No. 5 Maryland field hockey didn’t let the high of Friday’s double-overtime win distract it from the test at hand Sunday, beating Drexel at The Plex, 2-0.
Head coach Missy Meharg and her players were frank in addressing the team’s condition after the game. Meharg admitted that the Terps had been affected by their physically and emotionally intense opener and that they were not playing smart to start the game.
“We started off a little slower than we wanted to, but that just comes from fatigue from a 78 minute game. … So the first half kind of took us a little bit, and then the second half we kind of built up into it,” Maryland midfielder Hope Rose said.
The game got off to a sluggish start for both sides, with just two shots going on target in an opening 30 minutes that saw both teams continuously pressuring the ball. Neither squad wanted to afford the other a chance to seize control.
The Dragons shielded their goalkeeper well, blocking several Maryland shots in the first half. But it was the Terps’ defense that stood out. Maryland only conceded three shots — two on target — over the duration of the game, and there was never a moment where Alyssa Klebasko looked truly threatened in goal.
With 1:11 remaining in the second quarter, Kenzie Lever dove to keep a Drexel clearance inbounds but landed on her shoulder and stayed down in pain. Play was stopped for trainers to attend to her. Lever, who scored both of Drexel’s goals in their 2-1 opening game win against Sacred Heart, left the stadium in a sling.
Maryland was more successful at creating early chances, leading Drexel seven shots to two at the half, but finishing on one of them eluded the Terps until seven minutes into the third quarter.
Fleur Knopert picked up the ball to Drexel goalkeeper Halle Geiger’s right and drove laterally across the goal. As the chance appeared lost, Knopert wrapped her stick around the ball and sent it back to the opposite corner for her first goal as a Terp.
“I love playing with this team and connecting with them. It was really much a team effort, so [I was] really glad to put that 1-0 up there,” Knopert after the match said.
With one goal in hand, Maryland began seeing more success and sustained possession in the Drexel half, but warning shots from the Dragons ensured the Terps’ defense would need to stay steady.
And steady they stayed — Drexel only attempted one shot in the second half, with ex-Terp Anna Castaldo seeing an effort denied by Klebasko with an excellent kick save.
Another breakthrough finally came for Maryland with 9:30 remaining in the game. Maci Bradford picked up the ball 10 yards from goal and drove at Geiger, evading two defenders before rounding the keeper and sending the ball into the net.
With the lead secured, the Terps settled down into a comfortable rhythm to draw out the clock.
“[We controlled] the game. We played hockey,” Meharg said.
Now, with two games under its belt, Maryland comes out of its opening weekend with a growing confidence that greater heights are yet to come.
Three things to know
1. Maryland’s dominance of Drexel continues. The Terps have never lost a game against the Dragons and are now 11-0 all-time following today’s victory.
2. Defending from the front. A massive contributing factor to the Terps’ stellar defense — having conceded only one goal in their first 140 minutes of play — is the work done by the forward unit in pressing the opposing defense. The trio of Ella Gaitan, Bradford and Maya Everett were influential on both sides of the ball, never giving the Drexel defenders a chance to calmly play from the back.
3. Final test before big-time competition. Next weekend, the Terps will travel to Evanston, Ill. to face Boston College and Duke as part of the B1G/ACC Cup. Back-to-back games against ranked teams will offer Maryland an excellent chance to rise even higher than its current No. 4 spot in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s poll.
