about the importance of teamwork and interchangeable players in achieving victory.
- Coach Walsh shares the excitement and pride of winning the MEAC championship against a highly regarded HBCU like Howard.
International Recruiting and Sign Language
- Nestor and Coach Walsh discuss the international recruiting efforts at Coppin State, including players from Puerto Rico, Texas, and Brazil.
- Coach Walsh explains how different cultural perspectives and game styles contribute to the team’s success.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh talk about the use of sign language in the volleyball program, including its integration into offensive schemes.
- Coach Walsh shares his background in sign language and its importance in communication with deaf students and players.
Future Plans and NCAA Tournament
- Nestor and Coach Walsh discuss the next steps for Coppin State’s volleyball team, including the NCAA selection show and potential matches.
- Coach Walsh explains the regional seeding process for the NCAA tournament and the importance of securing a high seed.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh talk about the excitement and challenges of competing in the NCAA tournament.
- Coach Walsh expresses confidence in the team’s ability to perform well in the upcoming matches.
Community Engagement and Partnerships
- Nestor highlights the long-standing partnership between WNST and Coppin State, emphasizing the mutual support and coverage of various sports events.
- Nestor mentions the Maryland Crab Cake Tour and other community events sponsored by WNST and the Maryland Lottery.
- Nestor expresses gratitude for the partnership with Coppin State and the positive impact on the Baltimore community.
- Nestor and Coach Walsh conclude the conversation with well-wishes for the upcoming holiday season and the NCAA tournament.
Coppin State volleyball head c…s Nestor on his MEAC champions
Thu, Nov 27, 2025 3:56AM • 17:01
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Coppin State, volleyball, MEAC champions, Tim Walsh, student athletes, scheduling, recruiting, sign language, academic support, NCAA tournament, international players, team consistency, championship run, Maryland crab cake tour, Baltimore positive.
SPEAKERS
Tim Walsh, Nestor Aparicio, Speaker 1
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome Home and Happy Thanksgiving everyone. We’re Baltimore positive. We’re W N st, I am Nestor. And tell you what we got football happening around here. We got turkey. We got pumpkin pie leftovers, as well as the Maryland crab cake Tour presented by the Maryland lottery. We’re getting into December five Maryland crab cake tours, including our holiday spirit at Costas later on in the month. And I tell you, it’s been a been an interesting month around here from a sports perspective. You know of our partnership with Coppin State University. We talk education. We’ve had students, student athletes, student government leaders on. I’ve had Stu on in time for basketball season, but the volleyball team. It’s been a little while since I’ve had Coach Tim Walsh on from Coppin. And I tell you what me at championship, I get Steve’s notes. I get Ruffins notes. I’m on the Coppin State hotline here with the Eagles. Congratulations for the victories and winning the championship for the me Act this year.
Tim Walsh 00:57
Thank you. Thank you. It’s been fun.
Nestor Aparicio 00:59
Well, I tell you what. Start the top with volleyball. You’ve been a recurring character around here for a number of years. You’ve been on the show many times talking about what collegiate volleyball is. You’ve dedicated large parts of your life to it, as well as sign language, which I always like talking to you, because I’m always fascinated by that part of your education. But young athletes bringing them in, you’ve created quite a tradition. This is not your first go round of winning, starting to put copping on the map in the MEAC volleyball.
Tim Walsh 01:29
Yeah, that’s the goal. You know, we want to build a program where people recognize, recognize us on the mid, you know, Atlantic region, and just mid as a mid major school that we can compete with some of the best out there. And, you know, give teams a run for their money regardless of, you know, where we’re located, the size of our school, and all those kind of things. So we’ve done a great job. It’s been really fun and exciting as we build the program and as we see success, and we continue to hope to do so in the future.
Nestor Aparicio 01:58
Yeah, I always think of, you know, volleyballs being California schools and Pepperdine, or maybe some bigger schools in the south I, you know, I look at your schedule and I see, you know, the Princeton, Maryland Rutgers earlier in the season. Tell me about, like, I think, like a basketball coach, like playing the tough competition at the beginning, because that’s where my mind, my sports mind, works all these years into this, but give me a little mindset of scheduling, what you’re trying to do in the MEAC and what it means to win your conference.
