Oklahoma
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Maryland
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Sophomore libero Kelsey Wicinski set a new career record with 28 digs as the Maryland volleyball team (8-3) defeated Oklahoma (9-3) in four sets on Friday afternoon at the Galen Center. The Terps defeated the Sooners by set scores of 30-28, 25-13, 22-25, 25-19.
“This was a really good win for our program,” head coach Steve Aird said. “I have a ton of respect for the Oklahoma staff and team. I'm proud of the team for getting the win, but we need to move on quickly as we have another massive challenge tonight.”
Freshman outside hitter Gia Milana also set a personal best with 20 kills while adding 10 digs. Freshman setter Taylor Smith dished out a career-high 52 assists.
Four Terps hit double-digit kills, including Milana, sophomore outside hitter Liz Twilley (14), senior middle blocker Ashlyn MacGregor (12) and junior middle blocker Hailey Murray (10).
MacGregor led Maryland at the net with nine blocks while junior opposite hitter Angel Gaskin posted six and Murray notched five.
Both teams battled in the first set as there were 19 ties and nine lead changes. The Terps pulled away to take a 14-12 lead on a Murray kill before the Sooners charged back to take an 18-16 lead. Oklahoma led by three, 20-17, but a block from Murray and Gaskin helped pull Maryland within one, 20-19. A block from Murray and Smith and an Oklahoma attack error put the Terps at set point, 24-22.
The Sooners notched two straight points to tie the set before taking a 25-24 lead. A Smith-MacGregor block put the Terps back ahead, 26-25, but Oklahoma came back to tie the set three more times. Gaskin and Milana posted kills as the Terps closed out the first set, 30-28.
Maryland handled Oklahoma in the second, paced by seven kills on a .583 clip from Milana. Kills from Twilley and Milana helped the Terps pull away, 8-5, and Maryland went on a 3-0 run to go ahead 12-7. Maryland used a run of strong serving from freshman Megan McTigue and a solo block from Murray to continue the lead, 18-10.
Wicinski posted a strong run of serving, and two straight Maryland blocks finished the set, 25-13.
The Sooners came out of the break and surged to an 8-3 lead in set three, forcing a Maryland timeout. The Terps were able to pull within five on a Milana kill at 14-9, but Oklahoma took a 19-13 lead. The Sooners reached set point at 24-18, but Maryland was able to rattle off four straight points to extend the set. Oklahoma notched a kill to finish the game, 25-22.
Three aces from Wicinski and a 7-0 run pushed the Terps to a 12-6 lead in set four. MacGregor and Milana helped keep Maryland ahead with kills, and Twilley tallied a kill to lead 19-14. Twilley and MacGregor posted late kills, and an Oklahoma attack error finished the set, 25-19.
Maryland hit .299 in the match while holding Oklahoma to a .132 hitting percentage. MacGregor led the Terps with a .579 clip. The Terrapins also out-blocked the Sooners 14.0-7.0 and held a 63-58 advantage in digs.
The Terps close out the Pac-12 Challenge against No. 21 Southern California on Friday night at 11 p.m. ET.
-Maryland-
