Goalkeeper Kyle Bernlohr passes the ball up the field during Maryland’s 15-12 loss to Johns Hopkins at Capital One Field at Byrd Stadium on April 25, 2015.
After each game, Kyle Bernlohr sits down and visualizes every goal he allowed in his head. So the Terrapins men’s lacrosse goalkeeper wasn’t happy when he recalled his performance in the Terps’ 15-12 loss to Johns Hopkins on Saturday.
“It kind of pisses me off sometimes, thinking about maybe I could’ve been more ready for this or that,” Bernlohr said. “When a team like Hopkins is moving really fast, you sometimes forget about some tendencies.”
The junior surrendered the most goals he has in a Terps uniform Saturday, snapping the team’s 11-game winning streak. Although the Terps entered the fourth quarter with a 10-9 lead, the Blue Jays began the final period with six unanswered goals and pulled off the upset.
Bernlohr and the Terps could have an opportunity for revenge if the top-seeded Blue Jays defeat No. 4-seed Penn State in the Big Ten tournament semifinals tonight. But first, the No. 2-seed Terps hope to defeat No. 3-seed Ohio State in the other semifinal at Byrd Stadium.
“I know I definitely want a lot of shots back in recent games, especially that Hopkins game,” Bernlohr said. “I would definitely like that one back. But at the end of the day, we still have all the players, we still have all the capability that we know [could] take us to the championship game.”
The Terps defeated the Buckeyes on April 18, but not without a fight. Ohio State led for the first 58 minutes, until midfielder Colin Heacock tied the game with 1:09 left in regulation. Then attackman Jay Carlson clinched the victory with a score in overtime to cap a five-goal comeback.
While they couldn’t muster the same magic when trailing Johns Hopkins late in the fourth quarter Saturday, the Terps feel confident entering the semifinal.
“When you don’t get what you want, you move forward, you learn from it, and you have to be excited about going out there and playing again,” coach John Tillman said. “You can’t be a guy that only wants to play and practice when things go your way. That’s not what athletics and life in competition are all about.”
Against Ohio State, containing attackman Jesse King will be integral for the Terps, Tillman said. The senior, a first-team All-Big Ten honoree, ranks third in the conference with a 2.33 goals-per-game average and totaled six points (four goals, two assists) in the team’s regular-season meeting.
The Terps, though, know they can’t put all of their focus on King. Attackman Carter Brown, who also made the conference first team, notched 44 points this year on 28 goals and 16 assists.
“If you are too concerned about Jesse, that will open up things for other people,” Tillman said. “If you don’t switch on a pick, that guy’s going to get to the goal and score. And if you don’t pay attention and you slide or help and you get a mismatch on Jesse, he can score a lot of goals.”
The Terps’ top-ranked defense failed to contain Johns Hopkins’ top scorer, attackman Ryan Brown, especially after faceoff specialist Charlie Raffa left the game early in the fourth quarter. Brown scored four of his eight goals in the final period.
Tillman said Raffa’s status for tonight is uncertain, but expressed confidence in the Terps’ ability at the X regardless. Faceoff specialist Jon Garino Jr. and midfielder Andrew Walsh have taken reps this year when Raffa doesn’t play.
“I don’t think it puts a lot of pressure on them,” Tillman said. “If Charlie can’t go, those guys are fired up to get in there and try to help the team win.”
After Brown launched a shot past Bernlohr to knot the game at eight early in the third quarter, Bernlohr slammed his fist into the ground and went to retrieve the ball. It was one of the goals the netminder pondered after the game.
With a conference championship berth on the line, the Terps hope Bernlohr has learned and moved on from the team’s first loss in more than two months.
“You want to have a short memory, whether it’s a win or a loss,” midfielder Bryan Cole said. “Just kind of clean up where you can clean up and go from there and look ahead.”
