After parting ways with head coach Meghan Ryan Nemzer Thursday morning, Maryland women’s soccer welcomed No. 20 Penn State with a new leader at the helm.
Under interim head coach Michael Marchiano, the Terps showcased improvement, but the coaching change didn’t fix their offensive struggles. Maryland fell to No. 20 Penn State, 5-0, Thursday night in College Park.
The Terps gained possession from the jump and started the match on the offensive end. There was certainly some added fight in Maryland’s game; the Terps looked much more aggressive.
Maryland earned the first corner of the contest, which was taken by Emily Lenhard. She placed the corner perfectly in front of the net for a Taryn Raibon header. But Raibon placed the header barely above the net, and the Terps missed on a dangerous chance in the eighth minute.
In the opening 15 minutes, Maryland saw ample chances and looked like the better team for the first time in weeks.
The Terps made their first mistake of the night in the 18th minute, and it resulted with the ball in the back of the net. Tahirah Turnage-Morales incidentally passed the ball to Penn State’s Kaitlyn MacBean off a slight deflection from Julia Raich in Maryland’s defensive zone.
MacBean only had to beat keeper Liz Beardsley, who dove and missed the ball. MacBean’s 15th goal of the season granted Penn State the early lead.
Despite looking better, the Terps still did not record a shot on goal in the first 30 minutes.
In the 39th minute, Penn State’s Aubrey Kulpa took a shot on the break with Beardsley out of position, but Hallie Johnson came to the rescue and recovered to make the team save for Maryland.
Maryland outshot Penn State, 5-4, in the first half, while the Nittany Lions led in shots on goal, 2-0. The Terps also held 53% of possession in the half.
Penn State received its first corner of the match in the 54th minute and executed it to perfection. Bella Ayscue took the corner and sent it directly to Kayleigh Herr, who headed it into the net. There was nothing Maryland’s defense or Beardsley could have done.
MacBean forced Beardsley to make her first save of the match in the 57th minute, as the keeper kept the deficit at two goals.
The energy and momentum Maryland possessed in the first half flatlined in the second, and Penn State created more chances as a result. The Nittany Lions saw another chance when Raich took a bottom-left shot that Beardsley dove to stop.
Minutes later, Maryland had a glorious chance on the break, but the action was whistled dead for a handball.
In the 70th minute, Penn State created a flurry of opportunities in front of the net. Kulpa registered two shots, Beardsley made a save, another shot was blocked and the final boot hit the crossbar before being cleared away by Kennedy Bell.
Madison Krakower took Maryland’s first shot on goal in the 73rd minute, but it was saved by keeper Mackenzie Gress.
Then, Kulpa took a shot, which forced a Beardsley kick-save. The rebound popped back out to Elle Kershner, though, who buried it to give Penn State a three-goal lead.
Kulpa scored the fourth goal for Penn State in the 80th minute. Her first shot was saved by Beardsley, but the rebound returned to her foot and the subsequent shot was deflected in off a Maryland defender.
Penn State notched its fifth goal in the 90th minute, courtesy of Rebecca Cooke.
The Nittany Lions’ dominant second half carried it to victory. Despite shot totals (17-9) and shots on goal (11-1) favoring Penn State, Maryland held 51% of the game’s possession.
Three things to know
1. New energy. It was a different feeling at Ludwig Field for kick-off, as there was an evident change in the Terps’ energy with the coaching change. Maryland had longer huddles and speeches, and it didn’t appear as defeated as it has been lately.
2. Chippy match. Maryland and Penn State played a physical match Thursday night. There were multiple collisions, and many players went to the ground injured.
3. Second-half spiral. Maryland played well in the opening 45 minutes, but things got out of hand in the second half. Penn State held most of the possession and put four goals in the back of the net, tripling its shot totals from the first half.
