Maryland field hockey came out of halftime on Sunday with an inspired sense of urgency. The Terps offense was frustrated by a tight Drexel defense throughout the first half, but seven minutes into the third quarter, Fleur Knopert finally broke through.
Knopert dribbled into the shooting circle from the right flank while Drexel defenders tried to usher the junior across the face of the goal. It looked like the ball rolled out of Knopert’s reach, but an athletic move saw her push a low shot across the turf. It beat Drexel goalkeeper Halle Geiger at the far post to open the scoring.
The Terps (2-0) added another in the fourth quarter en route to a 2-0 home victory over Drexel on Sunday afternoon.
“I love playing with this team and connecting with them,” Knopert said. “It’s really much a team effort so [I was] really glad to put the 1-0 up there.”
It was a tough turnaround for the Terps after playing for nearly 80 minutes on Friday. The fatigue seemed to contribute to a slow start.
“I think that’s what you saw today at the beginning,” coach Missy Meharg said. “We didn’t play smart. It’s a game where you just want to let the ball do all the work and conserve your energy.”
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Possession fell the Terps’ way for most of the opening quarter. The Terps consistently pushed forward, often leaving just two defenders back while attacking.
An overloaded Drexel defense helped nullify the Terps’ possession advantage. The Dragons put all ten of their outfield players behind the ball in many instances, which also led to a host of counter-attacking opportunities.
Drexel graduate student and former Terp Anna Castaldo was driving the Dragons’ attack early with multiple solo runs down both sidelines. Maryland defenders Rayne Wright and Josie Holloman stopped their former teammate though, preventing a Drexel goal.
Drexel’s defensive numbers limited the space for Maryland’s attackers. The Terps struggled mightily to play a final ball that could break down the Dragons’ low defensive block.
It helped Geiger. The freshman shot-stopper only had to make two saves in the first half, as Maryland’s five other attempts were off-target thanks to several blocks from the Dragons.
Both sides entered halftime scoreless after the defensive war.
An injury to Drexel forward Kenzie Lever just before the break left the Dragons attack short-handed in the second half. Lever scored both her team’s goals in a 2-1 win over Sacred Heart on Friday.
[Despite key departures, Maryland field hockey maintains championship aspirations]
Maryland continued playing an opportunistic brand of fast-paced offense after taking their third-quarter lead.
“They were so prepared for us,” Meharg said. “They knew our players, they dropped back, they had all different heights of defense, which made it super hard for us. I thought we played a little frustrated, and we forced things a lot, and you saw the difference in our play [once we scored].”
Drexel didn’t go quietly.
Castaldo won a penalty corner for the Dragons as the clock wound down in the third. The graduate student fired a shot but Alyssa Klebasko got a vital touch on the attempt to push it out of bounds.
With just under ten minutes remaining in the fourth, Maci Bradford split two defenders to create a one-on-one opportunity with Geiger. Geiger nearly closed Bradford’s shooting angle, but a moment of technical brilliance saw Bradford sneak a low shot past Geiger to seal victory for Maryland.
The Dragons put just two shots on goal from three total attempts on Sunday afternoon, as Maryland capped off a perfect homestand to start 2024.
