Towson had its 17-game winning streak end an an inopportune time — one step away from a second straight trip to the Class 3A state final.
The Generals (18-2) won the 3A title last year but won't get a shot at a repeat after a 3-1 (25-23, 21-25, 25-23, 25-16) loss to the Hubs (20-3) Thursday night at Ritchie Coliseum.
Towson coach Emily Berman knows exactly how her five senior starters — Lauren Bosse, Kelly Lacy, Ally Teuten, Hannah Wohltmann and Emily Lansinger — feel.
Berman played on the 2001 Towson state championship team as a junior, but she left the court in defeat her senior year when the Generals lost in the state final.
"They put the same amount of work in senior year, maybe even harder, but they didn't get the prize at the end," Berman said. "I know how they feel. They should be proud."
Towson dropped the first set after gaining leads of 16-13 and 20-17. North Hagerstown rallied to tie at 20-20, then Towson led 23-22 before the Hubs scored three straight to claim the set.
North hagerstown's Autumn Fisher (22 kills), Iman Scott (13 kills) and Peyton Wallach (16 kills) were dominant all night with setter Brynne Kirsch (43 assists), but the Generals bounced back and won the second set.
They were sparked by the serving of Emily Lansinger, whose three straight deep service floaters helped extend a 15-12 lead to 18-12. Bosse (14 kills) had five kills and a block in the second, and Wohltmann (10 kills, team-high 16 digs) had four kills in that set.
The final set was tied, 10-10, before the Hubs went on a 7-2 run and never looked back.
"I thought we had the ability to win, but we had to play at the top of our game," Berman said. "When it came down to it, we just made too many errors in times when we should have just kept the ball in play."