Near misses were the highlight for most of the first hour of Maryland women’s soccer’s meeting with American. Then in the 59th minute, a quick shot to the bottom left ended the deadlock as American broke through.
A header by a Maryland defender landed at the foot of Brooke Steel. Her slow shot dribbled past Liz Beardsley’s outstretched arms, putting the Eagles ahead. American did not stop there, doubling the deficit less than five minutes later.
The Eagles’ abrupt second-half scores and the Terps’ failure to finish ended the match at 2-0 and gave Maryland its first loss of the 2024 season at Ludwig Field on Thursday. The Terps had two more shots than American but four of their 10 attempts were off target, showing that Maryland had some offensive fire, but lacked accuracy.
“We’ll have to go back to training and go back and make them feel a little bit more confident,” Coach Meghan Ryan Nemzer said. “Today just wasn’t our night.”
American entered College Park looking to win its first game of the year. The Eagles held a majority of possession in their first two matches of the season, but Maryland dominated the defensive side of the pitch and left few opportunities for American’s offense to break through early on Thursday.
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Maryland (1-1-1) had chances in the opening minutes, earning a shot and corner kick while applying pressure in the box. Beardsley faced American’s first shot in the 11th minute, reaching to the top right and saving the Eagles shot. Beardsley remains an active leader and notched 12 saves in the Terps’ first two contests.
Back-to-back offside calls halted Maryland’s offensive flow, with the Terps notching five calls in the first half.
“I thought we created enough opportunities. I thought that we did enough,” Nemzer said. “I thought that the forwards did a really good job of putting themselves in positions… the goalkeeper came up big.”
Still, Maryland kept the pressure on American’s defensive third. Ava Morales shot near the bottom center of the net before a snag by Eagles goalkeeper Addison Roemer saved a score. The Terps worked to create offensive opportunities with four first-half shots but missed slightly each time.
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Perhaps the narrowest miss came from Delaney DeMartino, a substitution in the 31st minute. DeMartino exploded up the pitch and Roemer was the only thing between her and the goal. But DeMartino’s shot swerved right and the Terp’s hope for a score ended as quickly as it started.
No ball crossed the goal line before the half ended and it remained a stalemate. The teams continued to play a possession game, focusing on small-foot skills and short passes.
American’s first score created momentum in Maryland’s defensive third as the Terps scrambled. Eagles midfielder Lailah Stewart, cornered deep in the box, spun around to pass the ball back to the top. A quick shot by Izzy Kadzban to the bottom right of the net slipped into Beardsley’s net for the second time on Thursday.
Maryland fought for the remainder of the half but only notched three more shots before the whistle blew. The Terps play again at Ludwig Field against James Madison on Sunday.
