The temperature sat above 90 degrees for much of Maryland men’s soccer’s 4-0 victory over Pacific on Saturday afternoon. Many players were visibly exhausted near the end, but that fatigue seemed to hand the Terps, not the Tigers, an advantage.

With just over two minutes left, Maryland freshman forward Rocket Ritarita corralled a heavy touch from Pacific’s Rodrigo Fernandez Martinez. As defenders chased Ritarita, he dribbled into the box before passing to forward Aidan Sheppela who deposited a left-footed shot into the bottom of the goal.

That was Maryland’s third goal scored in Saturday’s second half — a stretch that exemplified the team’s abundant attacking depth. Ritarita and Sheppela — two bench players — displayed exuberance at a time when Pacific’s back line was devoid of energy.

“What we ask of our forwards to do defensively is a lot,” coach Sasho Cirovski said. “Being able to have two, three players split the number nine position has been a blessing, to keep the legs fresh and make sure the work is done in quality.”

[Maryland men’s soccer coasts to 4-0 win over Pacific, claims best start since 2021]

Maryland appeared thin at the center forward position before the season.

Colin Griffith, Maryland’s second-leading scorer last season,split time as a winger and striker. But the senior had surgery in the offseason, and Cirovski said the team didn’t have a timeline on his return for the fall.

That left junior Luke van Heukelum — who was sidelined with an injury for much of 2024 — as the only returning Terp with a start at striker during the previous campaign.

van Heukelum has gotten most of Maryland’s minutes in the number nine role this season, but the young reserves have played well during their recent cameos.

Freshman Mateo Caride has served as aback-up striker behind van Heukelum. The Argentine forward scored his first career goal on a close-range header, capping off Maryland’s 6-0 Labor Day win over Saint Francis.

Like Sheppela, Caride’s game is predicated on finding open pockets of space in front of the goal. That approach relies on Maryland’s wide players doing most of the creative work before centering the ball to the striker for high-quality shots.

In a free flowing system, the talent still matters as much as the play design. Players not only need to generate chances but also finish the scoring opportunities. Ritarita has displayed a knack for doing both.

The freshman leads the Terps with four assists despite playing just 76 minutes so far. Ritarita also notched his first career goal toward the end of Saturday’s win, largely crediting the service.

“I saw Mack [DeVries] on the ball and thought I should drift behind the defender,” Ritarita said. “I knew he’d find me with the pass.”

Trusting the delivery has been imperative to Maryland’s recent late-match attacking success.

The Terps scored three times in the final 10 minutes against Saint Francis, and tallied a pair of goals during that same timeframe against Pacific. All five were recorded from inside the 18-yard box and all but one were either scored or assisted by an underclass attacker.

[Maryland men’s soccer’s experienced, mature backline has keyed a hot start] 

While those late scoring runs show the promise of Maryland’s young forwards, there’s an obvious caveat: both matches were against inferior opponents.

Saint Francis and Pacific finished with respective RPI rankings of 126 and 130 last season. They’ve posted a combined 1-7 record to this point in 2025.

A more formidable stretch awaits and Maryland’s offense will need to continue to spread the scoring.

The Terps face Wisconsin on the road this Friday and host No. 10 Pittsburgh the next week.

Those two matches are sure to test Maryland’s striker depth. But given the marathon that is a collegiate soccer season, Cirovski is inclined to give his young forwards a chance regardless of the competition.

“The college game is difficult. You’re playing a lot of games, you’re going to classes, you’re studying, you’re staying up late. It’s very demanding with a short preseason,” Cirovski said. “It’s important to have that depth and … make sure we’re not killing their bodies so early in the year.”