Aug. 27, 2010

Box Score

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The University of Maryland volleyball team kicked off the 2010 season on the road at the Tiger Invitational in Columbia, Mo., this weekend. The Terps' first match was against host Mizzou Friday evening. Maryland fell to the Tigers, 3-0. The Terrapins will have two more chances to pick up wins when they take on Nevada and Utah Valley tomorrow.

Two freshmen graced the starting lineup, Under Armour High School All-American Mary Cushman and Sarah Harper. Cushman led all players in kills during the match with 30 total attacks and 15 kills. Also leading the Terps on the stat sheet was sophomore Remy McBain with 26 assists and seven digs. Senior Brittney Grove, junior Maddi Lee and sophomores Kara Bates and McBain rounded out the starting six as senior Bethany Springer played libero for the Terps, replacing Sam Rosario, who is out with a season-ending ACL injury. Rosario led the team with 484 digs during her freshman campaign last year, a top-10 single season record. Newcomer Carlisle Abele also suffered an ACL injury during the summer, ending her rookie season.

Despite Missouri drawing first blood, the Terrapins stayed close making the score, 5-3. The two squads continued to rally as the Terps forced the Tigers into their first timeout of the set, as they closed in on Mizzou, 19-22. Maryland scored two more points before Missouri claimed the first set, 25-21.

The Terrapins quickly got settled into the second set, going on a five-point run, cutting the Missouri lead to two,15-13. The Tigers had their first set point at 24-22 and called a timeout. Maryland came out of the break and scored the next two points to knot the set at 24. Missouri got another set point chance at 25-24 but the Terps again tied it up. The Tigers finally nabbed the second set, 27-25.

In the third set of the match, Maryland continued to push the limits and kept the score close. Tied at 15, Missouri called a timeout. The Terrapins went on to score six more points but fell to the Tigers, 25-21.

Following the road trip, Maryland returns to College Park for their home opener, hosting the Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Maryland Invitational at Comcast Center. The tournament kicks off on Friday, Sept. 3 as the Terps first take the floor at 7:30 p.m. against Fordham. They will play two more matches on Saturday, against Bradley at 12:30 p.m. and nearby foe Georgetown at 7 p.m.

In combination with the ever competitive Atlantic Coast Conference schools, the Terps' schedule also features four tournaments and eight teams that earned NCAA tournament berths last year.

Fans will have nine chances to catch their Terrapins at home against ACC competition in addition to the two tournaments in September which feature six total matches.