Maryland Volleyball Prepares For No. 3 Penn State, Rutgers

Thursday, October 3

University Park, PA

6 PM

Maryland

Penn State

Maryland Volleyball Prepares For No. 3 Penn State, Rutgers

10/1/2024 4:30:00 PM | Volleyball

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Maryland (9-4)

#3 Penn State (12-1)

October 3, 2024

Rec Hall

6:00 p.m.

BTN

Watch Live Stats

Maryland (9-4)

vs.

Rutgers (5-8)

October 5, 2024

XFINITY Center Pavilion

7:00 p.m.

B1G+

Watch Live Stats

COLLEGE PARK, MD -- The Maryland volleyball team resumes conference play with its first road contest against No. 3 Penn State on Thursday, October 3 at 6 p.m. The Terps will return home to close the weekend against Rutgers on Saturday, October 5 at 7 p.m. in College Park. Thursday's match will air on Big Ten Network, while Saturday's will be broadcast on B1G+.

turning the page

Maryland sits 9-4 overall after dropping its first two Big Ten matches against Northwestern and Iowa. Both matches were back-and-forth battles that were decided in the fifth set.
Serving has continued to be a strength for Maryland throughout the season. The Terps average 2.18 service aces per set, ranking first in the Big Ten and seventh in the nation. Samantha Schnitta leads Maryland with .88 aces per set, leading the NCAA.
In recent years, Maryland has remained consistent in conference play. The program finished with a conference record of 7-13 in the last three seasons. After dropping the first two conference matches, Adam Hughes and the Terps seek to start a run in October.

Maryland Volleyball vs. Northwestern at the Pavilion in College Park, MD on Thursday, Sep. 26, 2024. Ashley Ray/Maryland Terrapins

Maryland against Northwestern (Sept. 26, 2024)

leading names

Samantha Schnitta, Sam Csire and Sydney Bryant have all recorded over 100 kills so far this season. Schnitta leads the team with 3.34 kills per set. Csire averages 2.89 kills per set. Bryant set a career-best 24 kills against Iowa on Saturday.
Zoe Huang and Sydney Dowler continue to split time on the floor at the setter position. The duo have nearly the same assist average with just above five assists per set. Huang has also been another dominant server for the Terps, owning the third best ace per set average on the team (0.30).
Fifth year libero, Lilly Gunter ranks tenth in the Big Ten averaging 3.40 digs per set. She has recorded double-digit digs in ten matches. Defensive specialist Ally Williams, averages 1.62 digs per set and combined for 14 digs in the first two conference matches.
Eva Rohrbach leads the Terps in blocks with 53. The sophomore put up a career best 11 blocks in the first two matches. She added 12 total blocks against Northwestern and Iowa to start conference play.
Ellie Watson has seen a growth in playing time this season. The senior added eight kills and three blocks against Northwestern, followed by two kills and three blocks against Iowa.

Sydney Bryant against UMBC (Sept. 15, 2024)

series history

Thursday's match will be the thirty-eighth meeting between Penn State and Maryland with the Nittany Lions holding a 32-6 all-time record. The last time these programs met was last season where Penn State took a 3-0 victory in College Park.
Before his time at Maryland, Adam Hughes served as an director of operations for Penn State from 2010-14. He graduated from Penn State in 2006.
Maryland owns a 23-14 program record over Rutgers. The Terps took a thrilling win over the Scarlet Knights last season during the season finale. Maryland overcame a 2-1 deficit to beat Rutgers in College Park for senior day.

Maryland Volleyball vs. Rutgers at Xfinity Center Pavilion on November 24, 2023Dylan Davies/Maryland Athletics

Maryland against Rutgers (Nov. 24, 2023)

scouting report

No. 3 Penn State sits 12-1 overall and started conference play 2-0, with wins over then-No. 10 Purdue and Michigan State.
The Nittany Lions have one of the strongest rosters in the Big Ten, leading the conference in kills per set (16.86), assists per set (15.71) and digs per set (16.43) in Big Ten play.
Penn State is led by Jess Mruzik and Izzy Starck on offense and Gillian Grimes and Jordan Hopp on defense.
Rutgers opened conference play against Iowa and Michigan, dropping both contests. The program sits 5-8 overall before the weekend.
The Scarlet Knights offense is split between Alissa Kinkela, who leads the team in kills with 167 and Aly Borellis with 252 assists.
Defensively, Rutgers averages 2.60 blocks per set with Natalie Robinson leading the team with 63 total blocks. Kenzie Dyrstad averages nearly three digs per set.
The Scarlet Knights will face No. 9 Wisconsin on Wednesday, before traveling to College Park.