James Madison’s comeback started innocently. Maryland women’s soccer’s Lisa McIntyre tried to steal the ball in the goal box but instead forced the attacker to the ground — awarding the Dukes a penalty kick.

Sophia Verrecchia sliced her shot past Beardsley into the right corner to cut the Terps’ lead to one.

But the home team wasn’t done. Two minutes later, the Dukes broke into the goal box. Amanda Attanasi received a straight pass across the goal mouth and tapped it in to tie the squads up.

For the second straight game, Maryland (0-1-3) blew a two goal lead and drew James Madison (2-1-1) Sunday afternoon, 2-2. The Terps controlled most of the game — except in crucial moments — finishing with 15 shots compared to James Madison’s eight.

“In the second half, I thought that we could have got a couple more,” Nemzer said. “We out shot them again. But [in] the last ten minutes, they got a [penalty kill] against the run of play and that changed momentum.”

McIntyre’s late error marred what was otherwise a monumental day for the freshman — she scored her first two career goals.

The first came as part of a Maryland flurry. The Terps registered six shots — three on goal — in the first half while the Dukes couldn’t register any.

[Maryland women’s soccer surrenders two-goal lead, scores late to tie Navy, 3-3]

McIntyre broke through in the 22nd minute for the visitors. Peyton Bernard sliced a through ball to the top of the goal box. The freshman ran onto the pass with James Madison goalkeeper Alexandra Blom surging forward to snag the ball.

McIntrye tapped her way around Blom and scored into the open net.

She doubled up in the 65th minute. Ava Morales passed a perfectly placed through ball between three defenders to a running McIntyre. Blom crept forward to intercept the pass, but her attempt to clear ricocheted off McIntyre and straight into the back of the net.

“It was a great step in the right direction for me individually to just get that first goal for the team early on in the first half,” McIntyre said. “… The second goal maybe wasn’t the prettiest goal or anything, but it’s about the hustle and the work.”

Maryland showed impressive defensive organization in the first half. Its defenders seemed to move up the field when they saw a James Madison player on their line. When an attacker passed the ball to the player — now in an offside position — the referee’s whistle gave the Terps a free kick in their own end.

The Dukes were called for six offsides compared to the Terps’ zero.

Terps’ coach Meghan Ryan Nemzer attributed her team’s defensive success to her backline’s experience.

Kennedy Bell showed her skill midway through the first half as she tracked down a sprinting attacker in the defensive zone. With a quick read, Bell slid to the ground and pushed the ball away to stop what looked to be a promising look.

[Maryland women’s soccer couldn’t find the back of the net in its first two games of 2023]

When Suwaibatu Mohammed beat Eden White and sprinted deep into the goal box in the second half, the James Madison forward looked for a fellow Duke to pass to. But Maryland defender Caroline Koutsos’ perfect read and speed allowed her to stay in position and kick the ball out of trouble for a corner kick.

At halftime, the Terps led 1-0 — but their strong defensive effort did not result in domination on the scoreboard.

Maryland struggled to contain pressure in their defensive end, giving James Madison space to move the ball closer to the goal. The Dukes pounced on opportunities to dribble between defenders to get better looks on net, ones they did not have in the first half.

The two teams exchanged possession in the game’s waning moments. The Terps had the last chance, a shot from Bernard that Blom shoved away to seal another disappointing draw.

“After this game, we’re gonna do film, we’re gonna learn about it,” said McIntyre. “Working in training has got to be 100% from everyone … we’re gonna work on how we can last the full 90 minutes.”