No. 9 Maryland women’s lacrosse narrowly defeats No. 10 Denver, 10-8

No. 9 Maryland women’s lacrosse led No. 10 Denver by two goals with 10:42 remaining in the match. The Pioneers searched to complete their comeback. 

But the Terps’ defense held strong and shut the Denver offense out for the rest of the quarter to claim a 10-8 victory in a tightly contested affair Saturday afternoon. Maryland was able to remain in control of its late lead, something it failed to do last weekend against No. 11 Florida.

A major edge for the Terps was the faceoff where Shaylan Ahearn dominated, allowing Maryland to control 16 of the 22 draws. 

“Shaylan was excellent today,” coach Cathy Reese said. “She’s one of the best, if not the best, in the country at what she does and it showed today for sure.” 

The Terps started the match on fire in the first quarter, determined to bounce back from their disappointing last result. Denver (3-2) struck first with a Jane Earley goal but Maryland (4-1) controlled the first four faceoffs. Victoria Hensh took advantage of the extra possessions by scoring to tie the game. 

The Terps’ offense has struggled this season to claim free position chances and convert on them. But they flipped the script on Saturday. Maryland won several early spot chances and took advantage when Maisy Clevenger delivered a pinpoint pass to Hannah Leubecker, who slammed her shot home to grab the lead. 

Libby May kept momentum rolling with another Maryland first-quarter score, and Hensh added a second goal to close the quarter. Despite a second Pioneers score courtesy of Caroline Colimore, the Terps led by two goals at the end of the opening period. 

Maryland also started the second quarter strong with an early player-up goal from Kori Edmondson. Julia Gilbert got one back for the Pioneers but Shannon Smith kept the Terps in the driver’s seat with a goal midway through the second. 

Gilbert played outstanding in the frame. She scored to break the drought and then assisted another just 12 seconds later when she picked up the ball after a draw and found a wide open Olivia Penoyer to cut the Maryland lead to one. Gilbert’s excellence continued in the third quarter with a smooth spin move to free herself up for the first goal of the second half.

The Terps struck right before the end of the first half to give themselves a multi-goal lead at the break, which kept them ahead after Gilbert’s third-period score. Emily Sterling saved another Denver shot and then quickly passed up the field to start a counter-attack, finished off by Eloise Clevenger with just two seconds remaining.  

Sterling, the steady force protecting the cage for the Maryland defense, put in another reliable outing. She recorded 10 saves while only allowing eight goals. 

Maggie Weisman gave the Terps their first score of the second half, taking advantage of a player-up chance by slipping her shot into the net to extend the lead to 8-6. Hensh then slung a perfectly placed shot past the Pioneers’ goalkeeper to complete a hat trick. 

“Maggie’s got good speed, good vision, good stick work,” Reese said. “So the more she plays, the more confident she’s gonna get and so this is just kind of a stepping stone in this process.”

Maryland enjoyed the limeshare of possession in the third quarter, winning five of the six faceoffs and attempting nine shots — compared to five for Denver. But both defenses proved tough to break down, leading to nearly a nine-minute scoring drought after the Hensh goal. 

Free positions were crucial again at the end of the third frame. Weisman and Gilbert both converted from the spot and the Terps led 10-7 going into the fourth. 

Sloane Kipp scored on another player-up opportunity to give the Pioneers hope with plenty of time left. But chances were few and far between in the fourth. The defensive units tightened up and a series of penalties led to situations where each team was essentially stalling on offense to wait out the power plays. 

Maryland held the ball and continued to run down the clock. Denver had one final chance to claw back when May’s shot was saved and the Pioneers gained possession. But Sterling once again rose the occasion and saved Penoyer’s shot, securing the win for the Terps.

“It kind of went back and forth, but we were able to execute and hold on at the end of the game again to be able to walk out and leave here successfully,” Reese said.