The Maryland field hockey team failed to reach two goals in four of its first eight contests. But behind a stingy defense, the No. 10 Terps entered their game against No. 19 Iowa with a 5-3 record.
They provided another shutdown performance on Friday, keeping the Hawkeyes’ productive offense in check during a 2-1 win at the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex.
While Iowa racked up 23 goals in its first nine games, it managed just 11 shots against the Terps and couldn’t get on the board until late in the second half. Maryland goalkeeper Sarah Holliday made five saves to lead the defensive effort.
“We’ve got very good defenders,” coach Missy Meharg said. “We’re always going to be very good defenders when we do really early footwork, and I thought in the second half we did super early footwork.”
Holliday came up big in the fourth minute, blocking a shot at point-blank range from midfielder Makenna Grewe. Iowa received the rebound, but the second attempt from forward/midfielder Mallory Lefkowitz went wide.
The Hawkeyes didn’t take another shot until the 31st minute, when they attempted two penalty corners in rapid succession.
Both were denied — first when midfielder Brooke DeBerdine charged Iowa midfielder/defender Katie Birch to block her shot, and then when Holliday ranged to her right to deflect a Birch shot out of bounds.
“[Holliday’s] very athletic, and she’s a super leader back there,” Meharg said. “We’re in a good place in the goal cage.”
On the other side of the ball, the Terps (6-3, 2-0 Big Ten) missed a couple of early opportunities.
Defender Carrie Hanks’ penalty corner shot in the ninth minute found the net but went too high. On another penalty corner in the 43rd minute, defender Hannah Bond struggled corralling the ball, and Maryland couldn’t get a shot off.
“Just discipline and execution,” forward Linnea Gonzales said of the earlier misplays. “Insert on spots, stopping it, and then the shots will come off easier.”
But as the game wound down, Maryland’s offense found a rhythm.
In the 61st minute, midfielder Madison Maguire sprinted down the right side of the field. Cutting in front of the goal, she whacked a one-handed shot through the left side for the first score of the afternoon.
“When [Maguire] scored, it was so nice, because that was just the icebreaker,” Gonzales said. “That set the pace for the rest of the game.”
Two minutes later, the Terps earned their fifth penalty corner. Taking her third shot of the day, Gonzales fired a quick strike over Jones, increasing the advantage to 2-0.
Iowa (4-6, 0-2) notched a breakaway goal from midfielder/defender Taylor Omweg in the 69th minute, but the Terps ran out the clock to escape with their second win in Big Ten play.
“I love the challenge of having competition, especially in the Big Ten and how it’s coming along,” Maguire said. “Yeah, it’s tiring, but it’s fun.”
