Preview: Maryland volleyball faces No. 2 Wisconsin and Ohio State this weekend

Maryland volleyball (15-11, 5-9 Big Ten) returns home this weekend for a crucial homestand against No. 2 Wisconsin (22-1, 13-1 Big Ten) and Ohio State (9-14, 6-8 Big Ten). Each match will be a rematch.

The Terps have spent the last two weekends on the road. The road trip was less than ideal as they went 1-3 in four matches — including sweep defeats in the final two.

Maryland’s theme last weekend was quick starts before falling apart, as the Terps allowed a plethora of large runs where they could not generate any offense. Many of the spurts were started on the serve — Maryland allowed seven or more aces in each match.

“There [were] lots of runs and we weren’t able to find solutions … That’s where we’re trying to put our focus at — being aware that [runs] are happening and try to build better strategies to find solutions,” coach Adam Hughes said. “If anything, [facing Wisconsin] is a good test to see — can we find solutions to those things against the best of the best.

Pin hitter Samantha Schnitta led the Terps in kills in both matches. The senior totaled 18 kills on the weekend and also added some help at the net with four block assists. Schnitta has been a consistent hitter during conference play, ranking second on the team in kills against Big Ten opponents.

In Maryland’s sweep loss to Wisconsin in October, the Terps were dominated in every stat category. They hit a well-below average .029 and failed to record double-digit kills in any of the sets.

Wisconsin has suffered just one loss — to No.1 Nebraska — since the meeting. The Badgers currently ride a four-game winning streak, including a ranked win against Purdue.

The Badgers are still hitting extremely well, as they’ve done all season — their .313 hitting percentage is the best in the conference and second in all of Division I. They have also been dominant at the net, leading the Big Ten in blocks (2.98 per set) while allowing the least amount of blocks (1.48 per set).

Leading Wisconsin in blocks is middle blocker Carter Booth. The sophomore was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after contributing 17 total blocks last weekend, which brought her block per set average to a conference-best 1.55.

After taking on Booth and the Badgers, the Terps will face Ohio State on Sunday. The Buckeyes secured a sweep in the schools’ first meeting but they’ve since gone just 4-6.

Unlike Wisconsin, Ohio State is one of the worst at the net in the Big Ten — it ranks last in the conference in both blocks per set (1.71) and blocks allowed per set (2.47). Yet the Buckeyes put together their best blocking performance of the season against Maryland, securing 15 blocks.

“They had a great match against us. We’ll look [if] maybe there are different shot selections we should go with,” Hughes said. “I don’t want a repeat of what happened last time, that’s for sure.”

Ohio State is led offensively by one of the best kill-producers in the country, Emily Londot. The outside hitter is coming off her second All-Big Ten first team honor of her career and is putting together another highly-successful campaign. Londot’s 4.86 kills per set leads the conference and is fifth in Division I.

The Terps limited Londot’s attack in the first set during the teams’ earlier match this season. Then the senior came alive in the second and carried it into the third set, finishing the match with 12 kills and a .091 hitting percentage. Maryland will need to limit Londot’s attack once again in order to secure the win over the Buckeyes.