COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Head Coach Adam Hughes and the Maryland volleyball team earned its third-highest ranked recruiting class in program history, PrepVolleyball announced Thursday. Just the third ranked recruiting class since the program began in 1975, Maryland's class features three recruits ranked in PrepVolleyball's Top 100 Senior Aces.
"I'm thrilled our 2020 class earned such high recognition," Hughes said. "Our staff did a great job building this class and we're excited about the potential of the group. We can't wait to get everyone back on campus to see what they can bring to the table."
Sydney Dowler (S, Cary, N.C.), Samantha Csire (OH, Strongsville, Ohio), and Laila Ricks (MB, Redondo Beach, Calif.) round out the 2020 recruiting class.
Dowler is a Third Team Under Armour All-American, four-time state MVP, and three-time Max Preps All-American setter out of Green Hope HS. Dowler was a member of the USA Volleyball Select National Training Camp in 2014 and 2015, and a member of the USA Volleyball A1 Training Camp in 2016. The 2020 Prep Volleyball Senior Ace (#63) was also the North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in 2018.
Dowler becomes just the 10th Under Armour All-American to commit to Maryland in program history and the first since 2016.
Csire is a 2020 Prep Volleyball Senior Ace (#65), was named Second Team All-Ohio in 2018 and district/conference MVP the same season. Most recently, Csire was named to the 2019 JVA All-National team, a distinction she also earned in 2017.
Ricks comes to Maryland after a four-year varsity career at nationally-ranked high schools Flint Hill (Oakton, Va.) and Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, Calif.). Ricks also played with nationally-ranked clubs Mizuno Long Beach and Metro VBC. Another 2020 Prep Volleyball Senior Ace (#70), Ricks helped Redondo Union to the 2019 CIF Southern Section Championship.
The 2020 recruiting class joins the 2016 and 2017 recruiting classes as the only classes to receive recognition by PrepVolleyball. The 2016 class was ranked 16th while the 2017 class was ranked 10th.
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