Five minutes into the first half against Princeton on Wednesday, Maryland women’s lacrosse attacker Brindi Griffin’s cheeky play behind the cage left the Maryland women’s lacrosse team’s bench alight with excitement.

With a Tigers defender blanketed on her, Griffin faked left before cutting right, leaving her marker behind. She then burst in front of the net, pump faked twice to get goalkeeper Sam Fish off balance before Griffin finished in the bottom corner.

“You don’t want to be on her behind the cage,” defender Lizzie Colson said. “I can tell you that.”

The tally was the fourth of five goals the No. 2 Terps scored in the first five minutes Wednesday, leaving Princeton in an early hole. The fast start allowed Maryland to overcome 17 turnovers and use a late offensive burst to dispatch the No. 16 Tigers, 15-7, at Maryland Stadium.

“Fantastic performance from our team today, really proud of their effort,” coach Cathy Reese said. “On both ends of the field.”

While Maryland endured two cold spells during the first half, it pieced together a strong second-half performance highlighted by 14 saves from goalkeeper Megan Taylor. Four goals apiece from attacker Kali Hartshorn and midfielder Jen Giles secured a home victory that was harder fought than the scoreline suggests.

The Terps started the game with a menace that has been lacking in recent weeks. Hartshorn scrambled for a draw control before setting up the offense, Giles set a screen to find space and finished easily from close range just 34 seconds into the game.

The Terps (11-0) doubled their lead 26 seconds later, with Hartshorn making no mistake from a tight angle for a quick 2-0 advantage.

“Our girls were really seeing each other and had their heads up,” Reese said. “We came out with the first couple draw controls and that energy was great.”

Maryland only improved from there. Griffin’s solo effort, combined with goals from midfielder Erica Evans and attacker Catie May gave the Terps a four-goal lead in less than five minutes.

“We were able to see openings,” Giles said. “It’s awesome to see that so many people scored and contributed today.”

However, the Teps offense eventually slowed. After scoring on their first five shots, they went scoreless for the next eight minutes, committing turnovers on three consecutive offensive possessions in the process.

Princeton only scored once during that stretch, so when a solo effort from Giles ended the dry spell and Hartshorn scored another three minutes later, Maryland was still up 7-3. But as the Tigers honed in on defense, causing seven Maryland turnovers in the half, the Terps went another 13 minutes without a score.

Taylor kept Maryland level, holding Princeton off the board for 12 minutes before goals from both sides ended a strong first half. A cut toward the cage and finish from midfielder Meghan Siverson restored an 8-4 lead with 1:42 remaining before halftime. They went into the break leading by four despite committing nine turnovers in the first half.

“The stats speak for themselves,” defender Lizzie Colson said. “[Megan] is amazing.”

Taylor continued her success into the second half, tallying seven saves in the final 30 minutes and allowing a four-goal lead to balloon to eight with four straight goals to open the second period, all of which were unassisted.

With 23:33 remaining, Giles received a pass amid heavy pressure on the left side. She then faced up the Princeton defense, cut past one, sidestepped another, and slotted a goal in near-post. Evans added another off a free position a minute later for a 10-4 lead.

“On offense we focused a lot on playing together, spreading out, and seeing the opportunities we have,” Giles said.

After attacker Hannah Warther and Giles notched a goal apiece off free position opportunities, the Terps sealed the game. A goal from close range from attacker Kyla Sears drew Princeton to within seven with 10:01 remaining, and the Tigers scored twice in the final minute, but it was far too little too late, and the Terps walked away with a 15-7 win.

“We knew we needed to come out and play the best that we could,” Reese said. “Overall, this was one of our better games this season.”