After knocking off one of the nation’s premier teams, the Terrapin women’s lacrosse team will have to bypass a potential trap game.
After beating No. 2 Virginia, the No. 4 Terps (3-1, 2-1 ACC) will try to avoid an upset tomorrow against No. 16 James Madison (1-2).
“We have all definitely taken our time to enjoy the win because [for] my class, this was the first time we beat Virginia,” senior attacker Casey Magor said. “We are enjoying the win, but as [coach] Cathy [Reese] said to us at practice, don’t let it go to our heads. We gotta just keep playing our game and staying strong. No letting down and taking it as an easy game, but rather go in there and just do what we do best: keep our standards high.”
The Terps avoided traps throughout last season, going a perfect 7-0 in games following a matchup with a top-10 team.
The Terps enter tomorrow’s contest as the more battle-tested team. The Dukes have played just one top-20 team so far this season, falling to then-No. 17 Dartmouth 10-9, while the Terps have already played two games against top-5 teams, going 1-1.
Despite the Dukes’ lower ranking and lackluster resumé, the Terps are not going to take them lightly.
“Nowadays, every team is playing really well,” senior attacker Lauren Cohen said. “Lacrosse has picked up everywhere, so you can’t think about who our opponent is. We just have to worry about Maryland and play our game.”
Against Virginia, the Terps’ defense forced the Cavaliers to shoot from outside, resulting in season lows of five goals allowed and 16 fouls committed for the Terps. They will need to keep up the clean defense against the Dukes.
“We just know that swinging is not what we want to be doing,” Cohen said. “We have had better communication and holding body, and play as a unit.”
On the other side of the ball, the Terps will revert back to their fast-paced offense after slowing it down against Virginia. They will look to push the speed up a notch against the Dukes’ strong defense, which has held opponents to just eight goals per game so far this season.
“Discipline is a big part of it,” Magor said. “We are going to play with a lot of poise and discipline. We are going to look to push the transition a little bit more. We are a really strong transition team. It looks good when you get those fast goals. It lets us use our speed, but we have to keep our discipline and if the shot isn’t there it’s not there.”
The Terps will have Reese on the sideline for the second time this season; her baby’s due date is March 11. It’s an added bonus to have a full coaching staff for the game, because the team has not had much time to prepare. The team will have had just two practices to prepare for the Dukes, including one later today, but the team is ready to go.
“The bottom line is, we are only four games into our season,” Reese said. “We have a lot of lacrosse left to play this spring. Everyone is focused, everyone is ready to go out onto the field and play again. We are ready to reset, play poised and play better than the last time we played.”
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