With the Terrapin lacrosse team trailing by three goals late in the third quarter against Navy, freshman midfielder Dan Groot couldn’t have looked less affected by a pressure situation.
After senior Bill McGlone scooped up a ground ball, he fed it to Groot, who calmly blasted it past Navy goalkeeper Matt Russell to bring the game back within reach.
Although it was his only shot of the game, Groot also got a couple of his own groundballs and effectively jumpstarted the Terp offense against the Midshipmen.
Lately, that same offense has struggled to put the ball in the back of the net. While the Terps are averaging fewer than seven goals per game in their last three contests, not by any coincidence, they are desperately trying to stop their two-game losing streak.
And with that, the experienced Terps turn to Groot, who has two starts to his name. As proven in the Navy game, Groot isn’t afraid of pressure. He embraces it.
“He has to step up,” senior attackman Joe Walters said. “We need guys to step up, and he’s one of them. He’s a guy who’s going to get a lot of playing time, like he has all year, but more so now. Our offense is struggling and we need an answer.”
Groot graduated from upstate New York’s Canandaigua Academy, with an enrollment of fewer than 1,300 students; he’s never played in front of a crowd of more than 5,000 people. Tomorrow night, he’ll stand in the middle of a standing-room only crowd at Homewood Field, which seats 8,500, as the No. 6-ranked Terps face No. 8 Johns Hopkins in the biggest rivalry in college lacrosse.
“It’s going to be awesome. I can’t wait,” Groot said. “I like big crowds. I feel like I play better in bigger games. I just like playing in front of a lot of people.”
There may not be a bigger game than this one as the Terps and Blue Jays meet for the 102nd time.
And while the Terps aren’t depending on Groot with senior scorers Xander Ritz and Walters, the freshman is being asked to spark the offense in a big way.
Coach Dave Cottle said Groot will one day be a very good player, but Monday he had to apologize to the midfielder because he needs him to play right now.
“Just like coach said, he has to play like a senior. His time is now,” Walters said. “He came here for a reason. He came here to play, he came here to start. So here’s his chance; hopefully he understands what it means.”
When McGlone went down in the preseason with a hamstring injury, Cottle inserted Groot into the starting lineup. Groot proved he belonged, scoring his first goal in the Terps’ overtime win over Duke.
As a team, the Terps are shooting 23 percent, and Ritz admitted the offense just isn’t executing well enough to beat a top 10 team. He added that the offense is stagnant and the Terps aren’t moving around well enough.
That’s where Groot comes in – even when he doesn’t score.
“He’s done a great job of giving us a goal here or there or giving us some good off-ball work or drawing some double teams,” Ritz said. “We put him in a tough spot by asking him to do a lot, but he’s handling it really well.”
With understanding beyond his nine games as a Terp, Groot said his job is to help the offense flow and that his games aren’t measured by the number of tallies in the goal column.
Cottle lamented the fact that his experienced offensive players have struggled to produce. McGlone – despite his injury – is the only Terp to score a goal in every game this season, and as one of those seasoned players, he knows the offense needs a spark.
“You need one of those guys – because we’re not holding our end up,” McGlone said. “Us older guys who should be producing aren’t producing how we should be. I take full responsibility. – But it’s always great to get a boost from younger guys.”
Groot has already picked up on the seniors’ theme, calling his play before the Navy game poor and realizing he has to replicate the habits of McGlone, Walters, Ritz and Brendan Healy by watching extra film and spending more time on the practice field.
By doing that, Groot can step beyond being just an impact player. Walters said the senior leaders are trying to help him mature quickly.
And as a freshman, Groot could be the Terps’ answer on offense against Johns Hopkins by truly acting like a senior.
“Coach is going to yell at me,” Groot said. “But playing with those guys gives me confidence that even though they yell at me, I’m not a freshman anymore.”
Contact reporter Stephen Whyno at whynodbk@gmail.com.