Maryland is back for the spring and ready to get started under their new head coach, Adam Hughes.
Hughes replaced Steve Aird after he left to take over the University of Indiana program, a fellow Big Ten institution. This is Hughes fifth year with the program, after being the associate head coach last season and assistant coach from 2014-2016.
In the 2017 season, Maryland was on the verge of making the NCAA Tournament, being named one of the first four out. On the year, the Terrapins went 18-14 overall and 7-13 in a tough Big Ten Conference. To start the year off the Terps went 11-0, losing their first match of the year to then-#7 Washington a day after winning over then-#18 USC in straight sets.
The roster is young and many have transferred out following the absence of Aird including their 2017 kills leader Gia Milana who is transferring to Baylor while libero Kelsey Wicinski is heading to Florida State. Also moving on is Samantha Dreschel who will compete for Washington this coming season. Despite the changes to the lineup, Hughes still has Erika Pritchard, Samantha Snyder, Abigail Bentz and Katie Myers. This, however, does mean that Hughes has a lot of rebuilding to do this coming season at a program that has been doing this since Aird joined the program in 2014.
The 2018 season could be a struggle for the Terrapins who are looking to potentially be a younger squad once again. Their tough Big Ten schedule will be a challenge but Hughes is up to the task.
“Every year is a new year with new challenges and new rosters, so we’re going to spend the spring trying to identify what we are as a group and look to see what we can maximize going in with next year’s expectation to keep things moving forward,” said Hughes.
"I'm thankful for the opportunity to be here, I know my family is as well. I'm looking forward to being here for a long time." – @AdamNHughes #FearTheTurtle pic.twitter.com/qqaYNKFSIV
— Maryland Volleyball (@TerpsVolleyball) February 2, 2018
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