Field hockey Terps tame toothless Tigers 8-1

Overwhelming. Unstoppable. Juggernaut. Steamroller. Relentless machine. Irresistible force. Choose your adjective or invent a new one that conveys a similar meaning because if they continue to score as they have fans will need some new term to apply to the offensive performances of Maryland field hockey. The Princeton Tigers became the Terps latest victim finding themselves on the short end of an 8-1 final tally. In the seven games since Maryland lost at Northwestern the Terps have outscored their opponents by a nearly unfathomable cumulative 36-6 including 17-1 in the last two games.

First Half - Getting started

For a game that ended in a rout, the first half was surprisingly close. Maryland picked up four penalty corners in the game's first seven and a half minutes but, breaking their recent spate of penalty corner efficiency, they failed to convert any of those chances.

The Terrapins' first goal of the afternoon came from an unexpected source, Welma Luus. The senior from Pretoria, South Africa, who also plays for Maryland's tennis team, has been gaining more playing time of late and picked up her first goal of the season and one of two on the day, when she carried the ball into the circle and drove a shot into the lower left corner of the goal in the game's 16th minute.

With just over a minute to play, Alyssa Parker would extend Maryland's lead to two. The junior forward made a steal near the centerline and drove unimpeded into the circle where she scored for the third time in as many contests. Maryland led 2-0 at the half.

Second half - On a roll

Maxine Fluharty, who would pick up a hat trick in the period, got the scoring started for Maryland before three minutes had elapsed in the half. After Luus picked up a rebound on a penalty corner in the game's 43rd minute to extend Maryland's lead to 4-0, the home team broke through with a goal of their own slicing Maryland's margin to three.

Another player who has made significant contributions to the Terps' recent burst of offensive prowess has been Dutch freshman Lein Holsboer. Holsboer who has developed a knack for finding herself in the right place at the right time scored by knocking home the rebound on a penalty corner. Just over two minutes later, the player Missy Meharg has called the heart and soul of the team, Katie Gerzabek, picked up her third goal of the season and with just over 15 minutes remaining, Maryland led 6-1.

But the Terps and more specifically, Maxine Fluharty, weren't quite done. The senior would complete her hat trick with two scores on penalty corners in the 59th and 63rd minutes. With that, the Terps had at last finished their scoring for the day.

The 8-1 win, the sixth in a row for the second ranked Terps improves their record to 12-2 on the season. With her brace of goals, Welma Luus became the 11th Terrapin to score at least two goals on the season. Of Maryland top four goal scorers entering the game, only Fluharty found the back of the net. Her hat trick gives her 11 goals on the season making her Maryland's leader in that category.

Maryland returns to Big ten play Sunday afternoon when the Rutgers Scarlet Knights come to College Park. The game is scheduled to start at 1:00 pm.