Maryland field hockey is the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA tournament and will host Albany in its first-round game Friday.
The Terps (19-2) will face the Great Danes (16-4) at noon Friday in College Park. The winner will advance to play the winner of Rutgers and UConn, two teams Maryland has already beaten this season.
“One thing I’ve learned over the years about being in an NCAA tournament is don’t hope you will play somebody or not play somebody else, just whatever you get, you get and control what you can,” coach Missy Meharg said. “We’re just looking forward to … being at home, that [is] a great opportunity for us.”
After finishing the season undefeated, North Carolina is the No. 1 overall seed.
Maryland was ranked No. 2 in the country for most of the season and won the Big Ten tournament by beating Iowa, 2-1, on Sunday. The Terps shared the Big Ten regular season crown and had their best regular season since 2013, finishing 16-2 with 11 wins over ranked opponents.
After losing to UConn in the national championship last season, Maryland has emphasized throughout the season that its goal is to win the 2018 title. And after raising their second conference trophy of the year Sunday, that still remained the Terps’ sole focus.
“We are thinking about what’s in the future,” midfielder Madison Maguire said. “Yes it happened and it’s amazing and we’re excited, but we’ve still got another tournament to play well in.”
Meharg has praised the increased competition of the Big Ten all season, and the tournament bracket shows why. Four other Big Ten teams — Michigan, Penn State, Iowa and Rutgers — made the 18-team field. It’s the Scarlet Knights’ first appearance since 1986 and the Hawkeyes’ first since 2012.
