The Terrapins field hockey team uses the same routine to prepare for every game.
The players watch game film of their opponent the day before the game, then watch it again on gameday. They do it to keep all of their opponents’ tendencies, skill sets and star players fresh in their minds.
This week, though, something in those game tapes made them pay a little extra attention: They were watching themselves,
The footage included scenes from the team’s third game of the season, a 2-1 loss on Aug. 31. It was a contest in which it was unable to complete what would have been a furious comeback. Even worse, it happened against its most heated rival — Old Dominion.
Tonight, the No. 6 Terps have a chance to avenge that loss when they face off against the No. 8 Lady Monarchs in Norfolk, Va. And to forward Katie Gerzabek, this contest means a little bit more than the rest.
“Definitely — a whole lot,” Gerzabek said when asked how badly she wants to win. “It’s a revenge game. We know the Old Dominion team pretty well, playing them twice a year, and we’re definitely prepared and ready to go against them.”
The Terps (9-3) will take the field tonight with a grudge to settle. In their late-August loss, the Terps struggled early, giving up two goals in the first 20 minutes. Gerzabek finally put her team on the board with less than 10 minutes left to play, but by that point, it was too late. Despite generating three penalty corners and four shots the rest of the way on Lady Monarchs goalkeeper Friederike Jahns, they couldn’t break through.
Before last season, the Terps had won every game against their rival since 2005. But that loss to Old Dominion earlier this year was its third consecutive regular season loss to the No. 8 Monarchs (10-3), who defeated the Terps twice in the regular season last year.
“It’s going to be anyone’s ballgame any year with two programs that have 17 national championships between them,” said coach Missy Meharg, whose team will also host UC Davis on Sunday. “It’s always highly competitive, highly contested in terms of energy, and it’s a postseason type of feel for 70 minutes. Hopefully this time, we’ll play our second half for 70 minutes.”
But even with the three consecutive regular season defeats, the Terps have shown they can win when it matters most. After their two losses last season, the team arrived at a Final Four meeting with the Lady Monarchs in Louisville, Ky., to low expectations.
They shocked Old Dominion with a 4-0 shutout and took home their second consecutive national championship title two days later.
Tonight’s game will be key for a Terps team that’s lost two of its last four. They’re playing their most bitter rival on the road, a huge test for a team still trying to prove it can defend its NCAA title.
The Terps hope their film study will help them find something that will help them topple their longtime foe. But even if they don’t win tomorrow, Gerzabek said they can at least relish in the fact they can win when it counts.
“We know how to beat them when it matters most,” Gerzabek said. “It’s definitely become a big rivalry for us, but we want to focus on what we can do and play our game to our fullest potential.”
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