Preview: No. 2 Maryland field hockey prepares for NCAA Tournament First Round matchup against No. 13 Liberty

No. 2 Maryland field hockey looks for revenge against No. 13 Liberty in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.

Liberty defeated the Terps 3-2 in the Final Four of last year’s tournament. 

“It’s definitely a loss that we think about a lot,” midfielder Emma DeBerdine said. “So being able to play them again, It’s very exciting for us.”

The Flames jumped to a 2-0 lead late in the third, but Terps midfielder Bibi Donraadt put Maryland on the board in the closing minutes of the third.

After returning for her fifth season in College Park, Donraadt has registered 10 goals and 12 assists for 36 points, the most of any Terp. 

With less than five minutes left, forward Hope Rose sent the game into overtime.

The 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year has recorded 14 goals this season, the most on Maryland and third in the Big Ten. Rose missed five games with a foot injury, but has scored four goals in five games since returning. 

Neither team scored in the first overtime period, but Liberty midfielder/forward Charlotte Vaanhold scored her second goal of the game in double-overtime to send the Flames to the championship.

The Terps enter following a disappointing result in the Big Ten Tournament. After a strong 16-2 regular season which featured a 7-1 conference record, the Terps were defeated in the semifinals by No. 3 Northwestern, failing to make it to the conference championship for the fourth season in a row.

Still, Maryland received the No. 3 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, thanks in large part to its offense. The Terps boast one of the best offenses in the nation, averaging 3.8 goals per game, the most in the Big Ten.

“The key thing for Maryland would be to just shift that ball out of areas of contention at a traffic jam shift and quickly get out,” coach Missy Meharg said.

Graduate transfers Dani van Rootselaar and Leah Crouse have been major pieces in the Maryland offense this season. Van Rootselaar, a Brown transfer, has recorded 12 goals this season, including game-winning goals against No. 3 Northwestern and No. 11 Iowa in the regular season. Van Rootselaar’s 12 goals ranks second on the Terps.

Since transferring from Duke, Crouse has scored 10 goals and five assists for the Terps, including a team high five game-winning goals.

The Terps have experienced somewhat of an offensive skid towards the later half of this season, however, averaging only 2.2 goals in their past five games and 1.6 in their last three regular season games prior to the Big Ten Tournament. 

Defensively, Maryland allows an average of 1.5 goals per game. Senior goalkeeper Christina Calandra is expected to start in goal for the Terps in the NCAA Tournament. In nine games started, Calandra has allowed an average of 0.89 goals per game, recording 28 saves with a  75.7% save percentage. 

Against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament, Calandra recorded six saves, the most by a Maryland goalkeeper this season. 

Nothing like it when you’re in your zone at the right time,” Meharg said. “We trained Sunday and we trained yesterday and we look really sharp. Christina’s confidence is definitely having an impact on that.”

Sophomore Paige Kieft is the other goalkeeper for the Terps. Kieft took over the starting reins in the sixth game of the season, starting 11 games before losing it following a 5-1 loss to No. 6 Penn State on Oct. 21. Kieft recorded a 51.2% save percentage during her time in the cage.

The Flames enter the NCAA Tournament on a high note, having won the Big East Tournament. After going 12-7 in the regular season, the Flames earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament, and went on to defeat No. 1-seed Old Dominion 3-1 in the championship.

The Flames averaged 3.37 goals per game this season, the most in the Big East.

Forward Daniella Rhodes is the leading scorer for Liberty, with 11 goals and 10 assists. Rhodes’s 30 points was second most in the Big East.

Midfielder Lizzie Hamlett also contributed offensively for the Liberty, registering 10 goals and seven assists. 

Vaanhold has scored nine goals and notched two assists.

Defensively, Liberty allows only 1.05 goals per game, led by Azul Iritxity Irigoyen in goal. Irixity Irigoyen recorded a 74.4% save percentage, coming up with 58 saves.

“Liberty brings experience, they prey on energy, they always do,” Meharg said. “I think that they are exceedingly aggressive to the point of not being balanced at times.” 

Start time is set at 12 p.m.

If the Terps win, they will face the winner of the Princeton- Syracuse game on Sunday. The Terps were selected as a host site, so both the first and second round games in Maryland’s part of the bracket will occur at the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex in College Park.