Entering this weekend’s Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Maryland Invitational Tournament, Terrapin volleyball coach Tim Horsmon wanted to see a team long accustomed to losing start learning how to win.
And after sweeping through the competition this weekend at Comcast Center with dominant performances in wins against Fordham, Bradley and Georgetown, Horsmon thinks the Terps’ re-education process might have taken its first step forward.
“I’m happy with how we played this weekend,” Horsmon said. “I think they are starting to understand what good volleyball is. They want to win, and they don’t like losing points, and that’s good for us.”
Perhaps more important than the tournament’s results is how the Terps went about doing it. They didn’t drop a single set all weekend, winning all nine they played in.
“Winning nine straight sets gives us a lot of confidence,” outside hitter Brittney Grove said. “We haven’t lost a set at home yet this year, which is big. We’re a different team than we were in the last few years, and we’re not going to be someone to mess with this year.”
The Terps (5-1) started the tournament Friday night against Fordham (4-3), beating the Rams in straight sets. Outside hitter Michelle Kenning led the Terps with 12 kills, and setter Remy McBain added 29 assists and eight digs.
“We had moments where we were really good,” Horsmon said of Friday’s match. “We made a few too many errors at times, but overall, I’m happy. Last year, I’m not sure we win that match in three sets, but we did a lot of good things today.”
The Terps continued their solid play Saturday, defeating Bradley (4-3) and Georgetown (2-5) in straight sets. McBain led the team with nine kills and 27 assists against Bradley, while libero Bethany Springer contributed 15 digs.
Against Georgetown, outside hitter Mary Cushman and middle blocker Lisa Scott led the Terps with nine kills, McBain had 26 assists and freshman defender Sarah Harper added six digs.
“I think we got better today,” Horsmon said Saturday. “I think we passed and served very well, and we attacked well, too. Blocking and defending weren’t that great, but those are things we’ll just have to work on and get better at.”
With the weekend sweep, the Terps were able to take home the tournament championship trophy. Grove, McBain and Cushman were named to the All-Tournament Team, and Grove, who finished the weekend with 21 kills and 22 digs, was named the Tournament Most Valuable Player.
“Brittney had a great weekend,” Horsmon said. “She played great in the front row and in the back row, and she led us throughout the weekend.”
“We’re a new team this year and we wanted to prove that to everyone,” Grove added. “We played solid all weekend and we came out with three wins.”
The Terps continue their play in the Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Terrapin Invitational Tournament next weekend, when they’ll host Penn, Fairfield and Tulane. Even with five straight wins to the their names, Horsmon said he hopes the Terps will continue to learn coming lessons about winning.
“Winning is contagious,” Horsmon said. “Winning points, winning games, winning matches … the more we win, the more the team will get used to it, and that’s a good thing for our program.”
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