No. 10 Purdue Ends Maryland Volleyball’s Nine-Match Winning Streak in Big Ten Opener
By Brian Hradsky
The Maryland Terrapins’ impressive early-season run came to an end Thursday night as No. 10 Purdue swept Maryland, 25-16, 25-22, 25-9, at Holloway Gymnasium in West Lafayette, Indiana. The loss in Maryland’s Big Ten opener snapped a nine-match winning streak and dropped the Terrapins to 10-2 overall and 0-1 in conference play. Purdue improved to 8-2 overall and 1-0 in the Big Ten.
Maryland entered conference play as one of the hotter teams in the country after winning nine consecutive matches, including eight straight sweeps. The Terrapins had won a program-record 27 consecutive sets before running into a Purdue team that controlled the net and consistently put pressure on Maryland’s defense. Purdue’s opening-set victory ended Maryland’s streak of 27 straight set wins, which had been the longest active streak among Power Four programs.
Purdue Takes Control in Opening Set
Maryland stayed with Purdue early in the opening set, with Brooklynne Brass recording the Terrapins’ first kill to tie the score at 3-3. Purdue soon created separation with a 6-1 run, forcing Maryland to play from behind. Ava Brown later delivered a kill to pull the Terrapins within 15-11, while Duru Gökçen and Brown added consecutive kills as Maryland tried to work its way back into the set.
Purdue responded by taking control late, using a 5-0 run to put the set away, 25-16. The Boilermakers hit .414 in the opening set with 17 kills and only five attack errors, while Maryland managed seven kills and hit just .061. Purdue’s efficiency represented a significant change from what Maryland had encountered during its dominant nonconference winning streak.
Maryland Pushes Purdue in Second Set
The Terrapins responded with their best volleyball of the night in the second set. Gökçen opened the frame with a kill before Marlee Sivak and Brown recorded consecutive kills. Brass later contributed a block as Maryland attempted to prevent Purdue from building the type of comfortable advantage it enjoyed in the opener.
Purdue still managed to take a 15-11 advantage into the media timeout, but Maryland did not allow the set to get away. Elayna Davidson helped finish a four-point Terrapins run that cut into the deficit, and Maryland later put together another 4-0 run to pull within 22-21. The Boilermakers held off the rally and scored three of the final four points to take the set, 25-22, and build a 2-0 match advantage.
Maryland’s offensive numbers reflected how much better it played in the second set. The Terrapins finished with 14 kills on 45 attacks and hit .200, compared with seven kills in the opening frame. Purdue recorded 16 kills but committed seven attack errors and hit .188, giving Maryland an opportunity to steal the set before the Boilermakers closed it out.
Boilermakers Pull Away in Third
Purdue left little doubt in the third set. Brown supplied Maryland’s first kill, but the Boilermakers used a 7-2 run to create separation and eventually carried a 15-7 advantage into the media timeout. Gökçen added another kill for Maryland, but the Terrapins could not generate enough offense to mount another comeback.
Purdue closed the match with a dominant 25-9 third-set victory. The Boilermakers hit .462 in the final set with 14 kills and only two errors on 26 attacks. Maryland recorded six kills with five errors on 26 attempts for a .038 hitting percentage.
Brown Leads Maryland Offense
Brown led Maryland with eight kills and added two blocks, while Brass and Eva Rohrbach each finished with seven kills. Brass contributed a team-high three blocks, Rohrbach added two blocks and Gökçen recorded four kills and two blocks. Setter Sara Toth finished with 23 assists.
The overall team numbers showed the difference between Maryland’s nonconference dominance and the challenge it faced against a top-10 Big Ten opponent. Purdue finished with a 47-27 advantage in kills while hitting .320 compared with Maryland’s .115. The Boilermakers also held advantages in assists, 45-25; service aces, 6-1; and blocks, 8-6.
Purdue also continued a dominant stretch of its own. The victory marked the Boilermakers’ sixth consecutive sweep and extended their streak to 18 straight set victories. Purdue’s six consecutive sweeps represented the program’s second-longest such run this century.
Historic Maryland Run Ends
One loss does not erase what Maryland accomplished leading into conference play. The Terrapins went 3-0 at the ECU Tournament and swept Campbell, East Carolina and Old Dominion to complete a nine-match winning streak. Their eight consecutive sweeps established a program record, while the 27 straight set victories demonstrated how dominant Maryland had been entering Big Ten competition.
The level of competition increased significantly once conference play began. Purdue entered the matchup ranked No. 10 nationally and had already established itself as one of the Big Ten’s strongest teams. Maryland showed in the second set that it could challenge the Boilermakers for extended stretches, but Purdue’s offensive efficiency and ability to finish runs ultimately separated the teams.
MSB Take
Maryland’s 10-1 start and nine-match winning streak were impressive, but the Purdue match provided the Terrapins with their first major measuring stick of Big Ten play. Maryland competed well enough in the second set to pull within one point at 22-21, but the first and third sets demonstrated how small the margin for error becomes against nationally ranked conference opponents.
The biggest concern was the offensive difference. Maryland entered Big Ten play coming off a tournament in which its offense repeatedly hit above .300, but Purdue limited the Terrapins to .115 while producing 20 more kills. Maryland will need more consistent production across its entire attack as the Big Ten schedule continues, but a 10-2 record after opening conference play against a top-10 opponent still leaves the Terrapins with plenty to build on.
