The Terps look to avoid an early exit in the conference tournament this year.
Maryland women’s lacrosse capped off its turbulent regular season with a 13-11 victory over then-No. 8 Johns Hopkins, securing its first top-10 win of the season.
The Terps’ postseason run begins Wednesday in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, which will be hosted in College Park. As the No. 2 seed, Maryland will face No. 7-seed Rutgers for the second time in a week.
Wednesday’s contest will start at 3 p.m. and stream on Big Ten Plus.
What happened last time
Fresh off one of their worst offensive outputs of the season, the Terps traveled to Piscataway, New Jersey, on Apr. 16, hoping for a get-back performance. Maryland manufactured 17 combined goals in its prior two contests, struggling to convert its quality chances.
The Terps tied a season-low two first-half goals on 12 shots, though, allowing Rutgers’ goalie Lexie Coldiron to control the cage. Maryland also committed six turnovers and failed to capitalize on its three free-position opportunities.
The Scarlet Knights made the Terps pay, taking a three-goal advantage at one point and a 4-2 lead into halftime. Behind a pair of assists from attacker Alex Popham and four different goalscorers, Rutgers looked capable of pulling off the upset.
After Popham opened up the scoring in the third quarter, Maryland’s offense woke up and the floodgates ensued. Five unanswered goals — including braces from Jordyn Lipkin and Kori Edmondson — fueled the Terps to a two-goal advantage.
However, Rutgers wouldn’t go down without a fight, producing two goals in a minute.
But Edmondson recorded the game-winner with 4:23 left on the clock, notching Maryland’s third free-position goal of the half.
While the Terps’ offense had an up-and-down outing, goalie JJ Suriano kept them in the contest. The sophomore tallied 11 saves and a 61.1% save percentage.
What’s happened since
Maryland handled Johns Hopkins in its regular-season finale, improving to a perfect 21-0 over the Blue Jays.
Most importantly, the Terps’ attack displayed their best performance since its West Coast trip just over two weeks ago. Maryland buried 13 of its 32 shots (40.6%).
Despite using a balanced offensive attack all season, Maisy Clevenger’s absence has loomed large since her injury against then-No. 18 USC. Clevenger was a reliable option, generating 19 goals and 15 assists. Her status heading into postseason play is unknown, but a potential return would be beneficial for a deep run.
The Scarlet Knights dropped a tight battle against then-No. 13 Michigan on Saturday, coming up short in the end, 12-9. Rutgers tied the game at four after falling behind 4-1. But Michigan scored five unanswered goals, taking a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. The Scarlet Knights cut the deficit to one late in the third quarter, but conceded three of the final four goals.
Coldiron dispatched nine shots for one of her lowest save percentages of the season (42.9%). Hat tricks from freshmen attackers Caroline Ling and Delainey Sutley were not enough to keep up with Michigan.
Three things to watch
- Season sweep. For the third consecutive season, Maryland and Rutgers will clash in the Big Ten Tournament. Last year, the Terps fell 9-8 in the quarterfinals before making a run to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. Maryland hopes to secure both matchups against the Scarlet Knights this time around.
- Home field advantage. The Terps last hosted the Big Ten Tournament in 2017, when they won the tournament and national championships game. The Terps have won their last seven games in College Park after dropping their home opener as well.
- Who becomes the third attacking option? Maryland has relied heavily on Edmondson and Lipkin recently to generate offense, with the pairing scoring 13 of the team’s 21 goals in the past two contests. If the Terps hope to make a deep run, they will need someone else to shoulder some of the load.