Maryland men’s soccer rides second-half surge to decisive 4-0 win over Pacific

After Maryland men’s soccer struggled during the second half against Bucknell, they have redeemed themselves in their past two matches. Against Saint Francis and Pacific, the Terps have scored eight second-half goals.

Maryland men’s soccer (3-0-1) defeated Pacific (1-3-0) 4-0 in a win that featured many firsts for the team. Freshman forward Rocket Ritarita and sophomore forward Aidan Sheppela scored their first career goals, and senior defender Mack DeVries secured his first career assist.

Early into the match, Maryland struggled to keep possession of the ball. Senior defender Luca Costabile gained control of the ball and took a shot at the goal, but Pacific’s junior goalkeeper Mateus Ruiz-Hurst denied him.

Maryland got another solid look at the net in the 8th minute.

The Terps received a free kick, allowing senior defender Lasse Kelp to corral the ball and fire the ball toward the low center of the net, but Ruiz-Hurst made another save. 

In the 11th minute, Maryland netted its first goal of the game off the foot of junior forward Luke van Heukelum. Sophomore forward Stephane Njike set up the score for his second assist of the year. 

Njike,  a Long Island University transfer, has been one of the Terps’ most productive players in his short time in College Park. He’s tied for second-most points on the team with four, matching senior midfielder Albi Ndrenika and senior forward Sadam Masereka.  

Van Heukelum’s score marked his third in two games after he netted a pair of goals on Monday night against Saint Francis, contributing to the Terps’ 6-0 win. 

Tigers senior defenders Jacob Heisner and Matteo Carbone received yellow cards in the first half. Sophomore defender Muharif Abdul-Kadir received one in the second half. Pacific now has 10 yellow cards to start the 2025 season compared to Maryland’s three. 

The Terps’ defense held strong in the first half, holding the Tigers to zero shots until the 25th minute. A corner kick by Pacific led to a shot by sophomore defender Montgomery Carey that missed to the right.  

Soon after, sophomore goalkeeper Laurin Mack saved a shot by Pacific forward Josephat Yangyuoru. The freshman scored the Tigers’ first goal of the season in Sunday’s win over Utah Tech.

Despite holding just a 1-0 lead over the Tigers, the first half ended with a lopsided advantage for the Terps. 

Maryland tallied 16 shots compared to Pacific’s three. Mack had one save while Ruiz-Hurst had six, keeping the match within reach for the Tigers. 

During the second half, both teams’ defenses were strong and had equal control over the ball. Maryland’s attack continued to be stronger with four shots by the 72nd minute, while Pacific only had one that was saved by Mack. 

Maryland’s offense grew stronger in the late second half.

In the 75th minute, the Terps extended their lead over the Tigers with a goal by Masereka. Ritarita completed his third assist of the season, along with Kelp notching his second. 

Masereka has been a driving force for Maryland’s offense. He scored the first goal of the season for the Terps during their match against No. 6 Wake Forest, which was cancelled due to lightning. Masereka then drove in the first and only goal of the game against Georgetown. 

Eight minutes later, Ritarita scored his first collegiate goal during his third game, extending the Terps’ lead 3-0. The freshman was ranked as the No. 35 recruit in the country by Top Drawer Soccer and was named MLS NEXT U16 Cup MVP. 

With three minutes left, the Terps kept firing. Sheppela then scored his first collegiate goal and the final goal of the match, and Ritarita assisted him for his second assist of the match. 

“Now we get back in a very important game on the road,” head coach Sasho Cirovski said. “All focus shifts to conference play now.”

On Friday, Maryland will face Wisconsin (2-2-0) for its second away game and first conference game of the season. The Terps hope to keep their offense rolling after scoring 10 goals in the past two games.