No. 11 Maryland field hockey’s offense dominates in 4-0 win over Northeastern

Photo courtesy of Kevin Snyder/Maryland Terrapins

With a strong senior defensive line and fresh faces on the scoreboard, Maryland field hockey dominated the offense and shut out Northeastern.

No.11 Maryland (10-7, 5-3 Big Ten) won against Northeastern (9-8) 4-0 at the Lacrosse and Field Hockey Complex in College Park, Maryland, in the Terps’ most cohesive offensive performance this season. The four-goal win is tied for Maryland’s largest margin of victory this season.

“I think it’s the most we’ve ever scored,” head coach Missy Meharg said. “ Tied? Fantastic!”

It was senior day today for the Terps and two of the team’s four seniors, prominent defenders Ericka-Morris Adams and Fleur Knopert, started.

About five minutes into the second quarter, the Terps earned a penalty corner and another chance to increase their lead. After the insert from freshman midfielder Maia Adamson, sophomore midfielder Annemijn Klijnhout sent an aerial to Josie Hollamon, who fired a shot into the goal and scored the second goal of the game.

Early in the fourth quarter, freshman forward Jordyn Hollamon scored her seventh career goal and the third goal of the game, securing the lead and the win for Maryland. 

Only two minutes later,  junior midfielder Maya Everett drove it past the Huskies’ defense for a fourth Maryland goal and her first goal of the season.

Only four minutes into the game, the Huskies earned a penalty corner, but with a rush from the defense, the ball never made it close to junior goalkeeper Alyssa Klebasko.

“It’s a great outcome and great shutout for Alyssa,” Meharg said. “We had a couple back-post goals and rebounds, which is great. I couldn’t be happier.” 

With just over 10 minutes left in the game, Maryland drove down the field, sending the ball into the corner of the field. Junior forward Maddie Vasilios slipped through the defense and positioned herself in front of the goal. Brinkley Eyre slid a clean pass to Vasilios, who scored the first goal of the game.

After setting that lead up, the Terps subbed in their other two seniors: defender Ava Trexler and forward Leah Horwitz.

The Terps had a plethora of penalty corners, but were unable to convert them. Northeastern graduate goalkeeper Arabella Loveridge earned 12 saves.

Maryland also struggled to convert on its 28 shots.

“28 shots to four goals, though, I think could be a little bit better if I’m being a bit nitpicky, but I am proud that we were able to put the ball on cage,” Josie Hollamon said.

All three defensive seniors were key to the shutout as the Northeastern offense was quick to send the ball down to the Huskies’ offensive end after any turnover. Near the end of the game, Northeastern grew frantic when the Maryland defense applied pressure, causing the Huskies’ passes to go out of bounds.

After the first half, the Terps held Northeastern scoreless, allowing only two shots and one on goal.

Though they weren’t able to capitalize, the Huskies forced quite a few turnovers over the course of the game. Senior defensive midfielder Ashley Pappas was key to those turnovers in the first quarter.

Later in the first quarter, the Huskies sparked one of their first scoring opportunities. Sophomore forward Juana Gonzales-Peyruo weaved through the defense and took a shot on goal, but Klebasko stopped it for her first save of the game.

With three seconds left on the clock in the first quarter, the Terps earned a penalty corner. Klijnhout sent a rocket at the goal, but it went wide.

Callie Rodgers made an impressive interception to gain a one-on-one with the goalie with less than a minute remaining in the first half. The shot went wide, but earned the Terps two penalty corners in a row. 

Maryland held a lopsided advantage in first-half offensive stats. The Terps amassed nine shots, including five on goal, and four corners.

Just 30 seconds into the second half, Maryland got its fifth penalty corner of the game. It was quickly blocked, but the Terps subsequently earned another penalty corner. Jordyn Hollamon sent a high aerial attempt to hit the top corner of the net, but it narrowly missed the goal.

Following a 0-2 loss to No. 4 Virginia on Tuesday, the Terps’ dominant victory may have been the confidence booster the team needed entering the Big Ten Tournament. The Terps open the conference tournament against No.7 Ohio State on Thursday at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Indiana.

“I’m hoping it brings a lot of momentum while we go into Indiana and the Big Ten Tournament. We’re about to play some really, really good teams, and they’re teams we have faced and unfortunately fallen to,” Josie Hollamon said. 

Maryland lost to Ohio State 1-2 in overtime on Oct. 3.