The Maryland Terrapins women’s soccer team entered Wednesday night’s matchup against Purdue (10-6-2, 5-4-2) hoping to finish their 2017 campaign with a winning record. Unfortunately, a 1-0 loss to the Boilermakers put the Terps final record at 7-8-3 in their season finale in West Lafayette..
Like so many recaps have said over the four years, Purdue senior forward Maddy Williams dominated once again.
Williams, the Boilermakers all-time leading scorer, scored two goals on the night. The first came in the 12th minute, and would be all the offense Purdue needed to pull out a victory. She added another score in the 77th minute for good measure to give her 14 goals this season.
Even with the two goals allowed to Williams, Maryland junior goalie Rachel Egyed was once again great in the net for the Terps. The goalkeeper finished with five saves including a clutch stop on a Purdue penalty shot.
Although the numbers on paper may not have always shown it, Egyed’s 2017 campaign was a strong one and was a main reason for the Maryland turnaround.
What hasn’t been so great for the Terps towards the end of the season is their offense. After being shutout tonight, Maryland will finish the season on a 544 minute scoreless streak. The combination of injuries and inexperience made it challenging for the Terps to find a rhythm on offense while facing some of the best defenses in the country.
Although the Big Ten season was another rough one for Maryland going 1-8-2, the season as a whole was a marginal improvement for the Terps. From a 3-15-1 record in 2016 to seven wins this year, the young squad showed promise for years to come.
Yet, a last place finish in the Big Ten standings means Maryland will not be part of the conference tournament, causing their season to come to an end.
As for Purdue, they entered the game tonight in eighth place in conference and with the win they have all but locked up the last spot in the postseason.
The young and ever improving Maryland squad will now have an offseason to learn, grow and heal before looking to make even more waves in 2018.
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