Maryland (16-12, 6-10 B1G)
at
Indiana (18-11, 8-8 B1G)
November 17, 2023
Wilkinson Hall
6:00 p.m.
B1G+
Watch Live Stats
Maryland (16-12, 6-10 B1G)
at
No. 16 Purdue (17-8, 11-5 B1G)
November 18, 2023
Holloway Gymnasium
7:00 p.m.
B1G+
Watch Live Stats
COLLEGE PARK, MD — The University of Maryland volleyball team (16-12, 6-10 B1G) makes its final road trip of the 2023 campaign, traveling to face Indiana (18-11, 8-8 B1G) Friday evening and No. 16 Purdue (17-8, 11-5 B1G) Saturday night.
First serve for Friday is slated for 6 p.m. at Wilkinson Hall, while Saturday's contest at Holloway Gymnasium will begin at 7 p.m.. Both contests will be streamed on B1G+.
Bringing Down The Buckeyes
- Almost a year after Maryland won its biggest match of the 2022 season against No. 5 Ohio State, the Terps secured their second consecutive home win over the Buckeyes, notching a three-set victory on Sunday.
- Maryland prevailed in three close sets, pulling ahead late after Ohio State built early leads in two of the three sets.
- The Buckeyes grabbed an 18-14 advantage in the opening frame, but a timely 6-0 Terrapin run vaulted Maryland ahead by two points. With the set tied 23 apiece, Sam Csire and Sydney Dowler tallied back-to-back kills to clinch the first set.
- Neither team could build a lead larger than two points late into the second until another late 6-0 stretch propelled by junior setter Zoe Huang getting the Buckeyes out of system from the service line. In total, Maryland claimed a 2-0 set lead with an 8-1 run to close out the stanza.
- Maryland found itself in a four-point hole in the final set, this time trailing 22-18 as the Buckeyes attempted to extend the match. A 5-0 run put Maryland in the driver's seat, and after Ohio State leveled the score at 23-23, redshirt junior outside hitter Erin Morrissey smashed a kill to advance to match point, and freshman defensive specialist Jonna Spohn closed out the contest with a service ace off the tape.
Maryland celebrated back-to-back home victories over Ohio State, sweeping the Buckeyes while hitting .288 in the contest.
Reaching The .500 Mark
- Maryland locked up its 16th win of the season Sunday against Ohio State, giving the Terps a .500 record for the season. Adam Hughes' squad has now reached the .500 mark for a third consecutive campaign.
- This is the first time Maryland has compiled three straight .500 seasons since joining the Big Ten in 2014, and it marks the longest such streak for the program since 2002-05.
- The Terps got to this point with a 10-2 non-conference slate, which featured wins over 2022 Ivy League co-champion Princeton and 2022 ASUN champion Florida Gulf Coast.
- In Big Ten play, Maryland has compiled six wins so far, picking up victories over Michigan, Rutgers, Ohio State and No. 16 Minnesota. Additionally, the Terps swept the season series over Iowa.
The Terps celebrated their 16th win on Sunday over Ohio State, locking up a .500 record in three consecutive seasons for the first time since 2002-05.
Morry Madness
- Earning her first start since the opening two matches of the season, redshirt junior Erin Morrissey played the best match of her career and carried the Terrapin attack Sunday against Ohio State.
- The Tampa, FL product registered a career-best 12 kills to lead the team hitting .281 with the highest attack volume of her career.
- Morrissey played her best in the late-set rallies of the first and third frames, recording a pair of kills late in the first set to maintain Maryland's two-point advantage then feeding Sydney Dowler for a kill to reach set point in the first.
- In the final frame, Morrissey's double block alongside Eva Rohrbach sparked the momentum-changing 5-0 run. On the match-ending run, the outside hitter recorded the kill to even the score at 22-22 then helped the Terps reach set point with her 12th putaway of the afternoon.
Erin Morrissey recorded a career-high 12 kills and came up clutch in big moments as Maryland took down Ohio State on Sunday.
Double-Double Dowler
- Since Big Ten play started, senior setter Sydney Dowler has been on a double-double tear, accumulating seven double-doubles in 16 conference matches.
- The Oconomowoc, WI native notched her seventh double-double of the campaign Sunday afternoon against Ohio State, where she compiled 28 assists and 10 digs in three sets.
- Dowler recorded back-to-back double-doubles against Illinois and Iowa on Oct. 20 and 21, picking up 40 assists and 11 digs against the Fighting Illini and 34 assists and 11 digs against the Hawkeyes.
- Along with her double-double success, Dowler moved into 10th place in Maryland's career service ace ranks, dropping in her 100th career service ace to pass Maggie Schmelzle (2005-08) on the leaderboard against Michigan.
Sydney Dowler helped with 28 assists while notching 10 digs to pick up her seventh double-double of the season against Ohio State.
Going On With Gunter
- Senior libero Lilly Gunter has been a major asset for Maryland in her first season with the program after transferring from Mississippi State in the offseason.
- After entering her first season with the Terrapins with 1,190 career digs after three seasons at Mississippi State, the Oviedo, FL native collected her 1,500th career dig on Oct. 27 against Nebraska.
- Gunter serves as one of the most experienced liberos in the country, as her 1,555 career digs rank as the second-most career digs among active players in the Big Ten and the 49th-most among active players in the country.
- Gunter has recorded 3.82 digs per set in conference play while recording double-digit digs in 18 matches. In seven of those outings, Gunter has notched 15 or more digs, and in three matches, Gunter has collected 20 or more digs.
Lilly Gunter picked up 19 digs in just three sets against Ohio State, securing her 18th outing of double-digit digs this season.
