Her words pierced a boisterous wind Sunday afternoon, leaving an imprint in the minds of players who responded immediately to the challenge.
With little more than eight minutes remaining in the Terrapin women’s lacrosse team’s season opener, coach Cathy Reese was frustrated, and rightfully so. The Terps held a 12-7 advantage against Richmond but were not competing with the same intensity they had at the game’s start.
Moments after Reese reminded her squad of its talent during a timeout, the No. 1 Terps began their blitz. On her way to a career-high five goals, midfielder Katie Schwarzmann scored three times in 4:12 as the team netted six goals to close the contest, throttling the Spiders, 18-7.
It may not have been the most consistent 60 minutes for the Terps (1-0), who face Delaware today, but the game’s outcome was never in doubt.
The obvious offensive prowess the team demonstrated served as evidence that this season might at times be less about the opponent for the Terps than the actual team itself. With a handful of U.S. national team members and All-Americans, the team knows that no more than a handful of others in the nation can compete with the Terps when they’re playing to their full potential.
“The bottom line is I really feel that if we can focus on ourselves in doing what we do best, in trying to work to get better as us, as this 2011 Maryland team, we’re going to set the limits for ourselves,” Reese said. “We have a lot of talent on this team, but we’ve got to find a way to get better every day and focus on Maryland.”
Last season, the Terps surpassed the 18-goal mark four times. The connection between attackers Karri Ellen Johnson and Sarah Mollison, both of whom had career days Sunday, should help ensure the offense remains as dynamic as ever.
“I like playing with Karri Ellen,” Mollison said. “We do have good chemistry with each other. This is our third season I’ve played with her, and she’s an awesome player, and [I] love playing with her. She’s my roommate, and we know each other very well, so it’s good fun.”
Mollison tied a school record against the Spiders with six assists, while Johnson, who finished with a career-high seven goals, had five goals off looks from her roommate.
“Like [Mollison] said, it’s good fun,” Johnson said, laughing. “She’s a great player I love. She knows where to feed it. Like she said before, we’ve played together for three years, so we just know each other’s strengths and utilize them. She sees the field really well, and I just cut, and it gets it done.”
castello@umdbk.com
