The Terps have a chance to seal second place in the conference.
Maryland field hockey will not celebrate its 50th anniversary with a regular season Big Ten title. But greater honors remain in play for the Terps, who look to use their final regular season game at No. 17 Penn State Friday to build momentum and tune up for the postseason.
After going 1-1 last weekend, the Terps fell one spot to No. 7 in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association top 25 poll. A comfortable 3-0 Senior Day victory over Richmond helped the Terps salvage a weekend that began with a flat 2-1 loss at No. 13 Princeton.
More critically, though, action elsewhere in the Big Ten has put Maryland in a promising spot. Three things needed to happen before the end of the season for the Terps to lock up the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten: a No. 4 Ohio State and No. 8 Michigan conference loss and a Maryland win over Penn State.
Ohio State dropped a shocker in Columbus, Ohio, to Iowa, 3-0, and Michigan lost to both Northwestern and Indiana at home.
Now, the pressure is on the Terps to complete the final step and beat the Nittany Lions. With a loss, though, Maryland could fall to third if Ohio State wins its final Big Ten game at No. 1 Northwestern. The Terps control their own destiny for now, allowing head coach Missy Meharg’s young team to get a taste of the postseason pressures.
Friday’s game will start at 4 p.m. and stream on Big Ten Plus.
Penn State (8-8, 2-5 Big Ten)
Nittany Lions head coach Lisa Bervinchak Love is in her 31st season with the program but just her second as head coach after taking over for longtime coach Char Morett-Curtis, who won 541 games over her 39 years at the helm. Bervinchak Love has not yet had the same success as her predecessor, with the Nittany Lions going 9-8 in 2023 and once again hovering around .500 this season.
Players to know
Sophia Gladieux, fifth-year senior forward, No. 3 — Gladieux is second in Division I with 19 goals this season. The 2024 Olympian has taken more than half of Penn State’s shots this year, but has a goal in just one of her last five games.
Julienne van Bekkum, graduate back, No. 10 — van Bekkum is the main penalty corner taker for Penn State and a threat off some designed plays. Her five assists are the most on the team, and she has chipped in with three goals off corners as well.
Strength
Offensive explosions. When Penn State is clicking offensively, the team is potent. The Nittany Lions have scored three or more goals six times this season and are undefeated in those games.
Weakness
Shot-stopping. The Nittany Lions have used a goalkeeping tandem all season, but the results have been less than ideal. Freshman Aby Deverka and graduate student Lauren Delgado have combined for just a 69.5% save percentage and let in 2.41 goals per game.
Three things to know
1. Terps stingy on defense. Maryland have allowed 48 shots on goal this season — an average of just three per game. This bodes well against Penn State, who is bottom three in the conference in shots on goal.
2. Game decided by Gladieux. The Nittany Lions’ centerpiece defines the team’s offense. Gladieux has 19 of her team’s 34 goals, van Bekkum has three and no other Penn State player has more than two. If the Terps’ experienced backline can shut down Gladieux, their chances of winning becomes much greater.
3. All-time records tied. The Terps are 8-8 against Penn State all-time. The Nittany Lions are the only Big Ten team that Maryland does not have a winning record against, having won three of their last four contests against the Terps.