No. 4 Maryland women’s lacrosse decimates James Madison in second round, 17-7

Eloise Clevenger took the ball and wrapped around the net to beat the keeper with a well-placed shot to extend the Terps’ lead to eight early in the second quarter. The attacker met a flock of white jerseys to celebrate her goal — a familiar sight for Maryland on Sunday. 

The score was a part of Maryland’s pummeling of James Madison in the second round of the NCAA tournament, claiming a 17-7 victory. The Dukes previously knocked the Terps out of the second round last year with a game-winning goal in the final minute, capping a four-goal comeback. Maryland didn’t leave the end result of this year’s contest in doubt. 

“I thought our team just started out with what we’ve known they’ve had in them all along,” coach Cathy Reese said. “I think everybody on the team just brought it today and we kept our foot on the gas for the entire 60 minutes.”  

Clevenger picked apart the Dukes’ defense with pinpoint passing and scoring at will. She scored a career-high five goals and recorded three assists. Clevenger’s eight points are the most by a Terp in the NCAA Tournament since 2019. 

Goalie Emily Sterling returned after resting last game due to a minor injury. She showcased why she was a 2024 Tewaaraton Award nominee. Sterling saved six shots while only allowing three goals. 

“Emily is just such a force back there and she’s our main voice back there,” defender Meghan Ball said. “She just continues to amaze me. She does her thing back there and I let her do it.” 

Maryland asserted its offensive authority early, scoring on its first five possessions. Clevenger scored less than a minute into the contest and then assisted Kori Edmondson to double the lead. 

“​​As a team, we take it one possession at a time,” midfielder Shaylan Ahearn said. “I think the first few give us a lot of momentum for what’s to follow, so I would say we just made sure we came out with the intensity we wanted to.” 

The Terps’ defense fueled the offense by making big stops to get the ball back to the attack. Edmondson netted a second goal, creating space to shoot with a shifty spin move. Shaylan Ahearn added a goal off a free position and Hannah Leubecker scored to give Maryland an early 5-0 advantage. 

James Madison went with the hot hand in the cage, starting freshman Emily Evans after she recorded a season-high five saves in the Dukes’ first round victory over Penn State. But Evans was pulled in the first quarter after allowing five goals and recording no saves. Usual starter Caitlin Boden was inserted in and partially stopped the bleeding by making eight saves. 

But the Terps’ offense wasn’t held back for long. Clevenger scored four goals and assisted on three in the first half. Edmondson tied her career-high with four scores. Maryland led 12-2 going into the second half, the most goals in the first half of an NCAA Tournament game for the Terps since 2022.

Ahearn was her usual dominant self, controlling a season-high 11 draws. The extra possessions allowed Maryland to attempt 12 more shots than the Dukes.

Maryland didn’t let up in the second half. Lauren LaPointe, Chrissy Thomas, and Clevenger all scored as the lead grew to 13. On the other end, Maryland’s defense gave the Dukes’ no space to operate. Ball forced two turnovers in a physically dominating performance. 

Back-up Julia Hammerschlag replaced Sterling for the fourth quarter with the lead firmly in hand. James Madison scored four goals in the fourth but it was too late as the Terps claimed the victory. 

Maryland will face Florida next in the third round in College Park. The Terps were defeated 13-12 at home by the Gators earlier this year.