COLLEGE PARK, MD – Maryland volleyball earned its first Big Ten win in 2024, sweeping Rutgers (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) on Saturday at the XFINITY Center Pavilion. The sweep was the Terps’ seventh sweep of the season.
The Terps (10-5, 1-3 Big Ten) and Scarlet Knights (5-10, 0-3 Big Ten) battled back and forth in each set, but Maryland came away with a clean sweep using its defense and ability to serve. It held a 10-3 advantage in service aces. The Terps continue their dominance on the serve, remaining in the top five in the nation for aces and in the top 10 in aces per set.
Ally joining the ace party! pic.twitter.com/u2VTigwFCY
— Maryland Volleyball (@TerpsVolleyball) October 6, 2024
Samantha Schnitta led the way with five service aces. The graduate pin hitter has 52 service aces on the season, ranking first in the NCAA. She added 10 kills and seven digs in the match.
Sydney Bryant led the Terps in kills with 13. Lilly Gunter (12) led the team in digs, and Sydney Dowler (30) led in assists. Dowler added two aces and ranks fourth all-time in program history in assists and eighth in service aces.
Sam Csire (eight kills, nine digs and three blocks) and Eva Rohrbach (four digs and three blocks) were other standout performers for Maryland. Csire ranks eighth in program history in all-time kills.
it’s a @samcsire block party! pic.twitter.com/hK0SxUFYJv
— Maryland Volleyball (@TerpsVolleyball) October 6, 2024
The match was Maryland’s Dig Pink match in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Breaking Down The Action
Set 1: Maryland 25 – Rutgers 22
- Samantha Schnitta recorded two service aces to give Maryland a 4-1 early lead.
- Anastasia Russ, known for her defensive presence, scored a kill on the offensive end to give the Terps a 7-4 advantage.
- The Terps grabbed a 12-5 lead after the Scarlet Knights were called for a ball-handling error.
- Rutgers rallied back within three at 13-10 with a 5-1 run.
- The Scarlet Knights got within two, but a massive block by Russ allowed the Terps to pull ahead once again, 17-13.
- The Terps closed the set with a win, thanks to kills by Sydney Bryant, Sam Csire and Schnitta. Rutgers battled to the end, scoring a 7-1 run.
Set 2: Maryland 25 – Rutgers 20
- Maryland began set two with a 3-0 lead.
- Each team scored in bunches a couple of…
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