Senior Sarah Sprink celebrates right after scoring a goal for the Terps during the University of Maryland vs. Temple University game on Sunday at the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex in College Park, MD.
After starting the first two games of the season for the Terrapins field hockey team, midfielder Delaney Leathers had played a more limited role off the bench in the three games entering Sunday’s contest with No. 16 Temple.
Leathers would’ve continued that role, but coach Missy Meharg chose to sit defender Rachel Frusher before the game to rest a sore hip. With an opening in the starting lineup, Leathers got her first chance to start the game on the field since opening weekend.
Playing in defender Carrie Hanks’ typical spot, the sophomore saw 59 minutes of action, and Meharg named Leathers the Terps’ player of the game after the 3-0 win over the Owls.
“Delaney had a fabulous game,” Meharg said. “She got [player of the game] just for her smartness.”
Meharg said she was most impressed with Leathers’ ability to draw penalty corners on Sunday. The Virginia Beach, Virginia, native earned “three or four” of the Terps’ eight penalty corners on the afternoon, Meharg added.
While Leathers isn’t officially given an assist, all three of the Terps’ goals came off of a penalty corner, and without Leathers’ ability to create them, the game might have been much closer. Her strong stick skills and approach into the circle enables her to have success in drawing the corners.
“Delaney is so smooth on the ball,” Meharg said.
Leathers played an integral part of the defense that shut out the Owls as well. The Terps defense stresses the importance of communication, and it can be difficult to keep the cohesion on the backline when the lineup is changing on a game-to-game basis.
Still, with Hanks playing a new position and Leathers filling in for Hanks, the Terps were able to make the adjustments over the course of the game to hold Temple scoreless.
“Defense, you have your certain positions and it’s like a routine, and you know who is playing where,” defender Sarah Sprink said.
Sprink, one of the three captains on the team, had to be the voice as the last line of defense with goalkeeper Brooke Cabrera to make sure everyone understood where they needed to be positioned on the field.
The junior has to adjust to a new aspect of the Terps’ attack now, too. Last season, Meharg used seven players on the attack edge, but she has since added an eighth this year in hopes of sparking more offense.
The adjustment forces defenses to guard an extra player on rebounds, but with one less defender sagging back, the Terps run the risk of counter-attacks. The switch also forces defenders to understand their positioning on the field while sprinting up the field, and adding Leathers to the starting lineup moments before the game adds to an already difficult task.
“It was adjustment,” Sprink said. “It was challenging at times.”
But the defense overcame the challenging tasks this weekend, adding more depth and familiarity moving forward. Meharg now has the option to play Hanks at center back with Leathers in her position when Frusher isn’t on the field.
Leathers’ ability to earn penalty corners will be crucial for the Terps as the season progresses, and the experience she gained playing almost an entire game with the defense will help solidify the backline.
“If everybody works together it is pretty hard to score against us,” Sprink said.
