Niko Amato
VILLANOVA, Pa. — The Terrapins men’s lacrosse team isn’t used to stressful fourth quarters. They’re more accustomed to overwhelming opponents early in games, gaining big advantages in the first quarter and strolling to resounding victories.
But Villanova wasn’t going to let that happen Saturday night. For the first time this season, an opponent matched the Terps’ energy. The nation’s top-ranked team wasn’t able to jump out to their typical fast start, and it couldn’t quite find an offensive rhythm against a scrappy Wildcats team.
The Terps didn’t falter in the face of the challenge, though. They may have had their least efficient outing of the season, but they managed the sloppy field conditions at Villanova Stadium and received stalwart efforts from goalkeeper Niko Amato and attackman Jay Carlson to earn a hard-fought 10-7 victory.
The Terps tallied their lowest goal total and lost the faceoff battle Saturday for just the second time all year. When Villanova took a 2-1 lead after the first frame, it marked the first time the Terps had trailed after the end of a quarter all season long.
But that might have been a good thing, Carlson said. The Terps’ flawed, yet gritty performance may have been exactly what they needed.
“It was definitely good for us finally playing in a really close game. Villanova’s a good team, they had a good game plan,” Carlson said. “We had to change our mindset. We can’t just expect to be a better team every game.”
After mounting three-goal lead in the first quarter during each of their first five games, the Terps were certainly in an unfamiliar position Saturday.
The Wildcats lead could have ballooned in the second quarter, too, had it not been for Amato. While the Terps struggled to score against Villanova’s zone defense, the Terps All-American netminder saved five shots in the second quarter. Time and time again, Villanova would threaten to take a three-goal advantage, but Amato was always there.
“They had some really good looks, and Niko was tremendous,” coach John Tillman said. “He kind of held them off until we could get things figured out on offense and at the faceoff X.”
Amato — a Conshohocken, Pa., native— finished the game with 11 saves, made up for the Terps deficiencies on a subpar offensive night and earned his 31st career victory. Better yet, he did it in front of a few dozen family members.
“It’s definitely special,” Amato said. “It was really important for me to get this win tonight. I just thought it was awesome to win back in Philadelphia.”
Eventually, the nation’s top-ranked offense provided its goalie some help. After falling behind 3-1 early in the second, the Terps (6-0) scored three straight goals to mount a 4-3 halftime edge over the host Wildcats (1-4).
Carlson, in his second start of the season, spearheaded the offensive effort. The attackman scored twice in the second quarter, and finished with a career-high five goals.
On a night where Villanova used a zone defense in an attempt to neutralize the Terps’ bevy of offensive weapons, Carlson found a niche. The sophomore constantly found creases in the zone, received passes from teammates and finished the play by putting the ball in the back of the net.
“We’re just trying to develop some chemistry,” Carlson said. “It’s just nice to have trusting attackmen and midfielders who trust to get you the ball inside.”
Still, the Terps couldn’t quite put the Wildcats away. Even after a 3-0 Terps run spanning the third and fourth quarter broke a 5-5 tie, Villanova didn’t quit. In fact, they responded with two quick goals of their own.
But midway through the fourth quarter, attackman Kevin Cooper found Carlson for a backbreaking goal. It was a familiar sight, too. Three of Cooper’s career-high four assists came to the attackman he said was “one of the best finishers in the country.”
“I was getting the ball behind [the zone] and getting to survey the field more than usual,” Cooper said. “It’s easy to jump the ball into [Carlson].”
Amato and the Terps held Villanova scoreless the rest of the way and attackman Mike Chanenchuk’s unassisted goal with less than a minute played sealed the Terps’ sixth-straight victory.
It wasn’t an easy, though. The Terps committed 19 turnovers and were outshot, 35-26.
But there was some value hidden in the Terps struggles. They found themselves in a foreign situation. They were in a hotly contested fourth quarter. They needed to execute late to pull out a win. And they did.
Not every game is going to be a blowout. And Saturday, for the first time this year, the Terps showed they could win when it’s not.
“That was just a grind it out type of win,” Amato said. “That win was really important to us because it was the first time we found ourselves down all season, and we got to battle back.”
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