Box Score COLLEGE PARK, MD — The University of Maryland volleyball team took down the Iowa Hawkeyes, 3-1 (25-16, 25-16, 17-25, 25-17), on Saturday night at the XFINITY Center Pavilion, snapping a four-match losing streak against a tough slate of Big Ten opponents. The team received a helpful push from their lively home crowd on Dig Pink Match in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Maryland controlled the first two sets, claiming a 2-0 lead with nine-point wins in each of those sets. After dropping the third set, the Terps regained momentum in the fourth frame and dominated the Hawkeyes to close out the set with an eight-point advantage. 

The Terps found success in staging point streaks, totaling seven four-or-more point runs across the four sets. Maryland succeeded hitting at the net and at the backline, notching a .244 clip while tying a season-high 11 service aces.  Senior pin hitter Samantha Schnitta led the Terps with 13 kills, while senior setter Sydney Dowler reached fifth place on Maryland's all-time assist leaderboard, surpassing Remy McBain (2009-12) for the position, notching 34 assists throughout the contest. 

With the result, the Terps moved to 14-8 (4-6 B1G) on the season, while Iowa fell to 8-14 (0-10 B1G). 

How It Happened

Set 1: Maryland 25 - Iowa 16

• The Terps jumped out to a 6-1 advantage to start the match, featuring a leadoff service ace from Jonna Spohn.
• Iowa came back within one point of Maryland, but Laila Ivery and Eva Rohrbach swifty countered with blocks to put the Terps back ahead to 11-7. 
• The teams exchanged points for a while until the Hawkeyes pulled even at 12-12. 
• Anastaisa Russ delivered an electric kill in Iowa's center court for the next point, putting Maryland back on top. 
• Maryland found their groove in the latter half of the set, staging a 12-2 run to close out the first set. 
• Lilly Gunter led the team with three aces, with Samantha Schnitta tallying a team-leading four kills. 

Set 2: Maryland 25 - Iowa 16

• The squads went back-and-forth for the first 12 points, though the Hawkeyes were never able to take the lead during this stretch. 
• Three straight kills from Ivey, Schnitta, and Russ helped put Maryland up by three at 9-6. 
• The Terps and Hawkeyes continued to trade points until Maryland powered ahead to 20-15, as Ivey, Schnitta, and Russ tacked more kills onto their set total. 
• Maryland then delivered a five-point run to close out the second set, capped off by an Erin Engel service ace.
• Ivey, Schnitta, and Russ combined for nine kills, with Schnitta again leading the charge with four. 

Set 3: Iowa 25 - Maryland 17

• Iowa went up 3-1 early to take their first lead of the match before Maryland converted off of a Hawkeyes attack error to inch ahead to 4-3. 
• The Terps were put on the defensive for the first time all game as the Hawkeyes went on a 5-0 run to go up 10-6.
• But the Terps persisted, trading kills with Iowa then launching a four-point run of their own to equalize at 12. Csire delievered the set-tying kill for Maryland. 
• Knotted at 13, Maryland pulled ahead by 2 but couldn't hold the advantage for long. 
• Iowa recorded a 10-1 run to conclude the third set. 

Set 4: Maryland 25 - Iowa 17

• Looking to bounce back from set three, the Terps kicked off the fourth frame with a 5-1 run that included a Csire kill and a skillful service ace from Engel.
• Maryland followed with a 4-0 run later in the set to go up 10-4. 
• From there, the Terps stayed comfortably on top for the rest of the set.
• After a volley, Schnitta delivered the match-sealing kill for Maryland. 

Numbers to Know

• 3: Three different Terps — Lilly Gunter (15), Sydney Dowler (11) and Jonna Spohn (11) — notched double-digit digs.
• 5: With 34 assists and 11 digs, Sydney Dowler has now recorded back-to-back double-doubles.
• 11: With 11 service aces, Maryland tied its season high in that department, equaling its total against Utah Valley on Sept. 2.
• 13: Samantha Schnitta recorded her eighth double-digit kill outing of 2023, leading the Terps with 13 kills.
• 1,494: With 15 digs, Lilly Gunter inched closer to the 1,500 career digs milestone, putting her career total at 1,494 dishes.
• 3,048: Sydney Dowler vaulted into fifth place on Maryland's all-time assist leaderboard, surpassing Remy McBain (2009-12), who previously held the spot with 3,034 helpers.

Up Next

• The Terps start their four-match road stretch with a journey to Lincoln, NE for a clash against No. 2 Nebraska. First serve from the Bob Devaney Sports Center is set for 8 p.m. ET, and the contest will be streamed on B1G+.