Maryland men’s soccer forward Paul Bin jumped and pumped his fist into the air Tuesday night as his teammates chased him down in celebration for the second time in less than a week.
The forward scored in the fifth minute, heading home a cross from defender Chase Gasper, giving the Terps their earliest lead of the season over No. 7 Denver at Ludwig Field.
In Friday’s loss to Indiana, Bin’s equalizing goal was wasted in the 90th minute when the Hoosiers scored late to secure a 2-1 win, a game that could’ve helped boost the team’s postseason resume.
This time, Maryland didn’t squander opportunity for a momentum-changing ranked win, using Bin’s third goal of the year to give it a victory in what the team viewed as a must-win game.
“This was a full 90 minutes of a great team effort,” coach Sasho Cirovski said. “Our guys showed both physical and mental toughness today that at times we’ve lacked. This is a great catalyst win for our program right now.”
Cirovski said after Friday’s loss that his team needed to start turning competitive efforts into tangible wins. In nine previous attempts against teams within the RPI’s top 50, Maryland only managed one win.
With the postseason looming, the Terps’ sense of urgency resulted in a quick goal that showed Cirvoski’s message stuck.
“The locker room in general all had the mentality of a must-win game,” Bin said. “We played like it was a must-win game. I’m just glad for the guys and I’m glad we got the result.”
Denver (10-2-2) hadn’t played in over a week after its first loss of the season, but Maryland looked like the side more desperate for a bounceback result. The Terps scored on the first shot of the game for either team.
After Gasper received the ball on the left wing, the senior captain sent in a cross to the top of the six-yard box. Three Terps converged, each lunging to make contact with the ball. It was Bin who earned his second goal in the last two games, tying midfielder William James Herve with three goals this campaign.
“I kind of blacked out for that, honestly,” Bin joked. “Chase whipped in a great ball and somehow I got my head on it. I usually don’t score headers so it was an odd feeling.”
Maryland (5-5-3) scored within the first five minutes of play for the first time this season, but only had one more shot on goal for the rest of the match. With plenty of time remaining, the Terps were never able to put away the game.
Maryland left two prime set pieces unconverted, a pair of chances that could’ve given the team a multi-goal cushion. Defender Brett St. Martin and forward Sebastian Elney each got open headers from close range, but the missed opportunities didn’t come back to haunt the Terps.
Late in the game, Maryland dropped back to play ultra-defensively to prevent another late heartbreak. Just four days removed from a devastating loss with 18 seconds left to play, the Terps ensured it wouldn’t happen again.
“We’ve filed and we’ve learned from our previous games,” Gasper said. “Our eyes are just on the future so it’s one game at a time.”
Looking to hold its lead, the Terps paid close attention to the nation’s leading scorer, Andre Shinyashiki. The forward got off two shots, but he wasn’t able to find an equalizer and his tally stayed at 21 goals this years.
Denver pressured hard in the second half, looking to avoid its second straight loss after starting the season unbeaten in 12 straight contests. But unlike Friday night, when a potential draw slipped from the Terps’ grasp with under a minute remaining, Maryland was able to keep the ball out of its net for a signature victory.
The win over a top-10 team was necessary with only one other ranked opponent, No. 18 Michigan, left on the schedule with three games remaining in the regular season. It hadn’t happened in the past, so walking away winners showed the team it’s not completely out of the national picture.
“We needed one of those. We’ve been close. We may have deserved — with some good fortune — maybe a win or two of those, but we haven’t gotten it. This is a massive win against a terrific team and now it’s on to the next one.”
