With her fifth kill in the first set against Indiana, outside hitter Adreenè Elliott had secured a 25-20 first set victory. After suffering two three-set sweeps last weekend, the Terps first set win marked their first in Big Ten play this season.
But their hopes at claiming their first conference victory were quickly dashed by the Hoosiers.
Indiana took the final three sets as the Terps lost in four sets (25-20, 24-26, 22-25, 22-25) to extend their losing streak to six games. Since the Terps victory over Navy on Sept. 12, they have only won two sets.
“They played great,” coach Steve Aird said. “We had control of the match and then lost it from there.”
The Terps (10-7, 0-3 Big Ten) sported a new lineup out of the gate, with outside hitter Angel Gaskin and libero Kelsey Wicinski recording their first career starts. Setter Abby Bentz, who had been starting since the season-ending injury to outside hitter Emily Fraik, returned to the bench.
The changes come after Aird was frustrated with the results he saw last weekend in the Terps’ two losses to No. 7 Illinois and Northwestern.
“If we lose like that and don’t change anything, isn’t that the definition of insanity?” Aird said.
Starting a libero for the first time in her college career, Wicinski notched 10 digs and four aces.
“It felt great to be out there, I just have to thank my team for it,” Wicinski said.
Down 18-10 in the second set, the Terps made a furious rally behind strong play from Wicinski. With three consecutive aces, Wicinski helped the Terps storm back to a 20-20 tie. Despite the rally, the Hoosiers (11-4, 1-2) went on to win the set 26-24 to tie the match at one.
“[Wicinski] served great and gave us a shot in the second set,” Aird said. “We fought back and fought hard.”
After not starting, freshman outside hitter Liz Twilley had an immediate impact with a kill on the first play after being subbed in. Twilley bounced back from a tough weekend last time out to notch 17 kills on the day.
“That’s the usual Liz that was there,” Wicinski said. “She works really hard out there.”
Elliott, meanwhile, moved to the left side to accommodate Gaskin’s addition to the starting lineup. The Winston Salem, North Carolina, native had 17 kills to go along with five digs and four blocks.
“Offensively she does nice things,” Aird said. “It’s all about building the other little things for her.”
But Elliott’s and the rest of the Terps’ efforts weren’t enough to claim their first conference win. Even still, claiming a set showed improvement.
“We were a whole lot better than we were a week ago,” Aird said. “I thought we played great and the girls fought back. It’s not about the loss, it’s about process.”
