Michigan defender Brett Nason tackles Terps forward George Campbell inside the Michigan penalty area during the Terps’ 0-0 draw against the Wolverines at Ludwig Field on September 11, 2015.
As Michigan defender Billy Stevens lay on the grass at Ludwig Field with blood gushing from his mouth, the referee began running over to Jorge Calix to give the Terrapins men’s soccer midfielder a red card.
In the 75th minute of a scoreless draw between the Terps and Wolverines on Friday night, both players had jumped up for the ball near midfield, and Calix appeared to accidently elbow Stevens while trying to stay on his feet. The red card forced the Terps to play with 10 men for the rest of the match.
Despite playing short-handed, the Terps continued to push for the go-ahead goal, earning two corner kicks and ripping three shots in the final 35 minutes of regulation and overtime. So while coach Sasho Cirovski wasn’t content with a tie against the Wolverines in the Big Ten opener, the veteran coach praised their determination to walk away with a victory.
“It’s difficult to play Michigan because there is very little rhythm or tempo in the game,” Cirovski said. “But I was overall pleased with our effort — we probably deserved better. I was most pleased with the fact that we pushed for the win with 10 men, and we generated the better chances even a man down.”
Still, the Terps struggled with the Wolverines’ style of play before losing Calix, as they rarely challenged goalkeeper Evan Lauro. Even when defender Chris Odoi-Atsem was able to evade multiple defenders along the end line to send in a cross in the 15th minute, the ball traveled through the box untouched.
The Terps ended the half with four shots on goal — all of which Lauro saved routinely — and entered intermission without a score for the second straight contest.
Corboz said it was difficult playing against Michigan because its style was different from what the Terps have seen this season. He described it as “physical” and “direct” and said the Wolverines played the same way last year in when the Terps left Ann Arbor, Michigan, with a 1-1 draw.
“First and foremost, you have to match their intensity,” Corboz said. “Otherwise, they’re going to run all over you, they’re going to beat you to balls and get second balls and score goals.”
Though midfielder Mael Corboz got an open look just outside the 18-yard box a minute into the first half, the Terps continued to struggle in the attacking third before playing a man down. And even when they pushed the pace at the end of regulation, they couldn’t find the back of the net.
“You saw in certain stints that we were able to put the ball down and try to get our style going,” Corboz said. “Unfortunately, that didn’t happen too often. It was only happening when they were tired. Something we definitely have to work on.”
While the Terps offense struggled to string together scoring chances, goalkeeper Cody Niedermeier and the rest of the backline shut down the opposing attack. Niedermeier finished the game with four saves and earned his second shutout in three career starts.
“We responded really well to it with our pressure, cover and dealing with the first and second balls,” Niedermeier said of adjusting to the Wolverines style of play. “Even when we went down a man, we still stayed compact and were able to keep the shutout.”
Cirovski said his team doesn’t usually play many games like they did on Friday night, but the Terps still were able to overcome various obstacles to earn their first conference point.
“There wasn’t much soccer at all,” Cirovski said. “It looked like a ping-pong match. It’s a shame it was on BTN.”
