The Maryland women’s lacrosse players quickly formed a huddle in front of their net midway through the first half against Boston College. The Eagles had just scored their fourth straight goal to tie the game at four Wednesday night at the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex.

The No. 1 Terps have been susceptible to multi-goal runs from opposing teams this season. Against then-No. 1 North Carolina on Feb. 25, for example, the Terps allowed the Tar Heels to finish on a 4-1 spurt. Two weeks prior against Georgetown, Maryland surrendered five unanswered goals twice.

Despite her team earning a 21-13 victory over the Eagles, allowing such stretches has coach Cathy Reese pushing for the Terps to establish more consistency entering Saturday’s home showdown with No. 4 Syracuse.

“There were just kind of some ups and downs,” Reese said. “There were some great moments and some not-so-great moments.”

[Read more: A second-half burst helped Maryland women’s lacrosse beat Boston College, 21-13]

After the Eagles leveled the game at four, the teams traded another score before the Terps recorded three straight. Then, Boston College scored two in a row.

“In a game that’s back and forth, it messes with your confidence sometimes if the other team comes back right after you score,” attacker Caroline Wannen said. “Getting a run together is huge, and we want to do that every game.”

Leading, 8-7, at halftime, the Terps received a boost from an unlikely source on offense. Defender Nadine Hadnagy notched a free position goal to open the second half after clearing possession in an almost full-field sprint, and it energized her squad.

Wannen and midfielder Zoe Stukenberg continued the momentum with a combined nine goals in the second half. In the first frame, Stukenberg had one, while Wannen didn’t score.

Stukenberg attributed the early mistakes to mental errors and the Terps not playing up to their standard. Wannen, meanwhile, said the team improved with balance.

“We weren’t very consistent [in the first half],” Wannen said. “There were a lot of ups and downs, so from here we just want to work on that — coming out strong and putting space in between us and our opponent early in the game instead of later.”

While the Terps pulled away with six unanswered goals after Hadnagy’s spark, Reese recognized that ability to control the game while minimizing mistakes is what she wants her players to do with regularity.

Reese was impressed by the team’s offensive production, as they converted 21 of 28 shots on goal. However, there were still moments stability dipped, she admitted.

“When we were executing on offense, it was awesome,” Reese said. “It looked great and really smooth and we had a lot of different scorers. We were getting some really good looks, and then we’d turn the ball over sometimes inside, which obviously isn’t where we want to be.”

“It’s nice to kind of get into a rhythm and play more consistent lacrosse,” Wannen added. “We just need to capitalize on every opportunity that we have.”