The Terps rode excellent defense and a well-timed offensive burst to improve to 3-0.
No. 6 Maryland men’s lacrosse head coach John Tillman likes to load the Terps’ schedule every year, insisting it prepares his team for the postseason.
This year, more than any other, the Terps will face a true midseason trial by fire. Across a three-week span, Maryland will play three top-five teams in Inside Lacrosse’s preseason rankings, beginning with No. 2 Syracuse, who the Terps dismantled, 11-7, Saturday in College Park.
Following Maryland’s (3-0) thrilling overtime victory last season — when Syracuse (3-1) had a goal controversially disallowed in overtime before the Terps won the game — the Orange sought justice. But fueled by a massive second-half defensive effort, the Terps juiced the Orange in an impressive win that bodes well for the next weeks and remainder of the season.
“We know what we have in our locker room, and we we know what we’re capable of,” Eric Spanos said. “We can do whatever we want with the guys in our locker room … it was definitely a good win, but we expected the outcome.”
With rain — perfectly timed with the opening faceoff — pouring down on SECU Stadium, both teams began the game slowly and sloppily, with neither earning breathing room in a back-and-forth opening half.
Maryland took the first four shots of the contest, with Syracuse stopped on their opening possession by Jack McDonald. The redshirt senior — who started 16-of-17 games for Maryland last season as a long stick midfielder and faced eligibility issues in getting an extra year — made an instant impact upon his return to the field, laying out Syracuse forward Owen Hiltz.
With time, the Orange blossomed into the game, keeping the Terps on their back foot in the middle of the first quarter with six straight shots. Syracuse finally opened the scoring nine minutes into the game, as Joey Spallina found Trey Deere.
The Terps quickly responded, though. Two minutes after the score, sophomore Elijah Stobaugh rifled a shot into the top corner for the first goal of his career. With 1:15 remaining in the quarter, Luke Rhoa put Syracuse ahead; 70 seconds later, Matthew Keegan equalized for the Terps.
Maryland took that momentum into the second quarter, continuing to frustrate Syracuse’s offense. Two of the nation’s top-three point-getters — Spallina and Hiltz — converted just two of their first fifteen shots.
“We put a ton of faith in [our defensive midfielders],” McDonald said. “They did their jobs effectively in the midfield, they just held all those guys in check.”
Defensive midfielder AJ Larkin popped up in a surprise offensive position, going coast-to-coast after a turnover from Spallina for the second goal of his career. It was Syracuse’s turn to equalize quickly, though, with a response taking just 40 seconds. Again Maryland took a lead, but it was not meant to last.
Syracuse used its two timeouts to draw up plays as the first half wound down. One play saw Spallina grab his first goal of the game; the second worked Michael Leo free, but his shot hit the crossbar. Spallina took matters into his own hands off the rebound, working around the cage and sending a shot through McNaney’s legs to give the Orange a narrow 5-4 halftime lead.
“I thought Syracuse closed out the half really well,” Tillman said. “[But we were] like, ‘Hey, you got the No. 2 team in the country, it’s a one-goal game and you’re actually in a much better spot than you were in last week, right?’”
Implored by Tillman to push their progress, the Terps were gifted an opportunity coming out of the half. Syracuse — the most penalized ranked team in America — had not been flagged in the first half, but a tripping call on Leo gave the Terps a man-up advantage. Eliot Dubick converted for the Terps, shoveling home a rebound.
Maryland’s defense, a strength all afternoon, was especially impressive in the third quarter. The Terps forced six consecutive empty possessions from the most potent offense in the country, with McNaney contributing three saves and the defense forcing two shot clock violations.
With five and a half minutes remaining in the third quarter, Daniel Kelly found a pocket of space and converted a dime from Eric Spanos to put the Terps up, 6-5.
From there, Spanos simply took over. The senior potted two goals in the span of 60 seconds — the first high off another power play, the second low off a drive from the X — to extend the lead to three goals.
Hiltz pulled one back for Syracuse before the quarter ended and another in the fourth quarter, but the damage was done. Maryland was riding waves of momentum that crashed down on the Syracuse net, with Bryce Ford scoring two goals and Daniel Kelly pitching in another to cap a second half that the Terps bossed.
Statistically, both teams played very similarly — Maryland and Syracuse tied the game in saves and ground balls, with the Terps doing one better on faceoffs and turnovers — but Maryland was simply the more clinical team.
“They did a better job of scoring a goal when they needed it, getting a ground ball when they needed it,” Syracuse head coach Gary Gait said. “Everything was even, but their players made the plays.”
Maryland will need to keep making those plays in the coming weeks, but if they can continue Saturday’s form, Spanos may be right — the Terps might just do whatever they want.
Three things to know
1. Maryland made the most of penalty minutes. The Terps knew they would get extra-man opportunities, and they made the most of them. Maryland went 2 for 2 with a man-up advantage through three quarters and used a Syracuse penalty with three minutes to go to ice the game.
2. Defense turns dominant. The Orange only scored two second-half goals, but it was not for a lack of trying. Syracuse outshot the Terps, 41-32, but only 19 of those shots were on goal. In the second half, just 35% of Syracuse shots were on target; even if a shot made it on net, McNaney posted a 63% save rate, giving the Terps a strong defensive foundation.
“Logan’s awesome,” McDonald said. “What he does, it keeps us going.”
3. Two tests coming next. The Terps will take the momentum from Saturday and embark on a two-game road trip. On Feb. 22, Maryland visits No. 8 Princeton, followed by a national championship rematch against No. 1 Notre Dame on March 1.