Maryland
Maryland volleyball downs UCF in five sets
In its last match of nonconference play, Maryland volleyball looked to carry momentum over to Big Ten play and extend its seven-game winning streak. It did just that, as the Terps defeated UCF in the UCF Tournament finale in five sets.
Maryland found its top option, pin hitter Samantha Schnitta, early in the opening set. Schnitta, who has 120 kills this season, tallied another two, giving the Terps a 3-2 lead.
With the score at 5-3, the Knights scored five consecutive points, including a kill from outside hitter Avah Armour and middle blocker Alexia Kuehl. Schnitta cut the lead to two with a kill before Knights’ setter Abby Schomers sparked a three-point run.
Trailing 19-11, Schnitta recorded two more kills and a service ace, while middle blocker Eva Rohrbach added two kills. Outside hitter Sam Csire hoped to spark a late rally, but a kill from Kuehl gave her team a set point.
A block from setter Sydney Dowler and another kill from Schnitta kept Maryland alive before the Knights’ outside hitter Britt Carlson closed it out. Despite falling in the opening set, 25-20, Schnitta had a set-high seven kills.
The Knights took an early 2-0 lead off a service ace from libero Chloe Scheer. Outside hitter Sydney Bryant and Rohrbach each tallied a kill to level the set at two. Schnitta recorded a kill and service ace to keep the score tied.
After trailing 9-8 off a kill from Carlson, Maryland scored the next four points, including a kill and service ace from Csire. A kill from Schomers and service ace by Scheer cut the lead to one, but the Terps responded right back, scoring three consecutive points. Schnitta capped off the run with a kill, extending the score to 15-11.
Another service ace from Schnitta put Maryland ahead by five, and it never looked back. Armour recorded back-to-back kills, hoping to get some momentum, but Rohrbach ended any potential run with a service ace.
Dowler gave Maryland set point before an attack from Schomers sailed long, giving the Terps a 25-15 set victory. Maryland closed the set with five consecutive points.
In the next set, UCF got out to a much-needed five-point lead after three kills from Carlson. Three more points from the Knights — including a service ace from libero Katelyn Grimes — put the score at 9-1.
Middle blocker Ellie Watson recorded a block followed up by a service ace from Rohrbach, cutting the lead to five. With the score at 13-7, two kills from Kuehl helped give UCF a nine-point lead. Kills from Emily Wilson and Carlson extended the Knights’ lead to 12.
Armour gave UCF set point before the Terps rallied for six consecutive points. Dowler and Watson combined for two blocks and Rohrbach added a service ace during the run. Kuehl closed out the set for the Knights with a kill, as the Terps fell, 25-18.
“We might not win this set, but can we back into it and make it a little closer,” head coach Adam Hughes said. “One of the most important parts of the night was when Eva went back and got a five-point serving run at the end of game three.”
Looking to carry over its late momentum from the third set, Maryland got out to a 2-1 lead off kills from Schnitta and freshman pin hitter Katherine Scherer. Wilson recorded back-to-back kills, giving UCF a two point lead. But the Terps responded right back with four points of their own, with two kills from Rohrbach and another from Scheer.
Despite a timeout from the Knights, Maryland continued the run. Rohrbach added two more kills and two block assists, with defensive specialist Ally Williams contributing a service ace. With the Terps up 11-4, UCF scored four of the next five, including kills from Schomers and Kuehl.
Leading 15-13 after its timeout, Maryland responded back with six of the next seven points. Two kills from Scherer, and one apiece from Csire and Rohrbach proved pivotal during the run. Back-to-back kills from Watson closed out a 25-18 set victory for the Terps.
The Knights got out to an early 3-1 after two service aces from Scherer in the fifth and final set, but a kill from Dowler and service ace from Williams leveled the score at four. Csire and Rohrbach each recorded a kill, helping Maryland get out to a four-point lead. UCF cut the lead down to one after the Terps’ timeout.
Just like she’s done all season, Schnitta came up clutch for Maryland late. She had back-to-back kills, setting up a match point. UCF’s Wilson had an attack error, giving Maryland a 15-12 fifth-set victory.
“Schnitta finally found some people that will be more physical,” Hughes said. “The most important swing was at 13-11, a high ball, and she got two of the last kills for us.”
