In all but one contest this season, the Maryland women’s lacrosse team has scored at least 10 times.
The No. 1 Terps boast the second-best offense in the country, averaging 15.42 goals per game ahead of Wednesday night’s road contest against No. 11 Princeton.
Despite the team’s offensive success, coach Cathy Reese wants to see her team taking better shots as it prepares to face the Tigers’ 26th-ranked defensive unit.
“We need to shoot well,” Reese said. “I don’t think we shot particularly well against Rutgers, either. We need to do a better job to make sure we’re taking the right looks.”
In their 10-8 comeback victory over Johns Hopkins, the Terps (12-0) shot 3-for-11 in the first half. They improved slightly in the second period, shooting 7-for-19.
“You can’t get much worse than that,” midfielder Taylor Cummings said of the squad’s shooting performance.
The Terps offense was dominant against Rutgers on Saturday, scoring nine unanswered goals to open the game. Eight different players scored in the 18-3 victory, and the team shot 11-for-26 and 7-for-14 in the first and second halves, respectively.
But Reese said that isn’t good enough, and the players don’t think their shooting numbers are acceptable, either.
“Our shooting percentages haven’t been where we want it to be,” midfielder Jen Giles said. “We’re just putting in the extra effort in those areas in particular.”
It will likely be more difficult to find open looks against Princeton than it was against Rutgers goalkeeper Bianca Dente, who had 14 saves but allowed 15 goals.
Princeton goalkeeper Ellie DeGarmo averages 10 saves per game, the ninth-best mark in the country. The Tigers defense, meanwhile, is allowing just eight goals per contest.
“We need to try our best to move for each other,” Giles said. “Not force anything and stay composed.”
When the Terps faced the Tigers in College Park last season, they shot 4-for-9 in the first half and 14-for-26 in the second in an 18-10 win. The Terps hope to finish with similar numbers Wednesday.
“We focus a lot on shot selection.” defender Nadine Hadnagy said. “And defensively, helping each other out and forcing low-angle shots.”