HARRISONBURG, Va. – Senior Kailey Young tallied 12 kills, six digs and three block assists as the McDaniel College volleyball team won its first match of the season in five sets over Eastern Mennonite on Friday.

The Green Terror (1-2) picked up their first win against the Royals (1-3) since Oct. 7, 2018. McDaniel has won three of the last four matches in the series dating back to 2012.

The visitors took control of the opening set thanks to a 6-0 scoring run to erase an early deficit, led by two service aces from senior Samantha Fadel. McDaniel eventually grew the lead to 10 and won by eight after a set-clinching service error. 

Set two saw early runs by both squads in a tight contest. A 6-3 start by EMU was quickly countered by a 3-0 run for the Green Terror, followed by another 3-0 run by the Royals. The margin stayed within two for nearly the entire set as both teams traded points throughout. A 3-0 burst gave McDaniel a 24-22 lead late in the set, but Eastern Mennonite fought back to tie the contest at 24-24. A kill from junior Abigayle Bowley followed by an EMU error gave the Green Terror a hard-fought 26-24 victory.

McDaniel jumped out to an early lead in set three before Eastern Mennonite stormed back and took control late. An 8-1 scoring run gave way to a 25-17 win for the Royals in the third. The Green Terror again started hot in the fourth set, opening on an 11-4 run before EMU worked their way back into the contest. A 5-0 run swung the lead to the Royals, but McDaniel would jump back in front 22-18 led by two aces from sophomore Stephanie Buttons. Eastern Mennonite closed the set on an 8-2 run to claim another close win, 26-24 to send the match to a decisive fifth set.

The Green Terror again used a quick start to take control of the fifth, opening on a 4-0 run with kills from Young and sophomore Kaylee Comstock. The lead grew to five after a kill from first year Mariya Carson but EMU battled back again, eventually cutting the Green Terror lead to one, 12-11. Carson then registered three kills on the next four points to seal the win in five sets, the team's first win of 2025.

Young's 12 kills led the way on the attack while Buttons and Carson each recorded 10 kills for their first career double-digit kill performance. Buttons and Fadel combined for nine service aces while Comstock tallied 34 assists and 16 digs. Bowley, Young and sophomore Sydney Turner combined for nine block assists while first year Kaitlyn Saidat also recorded a block assist and seven kills.

The Green Terror travel to Frederick on Wednesday to face Hood. Start time is set for 7 pm.