The duo of Maya Everett and Margot Lawn attacked the Michigan State defense. Everett created an angle to pass to Lawn through a Spartan defender, allowing her to collect and set up a drive into the top left corner of the net.
Lawn’s shot put the Terps ahead early on to give Maryland the momentum it needed to come out on top over another conference foe, 3-0. With the win, the No. 9 Terps remain undefeated against the Spartans with a 15-0 all time record.
Friday began like most contests for Maryland (9-3, 2-1 Big Ten) have this season as an early jolt of offense sparked another victory. Lawn found the back of the net six minutes into the first quarter, establishing the Terps’ offensive dominance quickly. It’s Lawn’s fifth match where she scored her team’s first goal.
“For these women I think Margo is the one that’s just taking it like every step matters,” coach Missy Meharg said. “Every step in training matters, every opportunity for her team. She was so service oriented.”
Maryland’s attack remained steady despite not adding another score shortly after its first. The Terps took five more shots in the first quarter and utilized the right portion of the pitch to push through to the Spartans’ circle.
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After Maryland occupied Michigan State’s (3-8, 1-4 Big Ten) defensive half the majority of the first quarter, the pace changed in the second frame. The Terps’ man-to-man defense became more sporadic, which led to Spartans penalties — they attempted three corners in the frame but were stymied on all of them.
Alyssa Klebasko started for the second consecutive game Friday after she anchored a 4-3 victory over Penn State a week ago. The freshman goalie faced little action, but saved all five of Michigan State’s shots on goal. The Spartans’ Cecily Charles logged 10.
The teams remained scoreless after the early goal until late in the third quarter. Everett, surrounded by Terps, controlled the ball and escaped chaos to push toward the goal. Charles jumped to save Everett’s shot, but Hope Rose found the rebound and sunk it into the net for Maryland’s second score and her team-leading 11th of the season.
“We talked about it right off the bat, Michigan State’s goalkeeper was phenomenal. Just having that person on that back post so that it distracts her defenders,” Lawn said. “Honestly it was just more about finding the pockets and the seams and getting those shots off.”
The Terps outshot the Spartans 25-11 in the win.
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Maryland kept the pressure in the Spartans’ circle after Rose’s goal. The Terps notched eight corners on Friday, taking advantage of the rebound opportunities their relentless set up presented. Lawn scored Maryland’s third and final goal early in the fourth quarter on such a play.
Lawn inserted to Rose who fired a shot from the top of the circle and missed, but Lawn swooped back in, collected the rebound and fired it into the net on a backhanded attempt for her second goal of the match.
Maryland cruised to a shutout victory over Michigan State, giving the Terps their second Big Ten win. They’ll get a short break from conference play with a trip to American on Sunday before returning for five straight Big Ten foes to close out the regular season.
“We need to celebrate this win and take about 24 hours and enjoy it and recognize that we really played well in the third and fourth quarter,” Meharg said. “Tomorrow we’ll train for about an hour and then we’ll start to prepare breakfast or brunch and do our video and then head over to America.”