Three things to know
1. Injury to Anastasia Russ. After the first point of the match, Russ limped off the court with an ankle injury. In her absence, Rohrbach played a pivotal role on both offense and defense. She finished the match with 13 kills, three service aces and four total blocks.
“Eva did a phenomenal job, not just getting pieces, but offensively,” Hughes said. “I thought it was a great performance. We wanted to get her the ball more in our match against Nevada. She easily could’ve gotten frustrated and instead just went back to work.”
2. Second road win. After falling in their first road match to LSU, the Terps have won back-to-back road games. Maryland has defeated American and UCF in five-sets. Their next road match is against No. 3 Penn State.
3. Momentum heading into Big Ten Play. The Terps have now rattled off eight consecutive wins, including a sweep over the field in the UCF Tournament. Maryland will look to bring this momentum to conference play and improve upon last year’s 7-13 Big Ten record.
Maryland schools made nation-leading strides in their recovery from students’ learning loss in the pandemic, data show.
Maryland schools made nation-leading strides in their recovery from students’ learning loss in the pandemic, according to new data.
They ranked third in the nation in their students’ reading recovery rates, and were fifth in math recovery, according to the 2025 Education Scorecard from Harvard and Stanford Universities and Dartmouth College.
D.C. led the U.S. in math and reading recovery.
The data was presented at the Maryland State Board of Education meeting Thursday.
Trish Brennan-Gac, executive director of literacy nonprofit Maryland READS, said the state board is correct to celebrate gains in reading, but proficiency is “nowhere near where we need to be.”
“It is not that we are No. 3-ranked in reading proficiency,” she told WTOP. “It’s a rate of change, and we are making a faster rate of change,” than most school districts nationally.
Brennan-Gac was at the meeting to ask that the state board consider ways to reduce the use of technology in classroom instruction and support a return to print and textbooks in schools.
“This is no longer a fringe concern. It is a growing movement, and it’s not about social media and phones,” she told the board.
Brennan-Gac said the board and Maryland schools superintendent Carey Wright can take a “visible meaningful leadership role.”
“You can develop transition guidance and funding pathways for districts that are ready to move now, and send a clear signal to the field that Maryland prioritizes developmentally appropriate instruction aligned to brain research that shows how books, not tech-based platforms, are effective in wiring kids’ brains for reading,” she said.
The Maryland State Department of Education has issued guidance to school districts on the use of cellphones in schools, and this year issued guidance on the use of artificial intelligence. In both instances, the state has made clear that it leaves implementation of policies to individual school districts.
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Gov. Wes Moore has requested a federal disaster declaration to help farmers recover from their losses after temperatures dipped into the 20s in April, devastating some of Maryland’s agriculture industry.
Temperatures dipped into the low to mid 20s for several hours, causing widespread damage to crops, wine grapes, berries, peaches and apples in some parts of the state.
“We had 6, 7 hours I believe here under 32 and that’s just a lot of stress on those small fruits and buds,” said Ben Butler, the farm manager of Butler’s Orchard in Germantown back in April.
Moore asked for the U.S. agriculture secretary to declare a federal disaster using Maryland Farm Service Agency data to back up the request. According to the agency, there were historic losses, including 94% of the apple crop, 99% of the peach crop and 98% of the barley in several jurisdictions.
The Maryland Wineries Association says 36% of grape acreage sustained total losses, with a $24.4 million projected deficit in wine sales for the 2026 vintage.
“For the majority of the varieties, the yield, the 2026 crop yield, will essentially be zero,” said Robert Butz, the owner of Windridge Vineyards.
The hours-long deep freeze in April left grapes at Windridge Vineyards in Germantown dead on the vine.
News4 visited Windridge Vineyards just a few days after the disaster. Butz said not only were there grape losses, some of the vines were damaged as well. He called the devastation “catastrophic.”
It’s challenging, but he said he’s pleased with the support being given to local farmers and the disaster declaration request.
“This announcement by the governor is further evidence of that, right,” Butz said. “Marylanders care about their farmers. That’s great.It’s incredibly gratifying for those who do this work.”
Moore is asking the agriculture secretary for a quick decision so emergency loans and relief programs are made available right away so farmers can prepare for the next growing season.
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