Maryland Volleyball falls short of comeback in 3-2 loss to Michigan State

Photo by Kevin Snyder/Maryland Terrapins. Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.

In the midst of a 5-1 run in the final set against Michigan State, Maryland volleyball seemed poised to complete its comeback.

But a kill by Spartan outside hitter Bianca Mumcular ended the Terps’ comeback chances and sealed the win for Michigan State.

Despite a season-high 21 blocks, errors plagued Maryland, falling 3-2 at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich., on Sunday.

Maryland (8-10, 1-7 Big Ten) entered Sunday, struggling on offense. The Terps ranked fourth in errors in the Big Ten — with 345 — and last in the conference with a .191 hitting percentage.

Against Michigan State (15-3, 5-3 Big Ten), the Terps’ offensive struggles overshadowed an impressive defensive performance. The Terps hit at a .171 rate and committed 25 attack errors. 

The Spartans entered the match ranked ninth in the Big Ten with 853 kills and had four players on their roster with over 100 kills. Junior outside hitter Karolina Staniszewska spearheads the attack, sporting 177 kills this season. Senior opposite hitter Evie Doezema sits close behind her, with 159 kills of her own.

The balanced offensive production continued for the Spartans, taking advantage of Maryland’s errors to build multiple scoring runs and keep momentum. Michigan State’s offense tallied 58 kills and had two players reach double-digit kills. Despite a low .104 hitting percentage, the Spartans found ways to make up for their errors.

Staniszewska earned herself a double-double in the match, posting a career-high 19 kills and 12 digs, while notching three blocks. The Spartans’ victory was also fueled by their performance at the service line, notching nine service aces. 

Despite a 4-2 start for the Terps in the opening set, the Spartans rattled off five straight points to take a 7-4 lead. Staniszewska tallied three early kills in the set, breaking through an otherwise strong Terps defense. 

But errors played a pivotal role in the Terps’ struggles. Maryland recorded seven attack errors and hit just .054 in the first set. Senior opposite hitter Ajack Malual struggled with errors all match, recording 10 with half of them coming in the opening set. However, Malual thrived on defense, tallying nine digs and five blocks. 

A 5-0 Terps scoring run cut the Spartans’ lead to 16-15, but their blocking finally resulted in points, denying consecutive Maryland swings. Michigan State’s defensive efforts, combined with three service aces, allowed it to claim a 25-18 first-set victory.

Staniszewska continued to lead the Spartans’ offense, finishing the set with five kills. The Terps committed a match-high seven errors in the set, hitting at just .054 and notching only nine kills.

But in the second set, Maryland’s defense took over. 

Tallying seven blocks in the set alone, the Terps held the Spartans to a -.086 hitting percentage. Big Ten-leading sophomore middle blocker Duru Gökçen dominated with six block assists through the first two sets and aided the Terps to a dominant 25-14 set win.

The Spartans started the third set much stronger as multiple early blocks established a 6-4 lead. The strong defense helped Doezema spearhead the Spartans’ offense, notching four kills in the set as the Spartans clawed their way to a 25-20 set three victory and claimed a 2-1 match lead.

The fourth set was all Spartans to start, storming out to an 8-1 lead off the heels of four kills on no errors. Three early blocks combined with six digs to establish the Spartans’ defense and allowed the offense to mount multiple scoring runs.

The lead progressed deep into the set until four Spartan attack errors aided the Terps in a 9-1 run to steal a 25-20 victory and force a fifth set.

“Had a big deficit in game four and never flinched after trailing 8-1,” head coach Adam Hughes said. “We know how to battle our way back.”

The fifth set started with multiple service errors from both teams, but the Spartans were able to build a 6-4 lead. The Spartans carried their momentum through the rest of the set, as Staniszewska notched four more kills, capitalizing on three Terps’ service errors to take the final set 15-13.

“Obviously [it’s] hard to lose 15-13 on the road against a really good team,” Hughes said. “I did think we battled really hard, but unfortunately just ran out of time.”