The Terps looked destined for a third straight loss before pulling off a comeback.
Heading into the final quarter of play Sunday, No. 12 Maryland men’s lacrosse was staring down the barrel of a three-game losing streak, something that has never happened under head coach John Tillman.
Down three goals to No. 4 Penn State, the Terps responded with a torrent of offense — six unanswered goals to earn a massive road victory, 13-11.
“Staying in the moment is all you can do,” Tillman said of his mindset while his team trailed. “You don’t want to kick yourself and go, ‘God, I started to think about what if,’ because then you’re not going to call the right play or have the right guy on the field or call that timeout.”
Like much of the first 45 minutes, the first quarter was one to forget for Maryland’s defense. Completely overpowered by Penn State’s attack, the Terps (6-3, 1-1 Big Ten) conceded six goals — two of which came from all-American attacker TJ Malone. The Nittany Lions’ ball movement was pristine, leading to clean looks in the heart of the defense without much resistance.
On the other end, Eric Spanos and Eric Malever provided the only answers for Maryland, as it faced a four-goal deficit after the first quarter.
Less than a minute into the second, Malone found his hat trick, easily able to exploit a short-stick midfielder for the second time. However, Maryland’s defense settled in nicely thereafter, aided by crucial stops from Logan McNaney. Maryland’s goalie made four stops in the second frame.
But Penn State (7-2, 1-1) goalie Jack Fracyon was particularly phenomenal. Despite notching 14 shots in the second quarter, Maryland scored just two goals: a quick shot from Jack Koras and a bouncer off the stick of Braden Erksa.
“We felt like if we had shot a little bit better that wouldn’t have been the deficit,” Tillman said. “But, you know, Jack is very good.”
Fracyon made 10 first-half saves, allowing his team to take an 8-4 advantage into the break. His most impressive stop came when he trapped a Malever shot between his ankles.
Out of the break, Maryland caught a big boost when faceoff specialist Luke Wierman took control. He won 11 of 14 faceoffs in the second half, paramount in the Terps scoring nine of the game’s final 12 goals.
The Terps’ attack also started to become more crisp, scoring thrice in the third quarter, born from great ball movement. Maryland’s last goal of the quarter came in transition after a great sequence of passes found defensive midfielder Nick Redd, who ripped a shot for his first goal of the season.
After a controversial goal late in the third quarter — it looked as though Penn State had committed a crease violation — the Nittany Lions took a 10-7 lead into the final quarter.
Wierman won six straight faceoffs to open the fourth quarter, and the Terps took advantage in the best way. Koras scored consecutive goals in a matter of 30 seconds, bringing his game total to four tallies, before Daniel Maltz added another quick pair to give Maryland its first lead of the game not even five minutes into the period.
“Pushing the ball early on offense, especially from the faceoffs. That’s where we made most of our money tonight,” Koras said.
Erksa and Daniel Kelly then added scores to create a three-goal separation and end Maryland’s losing streak.
Three things to know
1. Maryland limited turnovers. The Terps turned the ball over 12 times Sunday, five less than in each of their last two losses. They also forced Penn State into 17 turnovers,
2. McNaney kept Maryland close. After a disastrous first quarter, it looked like Penn State was going to run Maryland off the field. However, McNaney made some crucial second-quarter stops to keep the Terps in the game. He finished with nine saves.
3. The Terps beat Penn State again. Not only did Maryland potentially change the tide of its season, it extended its win streak over the Nittany Lions to five.