Maryland volleyball ends losing streak with four set win over Michigan State

Photo courtesy of Austin Desisto/Maryland Terrapins

After 34 days, eight straight losses, five ranked opponents and one set win, Maryland (11-13, 2-11 Big Ten) have beaten a second conference opponent.

The Terps got a long-awaited second victory in Big Ten play, defeating Michigan State (8-16, 1-12 Big Ten) 3-1 in a match defined by scoring runs, but ultimately decided by a razor-thin fourth set.

“It was good that we were able to get off to a good start and then respond to losing a set and not flinching,” coach Adam Hughes said. “Then game three … had a big run and they kind of got back into it, we stood tall. Then game four was a side-out battle, so we won in a variety of ways.”

Maryland applied defensive pressure early with three blocks in its first seven points, shoring up an area of weakness all season. With back-to-back service aces from Samantha Schnitta, the Terps jumped to a quick 7-3 lead.

Hughes has spoken about the squad allowing scoring runs that forced them to play catch-up for the rest of the set, but in the first set tonight Maryland made the run.

The Terps stretched the lead to as much as nine, but the Spartans’ offense ramped up, hitting around Maryland’s block well. 

A late three-point run narrowed the match to six points, 23-17, forcing a Maryland timeout. The Terps promptly snuffed out the Spartans’ hopes of mounting a comeback after a Katie Scherer kill and error by Akasha Anderson, Michigan State’s kill leader, ended the set 25-17.

Everything went right on both sides of the ball for Maryland in set one. The Terps outhit the Spartans by over 200 points (.375 to .154) and finished with five and a half total blocks.

However, early in the second set, nothing was going the Terps’ way.

To Hughes’ chagrin, the Terps surrendered a six-point run and forced themselves to play from behind for the rest of the set.

The Terps struggled with Michigan State’s block, leading to seven total blocks and a negative hitting percentage for the set.

Maryland strung together a six-point run of its own to cut the lead to one, 18-17. Even after a rocky start, the Terps poked their heads out of the early hole they dug.

But still, Maryland failed to complete the comeback. Three blocks down the stretch powered Michigan State’s four-point run and helped them outscore the Terps 7-2, sealing the set 25-19.

Set three started much the same as the first, with a six-point run from Maryland and a 9-2 lead. Then, the pendulum swung in Michigan State’s favor, with the Spartans rattling off six points of their own.

The two teams traded points until the Terps held a 12-9 lead, then they traded scoring streaks. Michigan State scored five straight and Maryland responded with six.

The Terps sorely missed these responses against the Big Ten powerhouses they have faced over the past month, allowing opponents to build momentum and slipping behind just enough to trail for entire sets.

A final four-point stretch gave Maryland a six-point lead and enough padding to secure the third set 25-18.

While the third set was a game of momentum, set four was a test of resilience. The team that outlasted the other and endured offensive struggles would pull through.

“Nine ties and six lead changes in game four, they never flinched,” Hughes said.

Game four never featured a lead of more than four points and saw both teams hit below .200, with eight combined blocks. 

After the game was knotted at 21, a pair of kills from Anastasia Russ and Katie Scherer gave Maryland just enough to close the match. 

Scherer has seen the court much more often because of injuries – the Terps are missing four outside hitters, including three done for the season – and has made the most of it. The freshman notched a career-high 10 kills against the Spartans, good for second on the team only behind Schnitta (14).

Scherer also chipped in four blocks, including a rejection to set up match point for the Terps. An error by Michigan State’s Taylor Preston ended the set 25-22, snapping Maryland’s eight-game losing streak and giving the Terps the second conference win they had been seeking for over a month.

Schnitta recognized the value of wins for Maryland’s young players but also highlighted the importance of dealing with losses.

“I think the biggest learning curve is the losses, to be completely honest,” Schnitta said. “Just trying to learn from the losses and then grow in the wins.”