A sloppy start by the Maryland defense costs the Terps.
For No. 2-seed Maryland men’s lacrosse, the opening sequences of the second half of the Big Ten Championship against No. 1-seed Ohio State perfectly summed up the night.
Shea Keethler won the faceoff and scooped the ball, but a miscommunication meant he ran into George Stamos, a midgame addition to the faceoff unit. The ball went flying and landed in an Ohio State stick; one pass found an open Buckeye bearing down on net.
Logan McNaney made a massive stop — something that was far more surprising than usual on Saturday — that gave Maryland a chance to start the half with momentum. However, the ensuing possession stalled. The Terps dumped the ball without even getting a shot off.
Maryland then forced a failed clear from Ohio State, taking back the ball. This time, the Terps managed two shots, but neither made it on net to trouble goalkeeper Caleb Fyock. The Buckeyes then went down the other way and scored.
The Terps were doomed by a terrible start against the Buckeyes. For the first time all season, a team ran roughshod over Maryland’s defense, as the Terps lost the Big Ten Championship, 14-10.
“They just came out with a lot of emotion,” head coach John Tillman said. “And then give them credit — anytime we kind of started climbing back, they always seemed to make a play.”
From the jump, Ohio State had Maryland’s number.
The Buckeyes laid it on Maryland early, scoring four goals in the opening four minutes and five in the first frame against the Terps’ settled, six-on-six defense. On April 12, the Buckeyes needed 40 minutes to convert just one settled possession.
Unlike many of Maryland’s opponents on the season, which looked to drain the clock before firing a shot to shorten the game, Ohio State attacked the Terps early in its possessions. It was devastatingly successful. Gannon Matthews and Dillon McGee each scored before Garrett Haas added two, as McNaney needed seven minutes to record his first save of the game.
Maryland had offensive chances, but the Terps could not crack the Buckeyes’ shell. The quarter finished 6-1 Ohio State, largely down to the difference in play from the goaltenders. McNaney was porous, saving just two of eight; Caleb Fyock dominated in goal, saving five of six shots on target.
The Terps successfully exploited “Big Tasty” down low in their first matchup, but the Buckeyes’ cageminder was wary of his weakness this time around.
“If you watch, he was kind of cheating low,” Tillman said. “Some of the goals we got, guys would kind of look low, shoot high. And that was effective at times. So that’s the chess match that you have.”
Daniel Kelly ensured Maryland at least got on the board in the opening frame, but the chess match felt as though the Terps were playing down two knights and a rook. Maryland had no unpredictability on offense because Ohio State neutralized the creators and the sharpshooter — Matthew Keegan and Zach Whittier finished with one combined point, and Kelly’s first-quarter effort was his only contribution of the game.
Entering the second quarter, Maryland kicked back into gear. Alex Marinier started the period by scoring Ohio State’s sixth, but the Terps scored four of the next five.
Elijah Stobaugh breathed life back into the Terps with a solo goal where he simply outpaced his defender and found the corner against Fyock, atoning for poor recent performances. On Ohio State’s next possession, Jackson Canfield blocked a shot from Matthews. McNaney found Stamos sprinting upfield, and the Terps converted in transition, with Eric Spanos teeing up Braden Erksa.
Jack McKenna got a goal back for the Buckeyes, but it was Spanos’ turn to make up for recent outings. The senior, who didn’t score against Penn State or Johns Hopkins, got two goals to drag Maryland back within three.
But the Buckeyes were able to respond to every Maryland run. After Spanos’ double, Ohio State scored either side of halftime. The teams traded goals through the middle of the third frame; Maryland could not get any closer than four goals, and the difference was still five entering the fourth quarter. Maryland was visibly frustrated at its lack of progress, a rare sight this season.
“When you dig yourself a hole like that, the key is you can’t get it back all at once,” Tillman said. “[Starting] 6-1, after that, we actually outscore them, but just can’t dig yourself that much of a hole.”
Bryce Ford tried to spark the Terps back into life, getting two goals in the fourth quarter, but Fyock met the increasingly frantic Maryland shots. The goalkeeper rose to the occasion, finishing with 10 saves on 12 shots on target in the final frame.
Statistically, it was an even game outside of the shooting — the Terps had two more faceoff wins, three more ground balls, a slightly better clearing percentage and the same number of turnovers as the Buckeyes. That, at least, gives Tillman’s crew some solace moving forward.
“We know we’re close,” Tillman said. “We played two top-five teams in 48 hours… got one of the top-five wins, didn’t get both. So let’s figure out how we can get a little better. Let’s learn. Let’s grow. Let’s stick together and let’s keep fighting for more time together.”
Three things to know
1. First quarter meltdown for Maryland. The Terps gave up six goals in a single quarter for the first time since the Big Ten semifinals against Penn State last year. Maryland entered Saturday only averaging 7.69 goals against per game and having held opponents to eight total goals in five straight games.
2. Balanced Buckeyes attack takes down the Terps. Led by Haas’ hat trick, five Buckeyes had multiple goals against Maryland. There was no one person dominating the Terps; eight of the Buckeyes’ first nine goals came from different players.
3. Time for the NCAA Tournament. The Terps do not have much time to lick their wounds: the NCAA bracket will be released tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN. Maryland will almost certainly be involved, but the Terps will anxiously await the reveal of their path to Gillette Stadium.