Even without Preseason Player of the Year Karri Ellen Johnson, the vaunted Terrpain offense went to work early, and often. After a long first possession by the Quakers ended in a save for Junior goalie Brittany Dipper, the Terp offense jumped on the board with two quick goals. By the end of the first half, the Terps had an 8 goal lead behind hat tricks from Super Sophomore Katie Schwarzmann and Senior captain Laura Merrifield.
After 15 minutes in the second half, the Quakers had closed the lead to 7, but that was as close as they would get, with the Terrapins registering the last 5 goals of the game for another dominating win, final score: 16-4.
Now its seven up, seven down, in terms of nationally ranked opponents that have fallen by the wayside against the defending national champs. And its not like the games have even been close. Other than the Syracuse game, which ended 7-5 solely based on the Syracuse Stall tactics, the closest margin between the Terps and a ranked opponent was 7 against the at-the-time #3 Duke Blue Devils. The average margin of victory for the Terrapins in those 7 games against ranked opponents? 8.9, and 10 if you take out the Syracuse game.
So it's not just that the Terps are beating good teams, they are crushing them. The absolute dominance the Terrapins have shown up until this point in the season will be tested Saturday when the up-and-coming lacrosse powerhouse North Carolina Tar Heels, currently ranked #5 in the nation, come to the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex for an ACC battle.
As the number one seed in last year's NCAA Tournament, Maryland only had to play either Northwestern or UNC, as the two teams were on the other half of the bracket from the Terps. If the Terps want that same scenario again this year, a win against North Carolina Saturday is a must. And with the way the Terrapins have been firing on all cylinders against ranked and unranked opponents alike, the offensive machine will most certainly be present at the FH and Lax Complex.
No comments:
Post a Comment