Margot Lawn found her way through the Yale defense in the sixth minute of the first quarter. Pinning herself in the left corner of the shooting circle, Lawn flicked the ball and air dribbed it past the goalie for the game’s first score.
Lawn, with five assists and nine points this season, has been a consistent force in the circle in her third year with Maryland. Her score early Sunday put the Terps ahead, a lead they never relinquished.
The early score set the precedent for the match en route to a 3-1 Terps victory. The win concluded the Terrapin Invitational for No. 4 Maryland (6-1), which also featured a victory against Miami Ohio on Friday.
Maryland used the sideline to their advantage with short give-and-go passes, which allowed the Terps’ midfielders to move the ball up the pitch with ease and control offensive momentum
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An insert by Lawn was trapped by Nathalie Fietcher at the top of the circle. Freshman Josie Hollamon stepped up and, in a swift motion, lifted the ball just over the defenders’ sticks as it slammed the back of the cage for Maryland’s second score of the afternoon.
That goal was Hollamon’s second on a penalty corner this season, also her second of the season. Her first was a game winner in an overtime battle with Boston College in the Big Ten/ACC Cup.
The Bulldogs (1-3) received four corners in the first half but failed to capitalize. The setup of their penalty corners closely resembled each other, which allowed the Terps to better anticipate the pass and clear out the shooting circle quicker.
After sitting out the last match against Miami Ohio, Alyssa Klebasko was back in the net. Coach Missy Meharg has alternated between Klebasko and Paige Kieft all season, seeking to give both equal opportunities to defend.
[Hope Rose’s first career hat trick lifts No. 4 Maryland field hockey to 3-1 win over Miami]
Coming into Sunday, Klebasko hadn’t allowed a goal this season. Yale changed that on a penalty corner when Poppy Beale logged the Bulldogs’ first goal late in the third quarter to cut Maryland’s lead in half.
The Terps soon answered on their seventh penalty corner of the game. Another insert by Lawn was taken out of the circle by Hope Rose, who returned then fired a hard and loud drive through the legs of Yale’s goalie.
The score, which put Maryland up two, was Rose’s fourth goal of the weekend. She collected her first hat trick in Friday’s win and proved instrumental in giving the Terps their fifth and sixth wins and an undefeated weekend in the Terrapin Invitational.
