Photo courtesy of Allison Mize/Maryland Terrapins
Earlier in the day the news was that Maryland coach Meghan Ryan Memzer split ways with the team.
Tonight, Maryland took on the No. 20 Penn State Nittany Lions, led by new interim Head Coach Michael Marchiano, looking for their first conference win since the 2022 season.
After the game Michael Marchiano wanted to make sure to give former head coach Meghan Ryan Memzer her credit.
“I want to thank [Meghan] for all she’s done for me, and for everything she’s done for the program,” Marchiano said.
However, things did not go to plan for Marchiano’s first game as coach, as Maryland (3-8-4, 0-6-1 Big Ten) was dominated in a 5-0 blowout loss to Penn State (10-3-2, 4-2-1 Big Ten).
The game started well for Maryland, generating some shots early on due to corner shots and effective passing. The Terps nearly drew first blood on the game’s first two shots, but they weren’t able to get it in the net.
For the first 15 minutes of the game Maryland was able to hold the pace of the game, limiting Penn State from attempting any shots.
“To start the game I thought the energy was really really good,” Coach Marchiano said. “I can’t fuss too much about what the girls committed tonight.”
But on the first promising Penn State attack, the Maryland defense folded allowing Penn State to go up 1-0. Katilyn MacBean struck on a second-chance goal after 17 minutes of game time to net her 12th goal of the season.
For the next 15 minutes after the Nittany Lions took total control. They put up three shots compared to the Terps zero in that period.
The Terps’ first substitutions in the 32nd minute finally stopped some of the bleeding as the team began to up its tempo and see more time with the ball. Maryland out-shot the Nittany Lions 3-1 in the last 14 minutes of the first half, but couldn’t get the ball past goalkeeper Mackenzie Gress.
The biggest difference in the first half was the team’s ability to get past the opposing backline. While Maryland was able to garner some attacks, none of them were one-on-one with the goalie, an opportunity that Penn State was able to find twice.
To start the second half, Maryland came out aggressive looking to create scoring opportunities with the same high tempo it ended the last half with.
However, before they could find any success, Penn State earned a corner kick where they found their second goal thanks to a header by Aubrey Kulpa.
After that, Maryland looked depleted. Penn State held the possession for most of the next 15 minutes peppering the net. However, Liz Beardsley’s highlight saves kept the score where it was at 2-0.
“As the game went on it got to be really transitional and that took a lot out of our legs and our energy levels dropped at the end,” Marchiano said.
Penn State’s scoring wasn’t going to slow down though. They scored two quick goals in the 77th and 80th minutes, and then one final goal in the last 20 seconds of the game to make it 5-0.
The conference scoreless streak extends to 17 games.
Despite having nine different players register a shot, Maryland was unable to score, only mustering one shot on net. In contrast, Penn State put 11 of their 17 shots on net, capitalizing on nearly half.
“[I’m] upset, like the rest of the group, it’s a difficult situation,” Marchiano said. “We have to move forward and our focus is going to be on how we can create the best possible experience over the next couple of weeks for these girls.”
“I have too much pride for this place to [tolerate] anybody giving up, including myself,” Marchiano added.
Maryland still seeks its first conference win in its next game versus Nebraska at home on Sunday at 1 p.m.