Tim Walsh 02:28
Yeah, I think every coach kind of has their own perspective and thought process of how to schedule. For me, it’s basically like, let’s go out there. Let’s see big blocks, let’s see big hitters, let’s see fast offenses. And try to, you know, just expose our student athletes to some of the top volleyball in this area and on the East Coast. And I think we’ve done a good job with that, and I think it helps prepare them for when we get to the MEAC. It’s not as big our conference, so our players aren’t as tall, but they’re, you know, they’re athletic. And so it puts a nice, like, mix of it into, like, our program. And so we’re able to see, you know, those six four players, maybe at Rutgers. And then, you know, when we get to the me act, now we’re seeing maybe 510, middles, but they’re a lot faster, lot quicker. So, you know, it just helps balance things for us, I think, and exposing them to different things as student athletes, really, I think propels them into the MEAC and then into championships.
Nestor Aparicio 03:27
Yeah, Coach, we’ve talked about this before. This this setting, if you’re watching on YouTubes where I live for a long time, and I walk around the harbor. I lived downtown for 19 years, and there were always volleyball tournaments going on. It seemed like I would just see large stretches of girls and in gear that said volleyball. And they were all playing over at the convention center, the recruiting part of this, the title nine part of this, the n, i l part of this, the beach Olympics, you know, part of this all sort of plays into, I would say, the marketing of your sport. But also, you know, if I have a 1011, 12 year old girl that soccer is a track. Lacrosse is a track. Softball is a track. Volleyball is a heck of a track for young ladies, right? Absolutely.
Speaker 1 04:08
And I think the sports growing and continues to grow, and the exposure is increasing daily. And so, you know, players typically, like you just said, are playing basketball and soccer. And now, if you look at the trend, more and more younger athletes are starting to pick up volleyball at an earlier age. So you’re seeing teams that are eight years old, nine years old, 10 years old, playing volleyball. Where before, you know, when I was younger, we weren’t exposed until, you know, maybe middle school or high school. So it gives that advantage of, hey, like we could be as good as you know, kids are now starting, you know, at eight, 910, so it really does add to the sport a lot,
Nestor Aparicio 04:48
as far as recruiting and getting young people to come to cop and give me the give me the speech coach. And I guess, in the the modern era and education means a lot. I hear a lot about n, i L, I talk about ni. I’ve seen symposiums at your level, all the way up to Maryland, all the way up to, you know, the Alabama football SEC type of where the money is. How much has any of that changed your program? You’ve been at this almost a decade at Coppin.
Speaker 1 05:14
I think a lot changes, you know, daily, with different things and trends, however, like, we are just a small school, and I don’t think we’ll ever be, you know, the size of University of Maryland or anything like that. So what I tell my players, and you know my recruits, is like, we’re here to support you, academically, socially, athletically, we can grow you and all those you know situations, and we’re just here to give you the best experience that we can give you. And you know, sometimes when you go to a large school, you get lost, maybe your classes, you go to some lectures that are 150 students, like we don’t have that here, you know, so it’s more one to one, so you’re able to build those rapports and relationships with your professors, which ideally is what we want. You know, we want to get you a degree. We want you to get into the real world and provide you with those internships. But of course, we want to teach you volleyball and win championships too, and so we’re able to do that here, which is awesome. And so you know, the President here has done an amazing job of building our campus and building our community, and so I love that about him, and I love that for our students here at Coppin, and I think that will continue to grow, and our program has gotten better and better and better each and every year too. So, you know, I think we’re on a good trend, and I’m excited about that. But again, like you know, we’re here to provide our student athletes with just, you know, as much as we can provide with our staff. And so you know, you’re not going to get lost here on campus. You’re not just going to be a number. People are going to know who you are. People are going to, you know, know your major people are going to know what sport you play, and they’re going to be here to support you, you know, in every way possible.
Nestor Aparicio 06:47
Anybody knows me knows we’ve been about a decade and a half now being the sports support for Coppin State sports, and you can find them at Coppin State sports comm. We’ve had games on we’ve had volleyball games, basketball games, so we’ve done it all around here, but it’s always great to come back ring the bell to talk about me act championships, which we’re doing right now. So if you got lost in your turkey or the Ravens play in the twice in four days, the the weekend, last weekend, Coppin State ladies volleyball went and won the championship. So so the give everybody the scheduling on volleyball, that it’s a false board, and that the me act tournament fell, and what you needed to do in order to win South Carolina, state, Delaware, state, Howard. And obviously this is a you work all year to try to put together teams, keep kids in school, healthy, all that kind of thing. And to win, I didn’t want it to go quietly, and it was kind of an impressive little run. You haven’t lost a lost a match in a month, right? Yeah.
