COLLEGE PARK, MD – Maryland volleyball earned its first Big Ten win in 2024, sweeping Rutgers (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) on Saturday at the XFINITY Center Pavilion. The sweep was the Terps' seventh sweep of the season.
The Terps (10-5, 1-3 Big Ten) and Scarlet Knights (5-10, 0-3 Big Ten) battled back and forth in each set, but Maryland came away with a clean sweep using its defense and ability to serve. It held a 10-3 advantage in service aces. The Terps continue their dominance on the serve, remaining in the top five in the nation for aces and in the top 10 in aces per set.
Samantha Schnitta led the way with five service aces. The graduate pin hitter has 52 service aces on the season, ranking first in the NCAA. She added 10 kills and seven digs in the match.
Sydney Bryant led the Terps in kills with 13.
Lilly Gunter (12) led the team in digs, and
Sydney Dowler (30) led in assists. Dowler added two aces and ranks fourth all-time in program history in assists and eighth in service aces.
Sam Csire (eight kills, nine digs and three blocks) and
Eva Rohrbach (four digs and three blocks) were other standout performers for Maryland. Csire ranks eighth in program history in all-time kills.
The match was Maryland's Dig Pink match in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Breaking Down The Action
Set 1: Maryland 25 - Rutgers 22
- Samantha Schnitta recorded two service aces to give Maryland a 4-1 early lead.
- Anastasia Russ, known for her defensive presence, scored a kill on the offensive end to give the Terps a 7-4 advantage.
- The Terps grabbed a 12-5 lead after the Scarlet Knights were called for a ball-handling error.
- Rutgers rallied back within three at 13-10 with a 5-1 run.
- The Scarlet Knights got within two, but a massive block by Russ allowed the Terps to pull ahead once again, 17-13.
- The Terps closed the set with a win, thanks to kills by Sydney Bryant, Sam Csire and Schnitta. Rutgers battled to the end, scoring a 7-1 run.
Set 2: Maryland 25 - Rutgers 20
- Maryland began set two with a 3-0 lead.
- Each team scored in bunches a couple of 3-0 runs to tie at six apiece.
- The Terps and Scarlet Knights went back and forth until the Terps took a 14-10 lead with two kills by Bryant sandwiched between a kill by Schnitta.
- Schnitta posted back-to-back service aces to give the Terps a 19-15 lead.
- Maryland closed out the set with a kill by Csire.
Set 3: Maryland 25 - Rutgers 19
- Both teams began set three in a close 3-3 start.
- Both teams traded service errors, and Rutgers led 12-11.
- The Terps pulled ahead with a block by Csire to lead 17-14.
- Maryland scored five straight points with two kills by Bryant to lead 22-15.
Numbers To Know
- 4: Sydney Dowler ranks fourth all-time in assists for Maryland. She now has 3645 assists.
- 8: Dowler ranks eighth in program history with 111 service aces.
- 8: Sam Csire is 8th in program history with 1318 career kills.
- 8: Sydney Bryant had 10 or more kills for the eighth time in her career, seven of which occurred this season.
- 9: Entering the contest, the Terps ranked No. 9 in the NCAA in aces per set.
- 24: The Terps hold a 24-14 all-time series lead over the Scarlet Knights.
- 46: Samantha Schnitta has 46 games in her career with 10 or more kills as a Terp, including 12 this season.
- 52: Schnitta tallied five service aces in the match, bringing her to 52 on the season, ranking first in the NCAA.
- 97: Lilly Gunter has 97 career games with 10 or more digs.
- 127: Maryland is among the top five in the NCAA in team service aces with 127.
Up Next
- Maryland will travel to No. 9 Wisconsin on Oct. 11. The match will begin at 7 p.m. ET and be broadcast on Big Ten Plus.
