WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Towson University volleyball team had to rally for a 3-2 win over the University of Maryland on Saturday afternoon in its final match of the Georgetown Classic. The Tigers (9-1) won the tournament after posting a 3-0 weekend. Senior Jessica Lewis was named the tournament MVP and was joined on the all-tournament team by sophomore Jocelyn Kuilan and redshirt sophomore Anna Holehouse.

THE BASICS
Towson 3, Maryland 2 (25-13, 25-20, 22-25, 21-25, 15-13)
McDonough Arena, Washington, D.C.
Day Two of the Georgetown Classic

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Towson opened the first set by scoring 10 of the first 15 points. Lewis' kill gave the Tigers a 10-5 advantage and forced Maryland to use an early timeout. A service ace from freshman Marrisa Wonders pushed the Towson lead to 15-7. The Tigers scored eight of the final 11 points to secure the 25-13 set win. Sophomore Carola Biver had a pair of kills during that crucial stretch run.
• The Tigers trailed 7-6 in the second set before a 5-0 run gave the Black and Gold attack an 11-7 lead. Lewis registered three straight kills during that key scoring run. Back-to-back kills from Lewis and Biver pushed the Towson lead to 16-10. A kill from junior Payton Windell gave Towson a 20-16 edge. The two teams continued to battle before a block from Windell and senior Lindsay Flaherty gave Towson a 25-20 win and a 2-0 lead in the match.
• With the two teams tied at 14-14 in the third set, Maryland used a 6-4 run to take a 20-18 edge. Gia Milana had a pair of kills during that stretch. The two teams continued to battle before a kill from Hailey Murray gave Maryland a 25-22 set win.
• The fourth set saw the two teams battle through eight ties and two lead changes. Liz Twilley had a pair of kills to help the Terps (6-2) take an 18-15 lead. A service ace from Kelsey Wicinski allowed Maryland to post a 25-21 set win and force the match to a fifth set.
• The fifth set was tied at 7-7 before a kill from Flaherty and a pair of back-to-back service aces from Wonders gave Towson a 10-7 lead. Back-to-back kills from Milana gave Maryland a 13-12 lead and forced Towson to call timeout. Following the break, Towson got a kill from Kuilan and back-to-back kills from redshirt senior Candace Steadman to seal a 15-13 set win and victory in the match.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• The Tigers captured their first in-season tournament win since they won the Tennessee Tech Tournament last season.
• Lewis posted her third double-double of the year and second of the weekend as she finished the match with 16 kills and 15 digs. She finished the weekend with 57 kills, 30 digs, eight blocks and a .308 hitting percentage to earn MVP honors.
• Kuilan had 12 kills against the Terps and finished the weekend with 35 kills, five digs and six blocks to earn a spot on the all-tournament team. Holehouse had 22 digs in the final match of the weekend and finished the tournament with 52 digs and 12 assists.
• Wonders posted her third double-double of the weekend with 33 assists and 13 digs while junior Julymar Otero had 28 assists and five digs. Biver posted her second double-double of the weekend with 13 kills and 17 digs.
• Milana led Maryland with 18 kills and 11 digs.
• Towson hit .269 for the match while holding Maryland to a .151 hitting percentage.
• The Tigers posted their second match of the weekend with double-digit blocks, finishing with 10 team blocks. Six Tigers finished with at least one block in the match and that group was led by Steadman with six.

The Tigers are back in action next weekend as they travel to Macon, Georgia to take part in the Mercer Tournament on Sept. 16-17. The Tigers will take on Mercer, USC-Upstate and Fairleigh Dickinson as part of the two days of action.