Midfielder Mael Corboz sits alone after UMBC upset the Terps, 1-0, to knock them out of the NCAA tournament at Ludwig Field on Nov. 23 2014.
They came in packs, jumping guardrails and streaming onto the Ludwig Field pitch to celebrate with the team that just advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament.
On Sunday, UMBC fans made up a chunk of the announced 3,776 that witnessed the Terrapins men’s soccer team’s season end at the hands of the Retrievers. So after the final whistle blew on the No. 4-seed Terps’ 1-0 defeat, scores of UMBC supporters rushed the field, sprinting past dejected Terps players to the celebrate the Retrievers’ upset.
“That’s one of the biggest wins in our school history and I think in any sport,” UMBC coach Pete Caringi said.
As the pandemonium played out around midfield, several Terps players sunk to the ground, pulling their jerseys over their heads. For coach Sasho Cirovski’s squad, it marked a crushing end to a season that began with disappointment and eventually gave way to an 11-game winning streak.
One week after the Terps raised the first Big Ten tournament trophy in school history, they squandered their shot at an NCAA title run.
“It’s a tough way to go out,” Cirovski said. “But I’m proud of the way we handled ourselves after the final whistle blew. Our players handled it with great dignity and class.”
The loss marks the first time the Terps (13-6-3) failed to advance past the second round since 2001. It also snaps the program’s two-year streak of playing in the College Cup.
When the teams played to a 0-0 draw in early September, the Terps resemble a different team. Lacking a primary scorer, the offense sputtered and the losses piled up. During the Terps’ winning streak, though, Cirovski relied on a balanced offensive attack to overwhelm opponents. Scoring came from everywhere.
But on Sunday, the Terps failed to produce offensively.
“Sometimes when you don’t have a go-to guy that can be your threat in tough games like this,” Cirovski said. “you see it really come back to bite you.”
The Terps had several close calls in the first half. Midfielder Mael Corboz failed to replicate last week’s theatrics, as he smashed two free kicks at goalkeeper Billy Heavner. The Terps registered three more shots, but failed to connect.
Yet for all of their offensive struggles, the Terps’ backline continually prevented the Retrievers from gaining traction in the scoring third after promising runs off of counterattacks. Defenders Jereme Raley and Chris Odoi-Atsem broke up several potential shots.
So in the second half, the Retrievers (13-5-4) picked up the pace, controlling possession and stymeing the Terps’ attack. Finally, in the 70th minute, a Retriever sent a ball to wide open forward Kay Banjo inside the box. Goalkeeper Zack Steffen blocked the save, but the ball quickly trickled to the feet of midfielder Malcolm Harris.
Harris smacked the ball with his left foot, sending the ball into the bottom left corner of the net. The Retrievers took a 1-0 lead.
“We didn’t expect anyone to outplay each other. It was pretty much even throughout the game,” Metzger said. “They fought for that scrappy goal, and they got it.”
About twenty minutes later, the game clock ran out, and the fans rushed the field.
As Cirovski’s post-game press conference drew to a close, Metzger, a senior, took a seat next to Cirovski, and briefly put his arm over his coach’s shoulder. Then they left together, walking towards the locker room for the final time.
“We’re not used to losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament. It’s new to all of us,” Cirovski said. “But it’s part of the cycle.”
