When Maryland women’s lacrosse and James Madison met in the second round of last season’s NCAA tournament, the Dukes stunned the Terps with five straight goals over the final six minutes for a one-goal win.
Maryland didn’t have that worry in the rematch on Sunday.
The Terps’ first-half attack complemented their defense in an all-around effort, as fourth-seeded Maryland defeated James Madison, 17-7, in the NCAA tournament second round at the Maryland Field Hockey and Lacrosse complex.
The Terps (14-5) beat the Dukes (14-6) for the second time this season after dropping both contests last year to advance to their first NCAA tournament quarterfinal since 2022.
“I thought our team just started out with what we’ve known they’ve had in them all along,” coach Cathy Reese said. “I think everybody on the team just bought it today.”
Maryland’s attack shot 35 percent in the three-goal regular season victory over James Madison in March. It entered its second round contest off a 45 percent shooting mark in the Terps’ first round win, the highest they’ve shot since their last regular season game against Princeton.
Their strong attack continued early on Sunday.
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Maryland tallied goals on its first three possessions and shot six-for-nine in the first quarter. James Madison opted to start freshman goalie Emily Evans for the first time this season, who conceded five scores in the first seven minutes before Caitlin Boden replaced her.
Attackers Eloise Clevenger and Hannah Leubecker each scored a goal in the opening period. Midfielder Shaylan Ahearn — who won a season-high 11 draw controls — converted a free-position shot and Kori Edmondson recorded her seventh hat trick of the season for the early barrage of goals.
The Terps’ 66 percent first-quarter shooting rate was their third-best shooting mark recorded in the opening frame.
“I think the first few [goals] give us a lot of momentum for what’s to follow,” Ahearn said. “We’ve changed our mindset a lot this year from, ‘I want to’ to ‘I will,’ and I think that we executed today and we did our jobs.”
The scoring output didn’t slow in the ensuing quarter.
Attacker Victoria Hensh and midfielder Shannon Smith each scored once while Clevenger completed a hat trick to contribute to the Terps’ second-highest scoring half of the season. Maryland shot 52 percent over its 12-goal first half.
Clevenger recorded a new career-high five goals with a third quarter score and finished with a game-high eight points. She is the first Maryland player to record eight points since Caroline Steel, who also recorded eight points in the 2019 quarterfinals.
Attackers Lauren LaPointe and Chrissy Thomas each tallied a goal in the 17-goal day for the Terps’ attack. Seven different players scored in the offensive onslaught.
James Madison’s attack has spurred this season when attacker Isabella Peterson is lethal in front of the cage. The sixth-best scorer among all of Division I entering the contest — averaging just under four goals a game — led the Dukes in goals and points with 71 goals and 13 assists ahead of Sunday.
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Peterson only scored more than three goals twice in James Madison’s five losses this year, including a four-goal output in the Dukes’ loss to Maryland in March. No other James Madison player scored more than one.
Maryland limited Peterson again in the second meeting this season. The Tewaaraton Award nominee was limited to just four goals, restricting the Dukes’ offense.
Terps’ goalie Emily Sterling returned to the crease after missing the first round game against Robert Morris. She kept Peterson and her attack partner Maddie Epke — who entered the contest with 56 goals — at bay.
Peterson only managed one goal in the first half on a player-up opportunity in the second quarter. Lauren Savage converted a free position for James Madison’s lone other first-half score.
“Emily’s just like, such a force back there,” defender Meghan Ball said. “But, I also think it’s so much easier for us to play when we’re feeding off of our attack and they’re getting possessions and they’re scoring.”
Sterling warded off six shots in an excellent 30 minutes. Julia Hammerschlag replaced her in the fourth quarter after the six-save performance, allowing three goals in the final frame.
Maryland’s attack continued to excel following its 17-goal outburst in its first round win over Robert Morris. The Terps shot at a 52 percent mark in another 17-goal performance to advance to the quarterfinals.
“We haven’t had a game this year where our big shooters on the offensive end were all shooting over 50 percent,” Reese said. “To have their mindset shifted, their execution offensively, the energy was fantastic.”
Maryland will play either Florida in College Park on Thursday, who upset fifth-seeded Virginia, 13-8. The Terps fell to the Gators in overtime in late Feburary.
