Cathy Reese
With just less than seven minutes to play in the first half of the No. 2 Terrapins women’s lacrosse home opener Sunday, defender Alice Mercer forced a turnover and sprinted downfield leading a two-on-one break.
She had an opportunity to fire her own shot on goal but instead sent a pass to Terps attacker Halle Majorana, who finished the break by beating Richmond goalkeeper Emily Boyce for the Terps’ seventh goal of the half in an eventual 15-5 win over the Spiders.
It was Mercer’s third career assist, but it aptly displayed how the sophomore can impact a game. The defender has no career goals, but coach Cathy Reese understands the importance she has in the Terps’ offense.
“[Mercer] uses her speed through the midfield,” Reese said. “She was the reason we scored quite a few goals today because she could come up with it and transition it from one end of the field to the other.”
Mercer tied a game-high with two caused turnovers, and she picked up a game-high four ground balls. No one else on the team had more than one.
Plus, Mercer played a key role on defense. In a game in which five Terps had two or more goals, the defense was just as dominant, allowing just one goal in the first half.
“Our [defense] did great,” Reese said. “Megan Douty and Alice Mercer are two big leaders for us back there, and I thought we played very disciplined today. We were controlled and helped each other out a lot.”
Richmond controlled the ball for nearly four minutes after the Terps’ first goal, but the defense didn’t allow the Spiders to take a shot. Richmond’s first shot on goal didn’t come until about midway through the first half.
The Spiders’ next shot on goal came with 1:19 remaining in the first half, when midfielder Anna Jeszeck beat Terps goalkeeper Abbey Clipp on a free position, ending the shutout bid and the Terps’ string of eight unanswered goals.
Still, Richmond had eight turnovers and took six shots in the first 30 minutes. After extending the lead to 11, however, the Terps’ defense started allowing the Spiders to generate some offense.
“We got burnt in the second half a few times because we were late on cutters or late on slides,” Reese said. “But we definitely had a strong effort there, and we need that from that crew this season.”
In the second half, the Terps allowed 10 shots, six of which were on goal. But the majority of Richmond’s offensive successes occurred after Terps reserves replaced Mercer and the other defensive starters. A total of 20 players came off the bench for the Terps.
While it was important that Reese get the reserves some game experience, the first 40 minutes the Terps played as a team cannot be understated. They were dominant during that time, taking a 12-1 lead after midfielder Kelly McPartland netted a hat trick with 21:44 remaining in the game.
The Terps’ high-powered offense averaged nearly 15 goals a game last season as the team reached the NCAA title game. But Mercer and the rest of the defense stymied Richmond on Sunday, and Reese expects to see more of the same moving forward.
“[Mercer] is so fun to watch,” Reese said. “She is just such a talented athlete.”
