No. 2 Maryland men’s lacrosse held Rutgers scoreless for 27 minutes in the middle of Saturday’s matchup, giving it an opportunity to atone for a disastrous first quarter.
Instead, the dominant defensive stretch was moot.
The Terps never overcame a five-goal surge by the Scarlet Knights in the opening frame — and a two-goal spurt near the end of the game — despite outshooting Rutgers, committing fewer turnovers and winning the faceoff battle.
“I never felt like we really got into a real good flow … we just didn’t settle in and really get a good tempo going,” coach John Tillman said.
Maryland (8-2, 1-2 Big Ten) started the scoring a few minutes in on an open look near the cage, but struggled to create separation after. Players passed around the perimeter patiently, providing chances to come open through tactical screening and movement.
But the Terps frequently rushed decisions late in the shot clock as they tried getting the ball near the cage. That was damaging in a game where they found minimal success in transition.
“If you take a low-angle shot and it’s a save … we consider that a turnover because [there is a] minimal chance that that’s going in,” graduate student midfielder Bryce Ford said.
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Junior attacker Braden Erksa, off his first zero-turnover game of the season, maneuvered to the side of the cage and looked for Ford. The connection could have given Maryland the lead — instead, Erksa’s pass was high, leading to a Rutgers score on the next possession. The Scarlet Knights’ score was the start of a four-goal run within the last three minutes of the first quarter.
Tillman entered the game concerned about Rutgers’ ability to score against unset defenses. But it was Rutgers’ half-field offense that created open looks.
Graduate student goalkeeper Logan McNaney has generally anticipated shots coming from beyond point-blank range. But the Tewaaraton Award Watch List honoree had just one save in the opening quarter, with wet conditions potentially hindering his movement.
Rutgers’ Colin Kelly scored when he sidestepped a defender in the middle of the field. Midfielder Colin Zeller added another a minute later when he cut toward the cage and the Terps’ defense was too late to rotate.
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Maryland’s one-on-one defense was uncharacteristically poor in the opening frame, with star defender Will Schaller falling behind and giving up a goal at the buzzer. But the second-ranked nationally scoring defense cut off lanes in the middle quarters, allowing the Terps to enter the fourth down only one.
The Terps allowed a score near the crease after holding the Scarlet Knights scoreless for more than 10 minutes. They then moved into a 10-man offense, a questionable decision with three minutes left, allowing a full-field goal from Rutgers’ goalkeeper Cardin Stoller into an empty net.
Maryland’s five turnovers in the final frame were fatal, as both Rutgers scores came after giveaways.
The two-goal burst sealed Maryland’s second loss this season. Tillman may need to switch things up for his team to avoid game-altering lapses — a concerning theme over the past month.
“Do we change what we’re doing? Do we change the groups … that’s some stuff that we need to look at,” Tillman said. “That’s part of this part of the year is [figuring out] do you need to tweak some things.”
