Michigan Volleyball Tops Maryland in Four Sets

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Michigan closed a long Saturday night on the road with a 3-1 volleyball win over Maryland, taking the first two sets and then surviving a 28-26 fourth after dropping the third.

The Wolverines (15-10, 6-8 Big Ten) won 25-22 and 25-19 before Maryland answered 25-19. Michigan then edged the Terps 28-26 at the Stephen M. Schanwald Pavilion inside XFINITY Center. Michigan attacked at a .600 clip in the opener and .500 in the second, putting down 31 kills on 55 swings with only one error across those two frames.

Ella Demetrician finished with 20 kills for a fifth consecutive outing and added 13 digs. Her 20th kill ended the match. Cymarah Gordon had 12 kills, and Sydney Schnichels added 11 on 28 attempts. Lydia Johnson contributed nine kills and seven blocks, while Jenna Hanes put away eight kills on a dozen swings and hit .583. At the net, Senyapici rejected a personal-best nine swings and scored twice.

Setters Morgan Burke and Camille Edwards each finished with 27 assists, and Burke dug 10 balls. Libero Meredith Martin paced the match with 19 digs and added an ace late. The Terrapins, now 13-12 overall and 3-11 in league play, had honored a five-member senior class beforehand, including Sydney Bryant and Eva Rohrbach.

The third set slipped after Michigan led 17-16. Maryland strung together five unanswered points, with kills from Brooklynne Brass and Bryant, and closed 25-19 after a late kill from Sivak. Bryant’s 10th kill had tied that set at 16-16. Maryland had also opened the fourth on a 3-0 burst after a kill from Brown, then later pulled even at 20-20 on Brass’s second kill. An ace from Toth had pulled the Terps within a point during that last set. Maryland reached set point up two before Demetrician answered with a solo block and a kill to square it at 24, and Michigan finished the extra points.

The Terrapins remain at home to meet 10th-ranked Penn State on Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. The Wolverines leave College Park with a road league win built on a clean start and a fourth-set stand.

Filed under: Grand Rapids MI Sports News