After No. 16 Michigan State handled Maryland volleyball in straight sets Friday night, coach Steve Aird said his team didn’t have time to think about the loss. Against the Spartans, the Terps struggled to attack consistently, and they racked up 11 service errors.
With another ranked matchup on Saturday, Aird stressed the importance of a quick response. It took until the second frame against No. 23 Michigan for the change to come, but its success was short-lived. The Terps dropped to 12-4 (1-3) in a four-set defeat to the Wolverines in Ann Arbor (19-25, 25-19, 15-25, 21-25), capping off the first of three back-to-back road matches this season.
“We were inconsistent tonight,” Aird said. “We showed some growth from last night to tonight and I thought we had a better day of preparation. […] Michigan’s awfully good. They do some things that’re really tough to stop.”
Outside hitter Gia Milana led Maryland with 16 kills and middle blocker Jada Gardner earned a career-high nine kills. But for Michigan, middle blocker Claire Kieffer-Wright and outside hitter Carly Skjodt led with 15 and 14 kills, respectively.
Aird called for a timeout when the Terps started the match hitting -.500. With a 7-3 advantage, the Wolverines pulled away before a late 3-0 run from Maryland forced them to call a timeout. Following the stoppage, setter Samantha Snyder hit Maryland’s second service error to seal a 25-19 first set win for Michigan.
Friday night, Maryland managed just two aces while struggling from behind the end line. Those struggles continued for the squad. Michigan also finished the first frame with a 6-2 blocking edge at the net.
“They really keyed in on our weaknesses, and set up two blockers where they thought the ball was going,” Milana said. “They just had a great game plan and they executed their game plan.”
The reaction Aird called for came in the second frame. Middle blocker Hailey Murray drove a kill past Wolverine defenders for a 10-9 lead, and the Terps hit above .400 to start. A 7-1 run helped close the set for Maryland, with two aces from Snyder punctuating the shift in fortunes after a Michigan timeout.
Milana, in front of a large contingent of friends and family from her nearby Romeo, Michigan, delivered a cross-court kill to finish the second set, 25-19. The sophomore paced the Terps with nine kills through two periods.
“We were more scrappy tonight,” opposite hitter Angel Gaskin said. “We kept plays going I think and people made more plays tonight than last night. We were kind of that annoying team that wouldn’t go away.”
But in set three, Michigan’s attack picked up its pace. Aird had to burn both timeouts by the 12-5 mark as the Wolverines took off on a string of seven straight points while hitting .444.
The fourth set began with back-and-forth action between the sides, but the Wolverines broke away to earn a sweep over the Terps.
Similar problems to those against Michigan State hampered Maryland again, despite the second set breakthrough. Michigan outblocked the Terps, 12 to six. The Wolverines also controlled the service game, adding 10 aces to Maryland’s three. Plus, the Terps notched 28 errors.
“We made a lot of mistakes, and some of it is they forced you into because they’re awfully good,” Aird said. “Some of it is just bad decisions and what I call young swings, where you’re just hoping for results instead of trusting what we do.”
