No. 9 Maryland women’s lacrosse dominates Saint Joseph’s in season opener, 16-3

Eloise Clevenger delivered a picture perfect pass to Libby May early in the third quarter to push Maryland’s lead to 11-1. Clevenger showed off her passing ability and vision with a seven-assist performance in the Terps’ opening game. 

“She’s phenomenal,” coach Cathy Reese said. “Eloise is a great leader for us as one of our captains. She’s just really stepped up and can control our offense when she’s on the field.”

Maryland women’s lacrosse (1-0) defeated Saint Joseph’s (0-1) in its season opener, 16-3, with a dominant all-around performance. The Terps outshot the Hawks 42-17 as they piled on the pressure and bombarded the Saint Joseph’s cage all day. 

The Terps got off to a fast start after Hannah Leubecker received the ball on a counter-attack three minutes in and slashed through the Saint Joseph’s defense to sling her shot home for a 1-0 lead. Shaylan Ahearn doubled the lead with another goal about thirty seconds later. 

Maryland controlled possession early on but the Hawks’ defense proved effective in keeping the Terps from converting their chances and growing a big early lead. 

“I didn’t love how we shot today,” Reese said. “Our goals should be above 50 percent in shooting but we had a lot of good looks.” 

But Maryland could only be held for so long as an onslaught of attacks led to four goals in the last 4:30 of the opening quarter to extend the lead to 6-0. Among the goalscorers was May, who netted her 200th career point. 

The Terps looked like a well-oiled machine offensively, using their experience and chemistry to glide past the Hawks with crisp passes. Maryland attempted 28 first-half shots with 21 on goal. 

“This whole week we focused on dodging, focused on catching and throwing, sticking to the basics and I think we came out and executed that game plan,” midfielder Kori Edmondson said. 

The Terps continued to apply pressure on the Saint Joseph’s defense in the second quarter, making it look easy with their pinpoint passing and quick rushes at the goal to get high percentage shots. Clevenger orchestrated the action with five first-half assists. 

This was exemplified by a well-worked passing sequence with 8:25 in the second quarter, leading to a Maddy Sterling shot from point blank range that she buried into the net. 

The Maryland defense pestered the Hawks’ offense and kept them from getting into any rhythm. The Terps forced 11 first-half turnovers and limited Saint Joseph’s to seven shots. 

Maryland’s dominance on both ends of the field led to a commanding 10-0 lead at halftime. Its excellence only continued.

Saint Joe’s came out fighting to start the second half as an Emma O’Neill shot bounced past goalkeeper Emily Sterling to put the Hawks on the board. But the Terps didn’t waste any time firing back. Clevenger found May with a pass, who buried a close range shot. 

Maryland didn’t let up as the match wore on. Hailey Russo scored two goals and Jaylen Rosga added another to finish out the third quarter. 

The Hawks added two more goals in the second half. But the scores only decreased their extensive defeat. Edmundson and Maisy Clevenger struck in the final frame to bring the Terps’ goal total to 16 before the clock hit triple zeroes. 

Six different Terps scored multiple goals, with a total of 10 players finding the back of the net by the game’s end. Maryland will look for a similar offensive showing when it faces No. 5 Syracuse next weekend looking to avenge last season’s devastating loss to the Orange. 

“We want to be a team where anyone can score,” Reese said. “Any of the seven people on the field at a time are dangerous.”