A-Russ Does It All
- Redshirt senior middle blocker Anastasia Russ has shone as one of the most efficient hitters in the country and in the conference as the season draws to a close.
- The redshirt senior leads Maryland and ranks eighth in the Big Ten and 86th in the country with a hitting percentage of .354.
- In her second season with Maryland, the Pittsburgh, PA product currently owns a .339 hitting percentage with the team, the second-highest clip in program history.
Anastasia Russ leads Maryland and ranks eighth in the Big Ten and 86th in the country with a hitting percentage of .354.
New Kid On The Rohr-Block
- Eva Rohrbach has starred as one of the top freshmen in the country this season, as her offensive and defensive numbers stack up with the best among first-year players.
- The middle blocker has been one of the most efficient hitters in the nation, as her .329 hitting clip ranks seventh among all freshmen. Additionally, she has recorded double-digit kills in four matches this season.
- On the defensive side, Rohrbach leads the Terps and ranks eighth in the Big Ten with 1.15 blocks per set, the seventh-highest freshman rate in the country. The San Diego, CA star has recorded five or more blocks in 10 matches this season, most recently on Sunday against Ohio State.
Eva Rohrbach ranks seventh nationally among freshmen in both hitting percentage (.329) and blocks per set (1.15), as the first-year Terp has started every match so far this season.
Undefeated on BTN
- With the Terps' Oct. 28 victory over Iowa on Big Ten Network, Maryland closes out its national TV schedule with an undefeated 3-0 record in matches on the network.
- Maryland opened up its Big Ten Network slate on Sept. 27 against Rutgers, where the Terps hit .333 with Sam Csire, Laila Ivey and Samantha Schnitta each recorded double-digit kills and Sydney Dowler produced a double-double in a four-set victory.
- In the Terps' lone home BTN outing, they upset No. 16 Minnesota in a five-set thriller for the program's first-ever win against the Golden Gophers. Csire produced a season-high 20 kills while the Terps defense was led by Anastasia Russ swatting a season-best nine blocks to hold Minnesota to a .124 hitting percentage.
Maryland's upset of No. 16 Minnesota on Oct. 6 came as one of Maryland's three wins on Big Ten Network alongside a four-set victory over Rutgers on Sept. 27 and a sweep at Iowa on Oct. 28.
A Balanced Bunch
- Maryland's offensive efficiency has not been powered by one dominant force, but rather the contributions of a balanced offensive unit.
- Six different Terps have multiple matches with double-digit kills, led by senior outside hitter Sam Csire, who has 12 such matches on the campaign.
- Any offensive player on the Maryland roster can step up and lead the offense, as shown by the seven different players who have led the team in kills in a match this year.
- The Terps have had at least two players reach double-digit kills in 12 matches and at least three double-digit killers in five.
- Additionally, for the first time in Adam Hughes' stint as head coach, Maryland had a match with four different Terps with double-digit kills against Utah Valley on Sept. 2 and a match with five different players who reached 10 kills against Coastal Carolina on Sept. 8.
With the facilitation of
Sydney Dowler (right), the Maryland offense has been humming with
Eva Rohrbach (left) and
Laila Ricks (center) among the six Terps who have recorded a double-digit kill outing in 2023.
Scouting The Hoosiers
- With two weekends remaining in the season, Indiana has already secured its best record under the leadership of former Maryland head coach Steve Aird, as the Hoosiers enter Friday with an 18-11 record with an 8-8 Big Ten mark.
- Indiana is in a position to potentially go .500 in conference play for the first time since 2002 through its experience and the outstanding play of its setter, Camryn Haworth.
- Haworth ranks third in the country with 0.60 aces per set and first in the conference with 1,077 total assists. She is the only Big Ten player with a triple double this season, a feat which she has accomplished twice in 2023.
- The Hoosiers boast one of the most experienced middle-blocking duos in the nation, as Kaley Rammelsberg and Savannah Kjolhede rank fifth and seventh in the Big Ten in hitting percentage, respectively.
- Along with the experienced cast up front, Indiana has one of the most exciting freshmen in the conference with libero Ramsey Gary, whose 4.41 digs per set put her at second in the conference in that department.
Scouting The Boilermakers
- Purdue is in the mix to host an NCAA Regional next month as head coach Dave Shondell has the Boilermakers on track to make their ninth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance with a 17-8 overall record and an 11-5 Big Ten standing.
- The offensive attack contains one of the most impressive one-two punches in the country as sophomore Eva Hudson and freshman Chloe Chicoine collectively average over eight kills per set while individually sitting among the top 10 in the Big Ten in kills per set.
- Defensively, the Boilermakers are led by middle blocker Raven Colvin, who is a three-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. Her 1.41 blocks per set rank second in the conference and sits among the top 15 rates in the country.
- Behind Colvin, libero Maddie Schermerhorn leads the Big Ten with 4.42 digs per set.
2022 In Review
- Maryland finished the 2022 season with a 16-16 record, along with a 7-13 mark against the Big Ten.
- For the first time in head coach Adam Hughes' tenure, the Terps won seven games in the Big Ten in back-to-back seasons.
- One of the key turning points came when Maryland secured sweeps in three consecutive Big Ten road matches for the first time since joining the conference.
- Maryland's sweep streak was capped off with a dominant win at No. 9 Purdue on Oct. 16, marking the Terps first-ever top-10 road victory.
- The Terps scored their second upset win of 2022 at the XFINITY Center Pavilion on Nov. 18, with a 3-1 victory over No. 5 Ohio State, ending the Buckeyes' 14-match win streak.
