Preview: No. 3 Maryland men’s lacrosse looks to remain undefeated against No. 6 Notre Dame

No. 3 Maryland men’s lacrosse (4-0) puts its undefeated record on the line against the reigning national champions, No. 6 Notre Dame (2-1) on Sunday in South Bend, Indiana.

The Terps continued their rise in the ranking with a 13-7 home win against No. 15 Princeton last weekend. Luke Wierman’s faceoffs and Maryland’s shots on goal were the main difference makers — the Terps controlled possession and outshot the Tigers 45-29.

Wierman was unstoppable, winning 20 of 23 faceoffs, including 11 of 12 in the first half. The performance earned him the Big Ten Specialist of the Week accolade, his second time winning that honor this season. Wierman also collected 13 ground balls, tying his career-high.

Eric Spanos paced Maryland’s offense with a career high four goals, earning him Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors. The junior scored two straight goals in the first quarter to help jumpstart the Terps’ offense. Spanos was a high-impact player against the Irish in the 2023 meeting between the schools, scoring three goals.

Despite Spanos, Notre Dame got the best of Maryland in triple overtime last season in College Park. The Terps were holding on to a two-goal lead with less than four minutes left in regulation but saw that lead slip away.

Attacker Chris Kavanagh put together a hat trick, including the game-tying goal at the end of regulation. Kavanagh has gotten off to a fast start in his junior season, scoring eight goals with five assists in three games.

Chris’ Kavanagh’s older brother, Pat Kavanagh, is another star for the Irish’s offense. He has only scored three goals this season but is making an impact by setting up teammates — his 12 assists and 15 points lead the team and his four assists per game ranks third in Division I.

Attacker Jake Taylor is leading Notre Dame in goals this season with 11. Taylor put together a five-goal performance in the season opener and another four the next week. The graduate student is healthy and looking to put together a full season after spending part of last season recovering from an ACL injury.

The Irish outscored their first two opponents a combined 46-11 — the two dominant outputs justified Notre Dame’s number-one ranking. But the Irish fell out of that spot after an overtime home loss to No. 11 Georgetown last weekend.

“We tell [the team] this is probably gonna be a close game, just get ready for it. It’s not a big deal, we play a lot of good teams,” coach John Tillman said. “You don’t need to be tight, you don’t need to grip your stick too hard. Just play. Be in the moment, be present, control the things you can control and have some fun doing it.”

Wierman will be facing junior Will Lynch on faceoffs. Lynch won 15 of 22 faceoffs last week and has won 31 of 46 on the season. Lynch only took 11 faceoffs while Wierman won 20 in last season’s matchup, but he won the clutch ones down the stretch to allow Notre Dame to come back and win in triple overtime.

Graduate student Liam Entenmann will be in the net for the Irish. Entenmann allowed just three goals with eight saves in the season opener for a .800 save percentage, but that number has since declined in each outing. Entenmann’s recorded a save percentage below 45 percent in each of the last two games, allowing a combined 19 goals with 14 saves.

The matchup with Notre Dame will be Maryland’s highest-ranked opponent of the season to date. A win for the Terps keeps them undefeated, avenges last season’s loss and makes a good case for becoming the top-ranked school in Division I.