Taylor Cummings
When the No. 2 Terrapins women’s lacrosse team is unable to dominate draws, the opposing team usually can slow the Terps’ fast-paced offense by running the clock when it has possession.
But when the Terps jump out to an early lead, running the clock doesn’t do much good. Just 50 seconds after the start of the Terps’ home opener Sunday afternoon, midfielder Kelly McPartland scored a goal to give them a 1-0 lead.
Richmond won the ensuing draw and used its possession to use up nearly four minutes of clock, but the team never managed to get shot off on goalkeeper Abbey Clipp. As soon as midfielder Taylor Cummings got the ball, she found the back of the net to give the Terps an early two-goal lead.
Though Richmond matched the Terps in draw controls, the Terps (2-0) maintained a fast-paced offense on their way to a 15-5 win over the Spiders (1-1).
“When teams hold the ball for five or 10 minutes, and we finally get the ball in our offensive end, it’s really important that we make our shots stick so that our defense doesn’t have to play another 10 minutes,” Cummings said.
The Terps converted nearly every time they put the ball on net. They scored on 15 of their 19 shots on goal. The team took 27 total shots, compared to Richmond’s 16.
“One of our goals every game is to make sure we are above 50 percent shooting average,” Cummings said.
Cummings scored four goals for the second straight game. She beat goalkeeper Emily Boyce with six minutes remaining in the first half for a hat trick.
Cummings did struggle on the draw, however, winning two draw controls after leading the Terps with 94 during her freshman campaign in 2013.
“We were even on ground balls and draws,” coach Cathy Reese said. “They are hustle stats, and we need to do a better job of that moving forward.”
But a stiff defense and an efficient offense allowed the Terps to score the first eight goals of the game before the Spiders ended the run with 1:19 left in the first half. The Terps responded 26 seconds later when midfielder Zoe Stukenberg scored her first of three goals. The freshman has scored a hat trick in the first two games of her career.
The Terps continued their impressive play in the second half. They scored the first three goals of the half to take a commanding 12-1 lead that initiated a running clock for the remainder of the game.
“As a team, we moved the ball much better than we did on Friday in our first game,” McPartland said. “Those looks were there more often than not.”
The Terps used the second half to get some playing time for their freshmen, including goalkeeper Emily Kift, who got another second-half start. She surrendered four goals on six shots on goal, but Reese said the defense broke down in front of her in the second half.
Despite trailing 6-5 on draw controls after halftime, the Terps still managed to continue their effective offense and get some valuable playing time for their younger players.
“We definitely had some lapses in the second half,” Reese said. “But it’s things that we need to work on. And game two of the season, I’m pretty happy with what we had.”
