Maryland volleyball pin hitter Samantha Schnitta hoped to erase an earlier mistake that gave No. 4 Penn State’s outside hitter Jess Mruzik a service ace. The costly error gave the Nittany Lions a 6-3 lead in the opening set.

Schnitta strung together back-to-back service aces to knot the first set at six apiece. But then Penn State’s explosive offense — which boasts the fourth-most kills per set in the nation — heated up. The Terps had no response, falling in four sets (13-25, 25-22, 13-25, 15-25) Sunday.

“One of things that [Penn State] does a really good job of is they’re very scrappy,” head coach Adam Hughes said. “They find themselves more swings and then they just take big hacks.”

Maryland sought to continue its three-game winning streak and avenge a four-set loss to the Nittany Lions earlier this season. Instead, the Terps were outplayed from the get-go and never looked like they had shot to pull off an upset.

The Nittany Lions sprinted out to a 4-1 lead after two powerful kills from outside hitter Caroline Jurevicius. Then Schnitta — the country’s leader in service aces — got going. Maryland had the score tied up and looked destined to get its first lead of the set.

But Penn State outside hitter Camryn Hannah landed a major blow, finding different angles on three straight kills. The Terps clung to a four-point deficit, but the Nittany Lions found another gear, scoring seven of the next eight points. Mruzik notched her second service ace of the set, while adding a kill and two blocks.

Schnitta racked up her second kill of the set trailing 20-11, but it was too little too late. Hannah put Penn State two points away before closing it out with her set-high seventh kill.

“If you’re disciplined and you have good handwork, you can block a bunch of balls,” Hughes said. “If you’re off by a little bit, it’s hard because they’re taking really big swings.”

The second set looked identical to the first, as the Nittany Lions got out to a 3-0 lead. But Maryland had an answer this time. It rallied back to a 7-7 tie, before middle blocker Anastasia Russ and setter Sydney Dowler teamed up for a block, giving the Terps their first lead of the match.

The Terps hung around, responding to any blow Penn State sent their way. Consecutive kills from Dowler gave Maryland a two-point lead, but Hannah matched it with two kills of her own. The score remained tied, this time at 18 apiece.

Pin hitter Katherine Scherer gave the Terps an opportunity with a kill, but outside hitter Sam Csire’s ensuing serve sailed long. Schnitta’s kill led to a Maryland set point. Then, Scherer closed it out, 25-22. A tip just over the heads of Penn State’s blockers sent the crowd wild.

On the back of the noisy atmosphere, Maryland got out to a 4-1 lead in the third set. But the Nittany Lions seized control with seven straight points, and Mruzik recorded two kills.

After a Terps’ timeout, Schnitta gave them a desperately-needed response. Back-to-back kills helped cut Penn State’s lead to two. But three consecutive points from the Nittany Lions moved the score to 13-8. Penn State used this momentum to extend its lead to eight after a service ace from libero Gillian Grimes.

Two kills from Mruzik moved the score to 21-12. The Nittany Lions scored the final four points, coming away with a 25-13 set victory. Defensive specialist Quinn Menger closed it out with two late service aces, while Hannah tallied her 14th kill of the match.

Maryland needed a response in the fourth set to stay in the match. Instead, Penn State pushed out to a 4-2 lead on the heels of two kills for middle blocker Maggie Mendelson. But the Terps responded with five of the next six points, with a service ace from Schnitta and defensive specialist Jonna Spohn.

Then, the Nittany Lions landed a big blow, one that proved fatal. Penn State scored 12 of the next 13 points, moving ahead 17-8. Maryland looked out of sorts, giving away free points. Back-to-back service aces from Csire helped cut the deficit down to five points.

Penn State scored seven of the last nine points, including two late kills from Mruzik. Maryland fell in the final set, 25-15. The Terps struggled to get their offense going in the fourth set, with a 26.1% hitting percentage.

“I thought we weren’t in system as much as we’d like to be,” Hughes said. “We never really got a rhythm. Offensively, it never felt like we were on the same page, missing some sets.”

Three things to know

1. Defense shines in the loss. While the Terps ended up falling in four sets, they made several diving plays that kept rallies alive. Maryland posted 43 digs, led by 13 from libero Lilly Gunter. But it was a tall task slowing Penn State’s electric offense.

2. Ranked woes continue. The Terps have struggled all season against ranked teams. Maryland has picked up just two sets in seven matches against such opponents. No. 2 Nebraska awaits the Terps in their regular-season finale.

3. Season-low in assists. Maryland entered the match with the fourth-fewest assists per set in the Big Ten. But against Penn State, its setters had all sorts of problems. Zoe Huang and Dowler combined for just 26 assists, tying its total against Wisconsin.

The parents of a boy injured in a hanging incident at an elementary school school in Charles County, Maryland, said they don’t think they’re getting the full story.

“He has marks under his eyes,” the mother of a 7-year-old boy injured in an incident at school told WUSA9.

