Pin hitter Samantha Schnitta stepped up and served an ace during a back-and-forth final set against American on Saturday to give Maryland volleyball an early lead — a pivotal point as it narrowly escaped the set.

The graduate student and the team both notched season-high aces in the five-set victory over the Eagles. The Terps’ powerful serves helped them go undefeated in last weekend’s Maryland tournament.

But every serve wasn’t the same.

“Personally for mine, it depends on my toss,” Schnitta said. “If my toss isn’t there then I’m not going to hit it as hard as I can. If my toss is there then I’m going to go for it and really reach for it and hit it as hard as I can.”

Schnitta leads the team with 11 aces, including a career-high five in the match against American. She’s on pace to shatter her 13-ace output in 2023.

[Maryland volleyball extends winning streak in 3-0 sweep over North Texas]

While Schnitta has been key for aces, her serving strategy has resulted in a team-leading 15 errors. Maryland’s roster is constructed so that some players win more points off aces, like Schnitta, while others aim for consistency.

“Schnitta’s going to throw a lot of heat, she’s going to miss some but she can get us a streak,” coach Adam Hughes said. “We have some other servers, Ally Williams is someone who probably [is] not going to lead us in aces but can mix and match, throw people off speed.”

Maryland is averaging 1.8 service aces per set this year, a slight increase from last season’s 1.4 average. It ranks fifth in aces in the Big Ten, up from eighth in 2023.

Aces have been crucial for the Terps’ early success this season.

Maryland has averaged 8.3 aces in wins compared to just 4.5 aces through its first six matches. The Terps recorded 16 aces in the momentous win over American — their first time hitting double digits since October victory over Iowa last season.

[Maryland volleyball narrowly beats previously undefeated American, 3-2]

Sam Csire had two aces in the 2023 win against Iowa. The fifth-year has registered 10 aces this year, the only player besides Schnitta to reach double-digits. Like Schnitta, the outside hitter recorded a career-high seven aces against American.

“[The coaches] have really emphasized putting more speed on [serves] and pushing it past deep,” Csire said. “The last few years I’ve tried hitting spots more so and changing depth … they want me to utilize the speed in it and push people back.”

The Terps’ practices include unique competitions to hone their serves, such as a variation of the basketball game HORSE, where a player must match their competitor’s serves or they receive a letter.

They also work in pairs to practice strategic serve placement.

“Recently we’ve been working on getting eight in a row at 70 percent of our arm swing to a specific location with a partner,” Schnitta said. “They have to be eight in a row together.”

Maryland’s serves have been crucial to overcome a poor 1-2 start to its season. The variation in speed and style has resulted in different players at the helm, perhaps none more important than Schnitta.