Maryland advances to NCAA Championship with 12-6 win over Virginia

Photo courtesy of Mackenzie Miles/Maryland Terrapins

Jack Brennan received a pass just a foot or two away from the goal and pump-faked Virginia’s goalie before firing a shot into the net. He pointed to the Maryland crowd and pumped his fist as the goal was the dagger that sent the Terps back to the NCAA Championship.

No. 7 Maryland (11-5, 3-2 Big Ten) defeated No. 6 Virginia 12-6 in the NCAA Semifinal on Saturday in Philadelphia. The Terps advance to their second championship in three years and face Notre Dame.

Luke Wierman continued his dominant tournament run winning 15-of-22 faceoffs and adding a goal. The senior has three straight games with 15 or more faceoff wins and his total record is 55-for-77 (71%) in the tournament. Wierman struggled in March against Notre Dame, going 12-for-25, and will have a chance to redeem himself on Monday.

Virginia (12-6, 1-3 ACC) beat Maryland 14-10 in College Park earlier this season. Goalie Logan McNaney struggled in the contest, allowing 14 goals with eight saves. On Saturday, McNaney bounced back and recorded eight saves with a .571 percentage.

Sophomore Kyle Morris made his first career start for Virginia in goal. Matthew Nunes was benched after six minutes against Johns Hopkins and allowed four goals during that span. Morris stepped in and made eight saves in Virginia’s double-overtime upset victory.

However, Morris struggled against Maryland, allowing 11 goals and five saves. He was taken out in the closing minutes of the third quarter.

Virginia’s failure to win possessions did not help Morris. The Cavaliers committed 15 turnovers and won just seven faceoffs. Offensively, they struggled shooting and constantly had shots that were wide or hit the post. Virginia took 39 total shots and only 15 were on goal.

Connor Shellenberger – Virginia’s leader in points – scored in the first minute and gave the Cavaliers their only lead of the game. From here, Ajax Zappitello took him out of the game. Shellenberger recorded an assist in the fourth quarter but did not score, shooting 0-for-3.

Maryland grabbed momentum early and scored two goals in six seconds to close out the first quarter. Daniel Kelly jumpstarted the offense, recording a first-half hat trick.

The offense continued its hot streak and entered the half with a 7-3 lead. Meanwhile, defensively, Virginia was held to a 17-minute scoring drought and the Terps caused six turnovers.

Maryland set the tone to open the second half when Jack Koras and Eric Spanos each scored in the first minute.

The Cavaliers showed life late, scoring two fourth-quarter goals but it was not enough to overcome the large deficit.

Maryland’s matchup with the 2023 champions is on Monday at 1:00 p.m. Notre Dame defeated the Terps 14-9 in March. Maryland seeks to win its third championship in seven years.