Sept. 30, 2005

Blacksburg, Va. - Maryland defeated Virginia Tech (30-22, 30-18, 30-23), and had a team hitting percentage of .429 for the match. The Terps have won 19 of their last 20 matches.

The Terrapins played another balanced effort as Rachel Wagener led the team with nine kills (.471), Maggie Schmelzle had eight kills (.467) and eight digs. Three underclassmen posted seven kills , Jade Brown (.500), Mary Beth Brown (.500) and Beth Gillming (.222). Integral to the offense was key setting by Teryn Papp with 19 and Tedi Doucet with 14. Schmelzle led the Terps with eight digs.

Virginia Tech had 44 kills (.148) but the 28 errors for the match snared the Hokies. The Hokies are now 6-6 overall and 1-2 in the ACC.

The contest was close in the opening game with the teams exchanging ties ten times to a brink of 13-13. Key serving by freshman Schmelzle and kills by Wagnener and Jade Brown kept the match even. With Gillming serving, the Terps went on a four-point run to 17-13 before the Hokies fought back with a kill by Sarah Munoz. The Terps kept the Hokies at bay extending the game to 20-26 and 22-29 when Schmelzle closed out the match with a kill after an assist from Tedi Doucet.

In the second game, the Terps opened with a lead of 5-2 and maintained the lead till the Hokies came and tied the game at ten. Jade Brown's kill at the next point to go up 11-10 spurred a Maryland run to 15-11. The Terps led by as many as 12 points at 28-16 before a Mary Beth Brown had a kill to win the match 30-18.

The third game proved to be the toughest test for the Terps when the Hokies came out with a 1-5 start with two kills by Erin Brugger. The Terps got back on track forcing two errors on Virginia Tech, but fell behind by as many as five points at 8-13 when Coach Janice Kruger called a Maryland time out. Rachel Wagener paired with Jade Brown and Beth Gillming on some clutch blocks to gain momentum for the Terps bringing the game to a tie at 15-15. Maryland's determination showed with key blocks by Mary Beth Brown and crucial serving by Stephanie Smith to bring the Terps' to a 24-21 lead. Two kills by Jade Brown sparked the offense with Wagener and Gillming posting kills to gain a more comfortable lead when Mary Beth Brown provided the final kill to close out the game 30-23 and win the match.

The Terps will face Virginia in Charlottesville on Saturday at 5:00 p.m.