Speaker 1 07:47
I mean, it’s you got highs and lows of the volleyball. So you could come out and, you know, kill a team in the first set and then get killed the second set. So you never know what you’re going to get here. But I think consistency has been a pretty good thing for us from the beginning of preseason, which is August, where you’re going and traveling to different tournaments, seeing different teams and different conferences. And then once conference play starts at the end of September, you know, you’re seeing all your me act teams. And in between, we kind of build some non conference games so that, you know, it’s not just stagnant and we’re just not seeing me acting so, you know, that’s a little thing that we do as well here at Coppin. But you know, the tournament was fun. We were seated number one. We’re excited about that. And played South Carolina in the first round. I thought we we played okay? I thought we knew we had to play better the next day. And then if we got past that, you know, in the championship, to win it, we’re going to have to play our best volleyball. So I think overall, you know, the girls really stepped up. We have an amazing team from number 18 to number one. And so, you know, the interchangeable players and the positions is just something that has benefited us all season. And so, you know, we knew that there was not one game all season yet to the championship, where everyone had played like their best volleyball and so we had talked about it in film, and we’re like, Hey, this is going to happen. Like, we’re going to put it all together. You know, everyone, all three of our primary passes are going to pass a 2.2 you know, our middle blockers are going to get solo blocks, block assist. You know, we’re going to we’re going to spread the ball well, our right side hitters are going to hit, you know, over 300 and our outside hitters are going to hit over 300 and once we put it all together like we will be unstoppable. And so, you know, we were able to do that in our final match against Howard. And that’s just amazing. You know, they’re considered the Mecca and of HBCUs. And you know, their endowment is crazy, and their their staffing is, you know, enormous, and so we don’t have those comparables, but at the end of the day, you know, we have the heart and soul and, you know, we had the skill set to beat them, and so we were really, really excited about that.
Nestor Aparicio 09:50
Well, I’ll tell you what. I’m up on Coppin State sports com right now. You go to the women’s volleyball. You can see coach Walsh’s bio page. Then you go to the Ross. Here, and I see Puerto Rico, Texas, Puerto Rico, Maryland, Maryland, Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico, LA, Brazil, Brazil. Puerto Rico, yeah, Illinois. It’s, you know, you it’s nice to have some young ladies from Odenton and Laurel and here in Baltimore and other places, but we’re reaching out in West
Speaker 1 10:20
Baltimore, cop, and are we not? Yeah, for sure. I mean, you don’t want to be isolated just in one spot. Volleyball is, you know, throughout the world, and so bringing different cultures and different perspectives and different levels of game just helps elevate things in the gym. And so, you know, we have done a good job of just recruiting good volleyball players, good students, good people, bringing them all together and getting them on the same page to try to win a championship. So you know, we you see international kids, and you see the Puerto Ricans, and you see, you know, the LA’s and the Texas and the Illinois and so at the end of the day, you know what matters is that, like they’re all on the same page, and we all have the same goal.
Nestor Aparicio 11:02
So I know, you know, sign language, we’re going to talk about that because it was a major for you, and I think it’s an amazing thing. I have several friends with deaf children who now have cochlear implants, completely changed their lives in the way AI is transforming me, you know, but you speak any Portuguese, you speak Spanish or poquito or you have to learn you just signed.
Speaker 1 11:25
No, our offense is based off of sign language. But, um, you know, I do not speak Spanish at all. Portuguese, nothing.
Nestor Aparicio 11:33
Um, so, but you sign like internationally with the best of them.
Speaker 1 11:37
Yes, we all, we all can sign basic sign together, so we can do that. But I am, I’m trying to learn. You know, my players want me to learn and encourage me to learn, but I was, I took Italian forever. So, you know, I always mix up Spanish and Italian, and
Nestor Aparicio 11:53
my players Google Translate. Man, it just put in the phone. Man, that’s all you need to do, right, right? Exactly. All you need to say to the Brazilian girls is over. Got though, just thank you for you know after, after you get a good point. Coach, Tim Walsh is here. He is with top and state. They are our partners as always. And we mentioned Dr Anthony Jenkins, who’s always been a big part of what we’ve done around here, bringing some spirit and some enthusiasm. Nothing does that like when Ruffin prints up the MEAC champion volleyball shirts and sends them over to me to wear that I get to wear them on the set here. Talk about signing a little bit. I just want to give you an opportunity to do that, because I think it’s such a an amazing thing when I see it. I was positioned recently at a concert. I went to see Brian Adams up in Philadelphia, and one of my dear friends, her, her boys are deaf, and she would always get the seats near the stage where, at like these crazy rock oz fest kind of concerts, there’s a signer who signs in front my seat. Was in front of the signer in Philadelphia a couple weeks ago, and I shot a little video, and it kind of captured her heart, because I see the signers like giving their lot, you know, given the singing their hearts out with their hands before shows. And I’m thinking, you know, it’d be nice to know Spanish or French or even Portuguese to speak to your Brazilian team, but sign language would be an awesome thing to learn, and you kind of incorporated it under the court, huh?
