No. 8 Maryland field hockey advances to Big Ten semifinals with 2-0 win over No. 7 Iowa

No. 8 Maryland field hockey had a one-goal lead in the third quarter in its Big Ten tournament matchup with No. 7 Iowa. The Terps weren’t content with that.

Sammy Popper dribbled the ball past two Iowa defenders and fired off a rocket from the inner right side of the shooting circle that banged off the top of the crossbar into the net.

Popper’s goal was the exclamation point for a dominant performance from Maryland on Thursday in the Big Ten quarterfinals. It cruised past Iowa, 2-0, to move on to the Big Ten semifinals on Friday. It will face No. 5 Rutgers at 3:30.

“This league we could get as many as six teams into the NCAA tournament and that’s very exciting for the Big Ten,” coach Missy Meharg said. “Any game in the Big Ten that you come out on top in November championship month is just a testament to the fact that you can keep advancing.”

For two teams that are used to scoring in spades, it was a quiet first quarter as the Terps and Hawkeyes ended the frame without a goal scored from either side.

While it couldn’t connect during the first 15 minutes, Maryland’s offense came out of the gates strong, firing off three shots over the first six minutes. The chances were highlighted by the Terps’ first penalty corner.

Hope Rose had a chance to score on the attempt, but her shot was blocked by Iowa’s defensive front.

Rose was only held in check for so long, as just under six minutes into the second quarter, Maci Bradford fired a shot from the top of the shooting circle that was deflected by Rose between the legs and point blank past Hawkeyes goalkeeper Mia Magnotta to make it a 1-0 game, breaking the scoreless tie. The goal was Rose’s 13th of the season.

“If she’s not scoring goals she’s causing other things,”Meharg said. “Her counter defense, her counter attack, her speed on the field, I don’t know if you could see it off of the stream, but live here she was flying.”

Maryland’s first penalty corner of the second half came just over three minutes into the third frame, which yielded three attempts for the Terps — they failed to convert on any of their looks. Popper’s shot was saved by Magnotta, while Hannah Boss’s shot was blocked and Bradford’s went wide as the Hawkeyes’ deficit stayed at one.

The Terps’ offensive attack capitalized on the work of their defense in the third quarter. Popper passed two defenders before firing a shot from the inner right side of the shooting circle that banged off the top of the crossbar into the net to make it 2-0 in favor of Maryland just over 35 minutes in.

Iowa’s offense was completely held in check on Thursday. The Hawkeyes only totaled six shots and failed to connect on any of them.

The Hawkeyes were held without a shot until less than a minute left to go in the first quarter on their first penalty corner of the game, but Dionne van Aalsum’s shot was saved by Alyssa Klebasko. Van Aalsum had her second shot attempt on the day on yet another penalty corner attempt during the fourth frame, this time her shot missed wide.

Iowa received yet another penalty a minute into the second quarter, but again the Hawkeyes came up empty.

Maryland’s defense was just as strong this time as it was in the schools’ last meeting less than two weeks ago. The Terps held Iowa to just two shots and kept the Hawkeyes off the scoreboard in the first half.

Iowa had a penalty corner attempt — the team’s first of two shot attempts during the third quarter — just a minute prior to Popper’s goal, but the look by Sofie Stribos was blocked by Ericka Morris-Adams.

Maryland’s excellent defense paired — Klebasko needed to make all of two saves — perfectly with its offense, one that more than tripled the Hawkeyes’ shot total. The Terps will hope for similar success from both sides when they face the Scarlet Knights on Friday with a spot in the Big Ten championship game on the line.

“It’s gonna be a great match,” Meharg said. “Both of these teams know that they’re in the NCAA tournament so it’s not about that, it’s [all] about winning the Big Ten championship.”