Attacker Karri Ellen Johnson missed all of the Terps’ postseason last year after she suffered a midseason concussion.

The turf at the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex is where Karri Ellen Johnson belongs.

It’s where she bonds with her 28 teammates, old and new. It’s where she serves as captain and mentor to a young and developing freshman class. It’s where the attacker has succeeded time and time again in her four-year Terrapins women’s lacrosse career.

It’s also, unsurprisingly, where she has already made her final year in a Terps’ uniform a memorable one. Johnson entered the season as a preseason All-American and a member of the Tewaaraton Trophy watch list. With a team-high 50 points, she has lived up to those lofty expectations. With another goal in the team’s heavyweight bout against No. 2 North Carolina (12-1, 4-0 ACC) tomorrow in Chapel Hill, N.C., the senior will become the Terps’ (11-2, 2-1) No. 2 all-time scorer.

Clearly, that turf is where she belongs. So when she was forced to sit on the sideline for half of last year’s run to the national title game, Johnson was devastated.

“It was this cycle of being let down over and over again,” Johnson said. “Everyone was just waiting, and for me it was hard because each game, everyone was like, ‘You’ll be back for this game,’ and, ‘You’ll be back for this game.'”

The painful reality – that no matter what, she wasn’t going to compete again for the rest of the season – hit her soon enough. After a collision with James Madison goalie Alex Menghetti in last year’s meeting with the Dukes, she suffered a concussion – only Johnson didn’t even know it.

It wasn’t until she got hit in the head again in the team’s next game against Towson that she took a concussion test. Johnson, in her own words, “failed miserably,” beginning a slide from a National Player of the Year pick to just another body on the bench.

“I was more devastated for her,” coach Cathy Reese said. “She just loves playing lacrosse and is passionate about representing Maryland on the field. It was sad because she was going through a traumatizing time and she could only sit by and watch.”

Redshirt freshman Brooke Griffin knows the feeling. The talented midfielder was stuck on the sideline alongside her teammate last season after suffering a torn ACL.

“It was so hard to see her there,” Griffin said. “She’s such a great lacrosse player, and it was so hard for her to sit on the sideline. You never want to have to experience that again.”

The team didn’t wallow away in Johnson’s absence, though. It remained undefeated until the month of May, winning seven straight games after Johnson’s concussion, including the ACC Championship and every postseason test.

Well, almost every one. Down a star, the Terps fell in a crushing 8-7 loss to Northwestern in the national championship game.

“Some teams might have crumbled with a star player like her injured, but we just kept pushing forward,” Reese said. “A team is not made up of one person, and getting there showed the depth of our team. We’re fortunate that we had a team of great players – everyone embraced the opportunity that was given to them.”

Johnson’s return to the field in the fall, though, was not taken lightly. She was voted captain by her teammates, and Johnson, Reese said, “hadn’t missed a beat.”

Her return hasn’t been seamless. The team began to struggle after a torrid three-game start to the season, losing two of its next four. But the No. 5 Terps have found their form of late, averaging a gaudy 16 goals per game during their current six-game winning streak.

In her triumphant return to the field this season, it has never been more obvious that Johnson has become her old self, if not better – she’s scored four or more goals in four of those six wins.

But for her, it’s not about individual statistics. It’s about savoring her last season as a star in College Park, about showing she belongs once more.

“I think when something’s taken away from you, you appreciate it much more,” Johnson said. “[Playing] was one thing that was taken away, and now I’m just trying to cherish every moment with the people and the team that I have.”

munson@umdbk.com