For nearly 65 minutes, the Maryland women’s soccer team held one of the nation’s top offenses scoreless. Despite constant pressure, No. 13 Rutgers couldn’t break down the Terps’ defense.
But Maryland suffered a self-inflicted letdown.
Defender Hope Gouterman attempted to clear a cross before it reached an open Rutgers attacker at the back post, but she instead headed the ball into her own net, gifting the Scarlet Knights a score.
Rutgers added another goal to win, 2-0, handing Maryland its first loss this season in its Big Ten opener.
“The result was not what we were hoping for,” goalkeeper Rachel Egyed said. “But just walking away from that game, everybody was able to walk away with a new experience and learn something from it.”
The Terps (6-1-1) faced the daunting task of scoring against Rutgers (7-0-1), which had not allowed a goal this year. The challenge increased after two of the Terps’ top forwards left with injuries in the opening 21 minutes.
Jarena Harmon, who has a goal and an assist this season, limped off in the 15th minute while Chelsea Jackson, tied for the team lead with three goals, required a cart in the 21st minute. Harmon later returned, while Jackson did not.
Midfielder Hope Lewandoski said the Terps’ main goal was to “get right back into the match” after the injuries.
“Obviously, they wish they could be out there playing for us,” Lewandoski said. “So we just have to give it our all for them because we know they’d be doing the same if they were out here.”
Meanwhile, after an open start to the match, Rutgers took control. For about 25 minutes, the Scarlet Knights dominated possession against a new-look Maryland backline.
The unit included freshman Malikae Dayes, who has primarily played forward this season. Dayes filled in for Jlon Flippens, who moved into central midfield.
Egyed said learning how to play with each other’s styles and adjusting on the fly has been a process this season for the Terps in the back, but she feels they’ve done a good job with it. And, despite the rotation, the Terps held strong until the own goal on Sunday.
“The backline did a really good job today,” coach Ray Leone said. “We did a pretty good job defending them for the majority of the game. The back line was amazing and Rachel [Egyed] was stellar.”
Their attack, while not in possession as often as the Scarlet Knights, created solid chances on the counterattack. After Gouterman’s own goal, the Terps pushed forward and created several in front of goal.
Rutgers’ defense remained compact and denied the Terps any opportunities, though. Any time the Terps tried to get behind the Scarlet Knights’ back line, never letting them through, Lewandoski said.
“It was tough but we did a good job and we definitely got a lot of good chances, a lot of good looks,” Lewandoski said. “That was very positive. They just were also a solid group.”
Then, nine minutes after their first score, Rutgers took advantage of the strategy, hitting Maryland on a break to put the contest out of reach.
While not the result the Terps wanted, Egyed said it doesn’t detract from the team’s overall goals and postseason aspirations.
“We got a lot of things that we can take away from this,” Egyed said. “Games like this helps every player individually but also the team as a whole in understanding what we need to change, how we need to adjust going forward and what we can do to make ourselves better for the future.”
