Maryland women’s soccer’s 2024 season was anything but straightforward. The team dealt with a coaching change and a non-existent offense, ending the year with no concrete leadership and a single conference win.
2024’s themes extend beyond this season. Maryland hasn’t finished with a record above .500 since 2019. The proverbial cloud that hangs over the program for years has remained — with few signs of growth in sight.
“Our sport doesn’t always give you what you deserve or what’s fair,” interim coach Michael Marchiano said Oct. 28.
Failing to place in the Big Ten Tournament was no surprise. The Terps ended No. 16 in the conference and the last time they appeared in the tournament was in spring 2021, where they lost in the first round.
Missing the postseason is nothing new for the program. The last time Maryland appeared in the postseason was 2012 under coach Jonathan Morgan. With no championships, the farthest the Terps ever went was to the quarterfinals in 1995 and 1996.
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The season’s climax came Oct. 10, when coach Meghan Ryan Nemzer parted ways with the program with five games left in the regular season. Maryland played the day of the announcement under Marchiano, and lost to Penn State, 5-0, its largest deficit since conference play began.
But in the second game without Nemzer on the sideline, Maryland beat Nebraska 2-0, earning its first conference win in more than 700 days — and the Terps’ only one this season.
Coaching turnover is common for the team. Since the program’s first season in 1987, the Terps have had 10 coaches. Brian Pensky was the longest-tenured with a seven-year stint from 2005 to 2011. Ray Leone coached for six seasons before Nemzer took over in 2022.
The team won 34 percent of their overall games and nearly 18 percent of their conference games under Nemzer, the lowest winning percentages for a coach since Maryland joined the Big Ten in 2014. Maryland did not win any conference games in 2023.
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“Obviously we have had some struggles in recent times,” Marchiano said Oct. 10. “So we’re just going to try to make sure that we have a group who comes to training and comes to the games with a good mindset, and is ready to work together.”
Those struggles can be attributed to the offensive side of the ball.
The Terps averaged 7.7 shots per game this season, about five shots fewer than their opponents. Their shots-on-goal percentage decreased from 0.470 two years ago to 0.388 this season. The lack of accurate production at the net was a large factor in Maryland’s consistent losses.
In 2024, Maryland converted its highest ratio of goals per shot attempt since 2021 with 4.5 percent. But the Terps’ below 10 percent conversion rate this season is still well below average and doesn’t mark significant growth.
With a national coaching search commencing, five seniors graduating and just two players signed, the Terps’ future is uncertain. They’ll have to re-build their roster from the ground up.
Data reporter Daranee Balachandar contributed to this report.
