While Northwestern celebrated as it raised the Big Ten tournament trophy for the first time in school history Sunday at Ocker Field, Terrapins field hockey forward Katie Gerzabek gathered her team together. The senior captain wanted her teammates to soak in the moment.

“After the game, we made it apparent that we don’t ever want to feel this way again,” Gerzabek said.

It was a definitive moment for one of the Terps’ leaders.

“They were literally right there,” associate head coach Dina Rizzo said of the Northwestern players. “So she basically just said, ‘See this and know how it feels, and you don’t want to feel like this come Saturday or Sunday or the following two games.’”

The No. 1-seed Terps entered the matchup expecting to walk away with their 14th straight win and their first Big Ten tournament trophy, but No. 3-seed Northwestern outplayed them.

And the Terps underclassmen aren’t accustomed to losing. Sunday’s 3-1 defeat marked the third career loss for the freshmen and just the fifth in 45 games for the sophomores.

But Gerzabek knows the pain associated with postseason losses. She was on the field when Duke ended the Terps’ season in the semifinals of the NCAA tournament last season. And the year before, Gerzabek and the Terps fell to Princeton and came one win short of a national title game appearance.

“She doesn’t want to be in that situation, and it’s her senior year,” Rizzo said. “It’s her last year. That’s where her emotions come from. This is it for her and her career, so she wants to go out on top.”

That’s the message she sent to her teammates Sunday.

“I told everyone we don’t have to win a Big Ten Championship to win the national championship,” Gerzabek said.

The defeat marked the second time in as many games Northwestern topped the Terps this season. The players and coaches said the loss can be credited to their struggles rather than the Wildcats’ success.

Defender Sarah Sprink highlighted the Terps’ lack of energy compared to past games.

“They just kind of ran over us in a lot of 1v1s,” Sprink said.

The Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year also thought Northwestern played with more determination because an NCAA tournament automatic bid was on the line. While the Terps’ No. 2 RPI entering the Big Ten tournament all but assured them a spot in the 19-team field, the Wildcats needed a solid performance to secure their position.

And head coach Missy Meharg acknowledged the Terps came in expecting to win. She said they needed to play with the same drive as Northwestern.

“We have got to play every second of every half as if you yourself are qualifying for an NCAA tournament,” Meharg said after the game. “Maryland did not do that today.”

But fortunately for the Terps, their two-loss regular season earned them the No. 2 seed overall in the NCAA tournament, so they will have a chance to redeem themselves.

After the Terps lost to Northwestern in the regular season, they responded by winning 13 straight games. They have proven they can bounce back from a defeat, and Gerzabek doesn’t want the team to feel the agony of a postseason loss again.

“I wouldn’t want to play us next,” Rizzo said.