By: Christian Andriolas
Maryland vs Michigan:
ANN ARBOR, MI – Maryland volleyball’s Thursday night matchup against Michigan seemed favorable on paper. The Terps had won three of their previous four — the lone loss coming against No. 4 Penn State — while Michigan was in the midst of a seven-game losing streak.
Yet, Maryland struggled. The Wolverines swept the Terps in straight sets (25-21, 25-17, 25-21).
Maryland (13-15, 4-13 B1G) led Michigan (17-11, 7-10 B1G) 18-15 in the first set following a kill by Samantha Schnitta. But the Wolverines answered with a 6-0 run led by efficient service from opposite hitter Valentina Valuet.
“Valentia is fifth in the country in aces,” coach Adam Hughes said. “She has two of the big ones that we couldn’t find solutions to.”
The rally proved too much for the Terps to come back from. With the score 22-21, two Terp errors through the final three points gave Michigan the opening frame, 25-22.
After falling down early in set two, Maryland proceeded to score six consecutive points. Two service aces by Eva Rohrbach capped the streaky display, forcing a Michigan timeout.
But Michigan stormed back to take the lead just minutes later. Maryland struggled with its attack in the stretch, losing momentum while committing seven errors throughout the Wolverines’ run.
Michigan retained its lead and never looked back. The Wolverines dominated with three service aces while outscoring the Terps late, closing out a second set Maryland loss, 25-17.
“It felt like one touch, and we were caught off guard,” Hughes said. “[It] felt like we had one poor touch to [another] poor touch.”
The Terps’ struggles continued into set three, falling down five early. But a steady Maryland comeback followed.
Schnitta fueled a rally with two kills and a service ace, putting the Terps up one, 10-9, midway through the set.
Even after a Schnitta service error, the Terps’ momentum didn’t waver. Kills from Rohrbach and Sydney Dowler put Maryland up two points.
Both teams were deadlocked at 16 apiece just minutes later. The tie didn’t last long.
An 8-1 Michigan run blew the game open. The Terps answered with a 4-0 run of their own to bring the deficit to within three — but an emphatic Wolverines kill closed out the set, giving Michigan the sweep.
“We just didn’t feel like we could keep pushing in this one,” Hughes said. “I thought we got a [good] run in game two to say we might get back in this, [but] we didn’t have enough to get over the top.”
Maryland vs Michigan State:
EAST LANSING, MI – Maryland volleyball made the 65 mile trek to Michigan State on Saturday — it proved to be much of the same. The Terps were swept in straight sets (25-19, 25-22, 25-18).
Michigan State (12-17, 5-13 B1G) jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead in the opening set. But Maryland (13-16, 4-14 B1G) answered with a 4-0 run to tie, capped with a kill by Anastasia Russ.
With the score deadlocked at 10 apiece, Schnitta shook off Thursday’s poor performance with a kill and service ace. The two respective plays put the Terps up two, at 12-10.
“I thought she got off better today,” Hughes said. “She had a great practice yesterday, just being really diligent about what she wanted to accomplish.”
Despite Maryland’s run, the Spartans answered. They never relinquished control in the set after taking a 12-11 lead. Michigan State later won 25-19.
Maryland mirrored Thursday’s performance, playing its best in set two. The Terps kept it close for the first half of the set, but a late Michigan State run put the road team in a seven-point hole.
Maryland answered with a 7-1 run to pull within one at 23-22. In a similar vein to their first-set loss against Michigan though, the Terps dropped the final two points, giving the Spartans a 25-22 second set victory.
“I thought they did a good job fighting to give themselves a window,” Hughes said. “It was just too late of a run to get back in time.”
Set three went back-and-forth for the first ten points. Both teams went on scoring runs of three points, with neither able to pull away. But that changed quickly.
The Spartans grabbed a four-point lead – 16-12 – with a service ace. They never looked back. Maryland attack errors, mixed in with a strong Michigan State attack, gave the Spartans a comfortable 25-18 victory to complete the sweep.
“Very disappointed. Just did not play well this weekend,” Hughes said. “I thought today they actually beat us at the strategy that we wanted to be good at.”
The Terps will finish their 2024 season next weekend. First, Maryland travels to play Rutgers at 5 p.m. on Friday, before returning to College Park to face No. 2 Nebraska on Saturday night.
That game against the Cornhuskers will be held inside the main XFINITY Center gym. Ben Geffner and Ryan Martin will be on the call for WMUC Sports.