Speaker 1 13:11
Yeah, absolutely. So Elementary Ed major with sign language, and then went and got my masters and taught into deaf school, did my internship.
Nestor Aparicio 13:20
Can I ask? Why was there something inspired you to do that?
Speaker 1 13:23
Yeah, our school in New York was mainstream, so we had deaf students in our classrooms with an interpreter all day, so you were kind of forced to learn sign language. And so they took like 30 minutes every day and taught you just basic sign language so you could communicate with your, you know, your fellow classmates. And so I kind of just knew some things, and then I took it as, like a basic class as an elective at Towson, and I just flew through it. And I was like, This is awesome. This is cool. Perfect way to, like, double major with education, and, you know, get in involved with that, and so graduated, and then got my masters and deaf education, and now I’m using that like on the court, you know. So we’re all learning sign language, so our offensive schemes are based on signs. So, but you’ll see that throughout, like every you know, volleyball team, they have signs the setters gives, but ours are more based like American Sign Language things, rather than just, you know, just hand signals, so, but it’s pretty cool, but nothing crazy, nothing too complex for our players. But, you know, we’re all on the same page with it, so we love it. It’s fun.
Nestor Aparicio 14:36
Yeah, you know, if the kids at Howard figure out the signs from Gallaudet, you’re going to steal your signs. You know you’re right. Tim Walsh is here. He said, Congratulations. I I would say better Thanksgiving when you win your tournament.
Speaker 1 14:50
Yeah, absolutely, yeah, for sure. What?
Nestor Aparicio 14:53
What is off? See what happens next.
Speaker 1 14:56
So we’ll go to NCAA is we’ll have our selection show Sunday. We’ll play. Uh, next week sometime, and then, you know, we’ll take so
Nestor Aparicio 15:03
what kind of place will you go? Is it seated like East Coast region, where you get on a boss? Will it be more our regional date set and things like that, or no?
Speaker 1 15:11
Regional Base seated one through 16. So just based on high seed gets home, you go there, right? So we’ll go to a high seed. So we’ll go to a one or two.
Nestor Aparicio 15:22
All right, well, shock the world, then, how about that? Is that
Speaker 1 15:25
good? Sounds great. All
Nestor Aparicio 15:27
right. Well, come back in a couple weeks. Tell me how you win some more matches and continue on through how many teams in the tournament. Give me a little bracketing here, right? I’m trying to educate my audience as I get educated on Division One volleyball,
Speaker 1 15:39
64 teams. So I think there’s 32 automatic bids, and then 32
Nestor Aparicio 15:45
qualifiers, and you’re automatic now because you won your conference, correct? See, it is like basketball, but not completely, right?
Speaker 1 15:52
Yeah, very similar, yep, all right. Well,
Nestor Aparicio 15:55
listen and get some then the kids can’t eat too much turkey this weekend, right? We got, we got the biggest matches of the year
Speaker 1 16:01
next week. Yeah, let him eat it, and then we’ll burn it off. We’ll figure it out. Alright, alright.
Nestor Aparicio 16:05
Hydrate out there. Rest stop and stay healthy for your team getting into next week, same thing I give the Ravens all the time. Luke is out in Owings Mills. Luke will be here covering all things ravens as we get ready for the Pittsburgh Steelers next weekend and we get all of our leftovers together, we’ll be doing the Maryland crab cake Tour presented by presented by the Maryland lottery. I have Raven scratch offs to give away. We’re gonna be doing that some new places. Gonna be at deepest squalies, back again in Canton, but also in honeys over in Hale, Thorpe on the southwest side of town, and, of course, our big holiday extravaganza on the 18th of December. We doing that at Costas in Dundalk, back in the homeland as well. I am Nestor. We are W NST am 1570 always talking some Coppin State University, on the court, off the court, tournament time as well as a holiday time. We’re big appreciation for our partnership with Coppin State now going on a decade and a half, making a smile around here. We’re the holidays. We’re Baltimore positive. Stay with us.