She said she was shocked when she saw her son after the second grader was injured in the bathroom at C. Paul Barnhart Elementary School in Waldorf.

“He said that the little boy told him, ‘I’m going to show you how I did people back in the day,’” the mother told WUSA9.

“He still has bruises on his neck from being choked,” the boy’s father said.

Carrie Burke, the principal at the school, issued a statement saying the incident was first reported to 911 as a possible suicide attempt, but she said that’s not true.

“This was then posted on social media by a community member, causing a bit of community concern,” Burke wrote.

“Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) quickly shared an update with you as well as the Barnhart staff to dispel any inaccurate information beginning to circulate. I apologize for the delay in that update, but our administrative team was addressing the needs of our students. The incident was also reported to our school resource officer (SRO),” she said.

The school said that two students were reportedly “horseplaying” in a school bathroom when one of the student’s jacket got caught on a stall door hook.

“The student was not able to free themselves and the other student involved was also not able to help them. This student left the bathroom to seek help from staff and reported the incident to administrators,” she wrote.

Then staff called 911 for “additional precautionary medical support,” Burke said.

The boy’s parents said they think there’s more to the story.

“Doesn’t make sense to me,” the boy’s mom said. “If you’re horseplaying, how do you get caught on the hook? Like, we need answers. I want answers, and we won’t stop until we get them.”

The boy was in second grade at the school and his mom said he would not be returning to the school.

“I feel like it’s bullying, because it’s no telling how many other kids this has happened to and they want the school district to step-up,” the boy’s mom said.

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Maryland football’s season has been defined by terrible losses, and Saturday marked another one.

The Terps welcomed Rutgers to College Park but fell flat on their face, losing 31-17.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

Another week, another disappointing loss

Maryland has slid from its usual post in the middle of the Big Ten standings this year. But this has not been a byproduct of a tough schedule or change of routine with the conference’s newcomers. The Terps are simply losing games they should win.

Maryland finished fourth in the Big Ten East standings in each of the last two seasons; the Terps sit second-to-last in the entire conference this year. They were dismantled by Indiana, Michigan State and now Rutgers this season, all of whom they blew out last year. While Indiana has climbed the national rankings this year, Michigan State and Rutgers have remained the same — Maryland has just been worse.

The Terps were also destroyed by Minnesota and No. 1 Oregon, as they have consistently looked out of place against nearly every conference opponent in 2024.

Whether this is an amalgamation of a lack of talent, poor coaching or a mix of both is up for debate, but there is no denying how disappointing and bad the Terps have been this season.

A different story from previous years

Maryland entered Saturday with history on its side.

The Terps are 7-3 against Rutgers since they both joined the Big Ten in 2014. They have also dominated recent matchups, winning in each of the last three seasons by an average of 26.3 points, including a 42-24 win last year.

“They’re a veteran group,” head coach Michael Locksley said when asked about what is different this year. “Our guys didn’t make enough plays. Those guys executed their gameplan to a tee.”

Saturday’s game was a much different matchup between the two teams. Rutgers led at halftime for the first time in three years and outclassed the Terps in nearly every aspect of the game. The Scarlet Knights outrushed (132 yards to 122), outscored and won the turnover battle (1-0) against Maryland. Rutgers also totaled more passing yards through the first three quarters than Maryland, as Billy Edwards Jr. racked in 181 yards in the fourth quarter and garbage time.

Maryland’s only saving grace was Roman Hemby, who produced one of his best games of the season. He posted 87 yards rushing, 59 yards receiving and a touchdown. He outplayed Rutgers’ star running back Kyle Monangai, but it did not change the outcome.

The Terps’ bowl-game path is closing

Maryland’s streak of three consecutive bowl game appearances is nearly over following Saturday’s loss. With six wins being the magic number for bowl game eligibility, the Terps need to win their final two games to qualify. But the rest of their schedule is no gift.

Next week, Maryland welcomes Iowa to College Park. While the Hawkeyes’ record is not as impressive without the luxury of the Big Ten West, they are still 6-4 and coming off a bye week. Well rested and adequately prepared, Iowa should be favored despite going on the road.

And in the Terps final game stands a near impossible task: No. 4 Penn State. The Nittany Lions have only lost one game this season — to No. 2 Ohio State — and have one of the most talented rosters in the country, led by former five-star quarterback Drew Allar.

The game will be played in Happy Valley — one of the toughest road environments in college football — and Penn State has the Terps number. Since joining the Big Ten, Maryland is 2-8 against Penn State, with the three most recent games ending in a 51-15 loss, a 30-0 loss and a 31-14 loss.

While not impossible, the Terps’ chances at bowl game eligibility are slight, with a 4-8 finish seeming the most likely at this point.

“We got to find a way to turn the page on this one pretty quickly,” Locksley said. “We’ve got Iowa coming in here, again, to keep our season alive … we didn’t get it done today and we’re running out of chances and opportunities.”