Nov. 26, 2004
MARYLAND (16-14, 7-9) vs. MIAMI (OHIO) (9-17, 7-9)
SAT., NOV. 27, 2004 * 5:00 p.m.
COLLEGE PARK, Md. * COMCAST CENTER PAVILION (1,500)
The University of Maryland volleyball team will play a final regular-season match against Miami University on Saturday at 5 p.m. in Comcast Center Pavilion. The Terps are coming off of their second-consecutive ACC Championship last weekend in Charlottesville, Va., and will find out their first-round NCAA Tournament opponent on Sunday, Nov. 28.
Noting The Terrapins
The Terrapins won the ACC Volleyball Championship for the fourth time in school history, with a 3-0 win over North Carolina on Nov. 21. The seventh-seed in the tournament, Maryland won four hard-fought matches en route to their second-straight conference crown.
Although they finished the regular-season with a 7-9 league mark, the Terrapins are now 16-14 overall and winners of four-straight.
Terps In The ACC and National Rankings
Maryland leads the ACC and is ranked 13th nationally in blocks per game, as the Terps average 3.16 per game. Leading the way is Stephanie Smith, Rachel Wagener and Jennifer Dewalt, who each average over one block per game for the Terps. Smith, with 1.46 bpg, rank second in the conference, while Wagener is right behind her (1.36 bpg, fourth in the ACC). Wagener also ranks eighth in hitting percentage (.316), while setter Aimee Huddleston ranks seventh in assists with 12.11 per game.
Wagener and Brown: All ACC Selections
Rachel Wagener is a second-team All-ACC honoree and Jade Brown is a member of the ACC all-freshman squad, the conference announced at the annual tournament banquet.
Wagener, a two-time second-team member has led the Terps' block all season while also contributing offensive firepower. Already the school record-holder for blocks in a season (200 in 2003), block assists in a season (177 in 2003; also an ACC record) and career block assists (385 and counting), the junior also recently set the career mark for total blocks, previously 417 set by Kelli Myers from 1987-89. With just 437 rejections, Wagener surpassed Myers' mark to become Maryland's all-time leader in the category.
Brown, who recorded her first-career kill on Oct. 2 at North Carolina, has exploded onto the conference scene by averaging 3.09 kills per game and notching nearly 200 kills this season. The Atlanta, Ga., native has reached double digits in kills nine times, highlighted by a 24-kill performance on Oct. 22 vs. Wake Forest.
Record-Breaking Tournament
Three Terrapins were awarded all-tournament honors at this year's ACC Championships. Sarah Treadwell earned Most Valuable Player, while Aimee Huddleston and Jennifer Dewalt were named to the all-tournament team.
Treadwell's four-day total of 70 kills tied an ACC Tournament record. Huddleston's 228 assists in four matches was also a tournament record, as was Stephanie Smith's 30 blocks.
Freshman Beth Gillming, who has played in all but one game and every match for the Terrapins, also set a new tournament record for digs with 87. The Cincinnati, Ohio, native has reached the 30-dig plateau twice this year.
Record Watch
Sarah Treadwell notched her 1,000th career dig on Sept. 25 at Wake Forest. The senior headed into the match needing nine to hit the milestone and recorded 11 on the night. Treadwell now has 1,253 digs for her career and sits in fourth place on Maryland's all-time list in the category. She is 76 digs away from Carey Brennan's four-year total, 1,329.
Rachel Wagener, already one of the most prolific blockers in Terrapin history, recorded her 303rd career block assist on Oct. 3 at NC State, tying Sherry Smith for Maryland's individual career total in the category. She broke the record in the Terps' next match, Oct. 8 vs. FSU. With 385 career block assists, Wagener is now the school record-holder in the category.
The junior is also Maryland's career total blocks record, as she currently has 437 in less than three seasons. The previous school record was 418, set by Kelli Myers from 1987-89.
Senior Maria DiLivio is also approaching a milestone, as the outside hitter needs two kills for 1,000 for her career.
Scouting Miami
The RedHawks have a 9-17 overall record after most recently dropping a five-game match to Kent State at the MAC Tournament.
Miami is led by Tara Buroker with 310 kills on the year (3.04 per game) and Carli Reihman with 254 kills (2.49 per game). Buroker leads the team in digs by averaging 3.16 per game.
Maryland leads the all-time series with Miami, 2-1.
Miami is coached by Carolyn Condit, who is in her 21st season.
Fresh Faces
Including Gillming and Brown, Kruger's squad welcomes five new faces in 2004. Charese Baldwin, Jade Brown, Mary Beth Brown, Gillming and Katie Luhrsen are the Terps' class of 2008, along with redshirt freshman Tina Aramburu.
Luhrsen got her first collegiate action at the Houston Invitational, playing in two games vs. California on Sept. 4. Luhrsen had a strong showing, as she tallied eight digs and two assists. On Oct. 9 vs Miami, Luhrsen saw time at libero and notched nine digs.
Baldwin played in her first collegiate match vs. Towson on Sept. 15. She recorded her first career kills on Sept. 18 vs. Georgetown, including the match-winner. Baldwin, who saw her first playing time in an ACC match on Oct. 3 at NC State, also came off the bench strong on Oct. 22 vs. Wake Forest by tallying two block assists.
Aramburu earned her first collegiate experience vs. Georgetown on Sept. 18, notching a dig.
Huddleston And Wagener: Preseason All-ACC
Senior setter Aimee Huddleston, a first-team All-ACC selection last season, and Rachel Wagener, a second-team honoree in 2003, represent Maryland on the preseason All-ACC squad.
Huddleston is averaging 12.11 assists per game while contributing 2.15 digs per game.
Wagener is averaging 2.61 kills per game and has posted 156 blocks on the year (1.36 per game).
Kruger Embarks On 17th Season At Maryland
Janice Kruger, who became the ACC's all-time winningest coach last season, returns for her 17th year at the helm of the Terrapins. Her record at Maryland is 320-212, while her overall record is 695-317-6. Last season's ACC Coach of the Year and AVCA Region Coach of the Year, Kruger won her third ACC Championship and made her fifth appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
2004 Schedule: One Of The Toughest
Maryland, which captured the ACC Championship last season en route to its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance, faced three teams that advanced to the 2003 NCAA Sweet Sixteen within the first two weeks of the fall schedule.
Maryland's home tournament took place on Sept. 17-18 in Comcast Center Pavilion and proved that its home court is a tough place to play. With four wins at home in the 2004 campaign, Maryland is now 13-5 all-time in Comcast Center.
The Terps opened the ACC portion of their schedule on Sept. 24-25 at Duke and Wake Forest, earning a victory over the Demon Deacons but falling to the Blue Devils.
New to the ACC this year are Miami and Virginia Tech. Miami head coach, Nicole Lantagne Welch, is a former Maryland setter and faced her former coach in Kruger. The Terps prevailed in a five-game battle in the first volleyball meeting between the teams.
The Terrapins, who defeated Georgia Tech, 3-1, for the 2003 ACC Tournament title repeated as champions in 2004, taking down North Carolina 3-0 for their second-straight conference crown.
The team will have a final regular-season game after that tournament, a home contest vs. Miami (Ohio) on Nov. 27.
