No. 9 Maryland field hockey cruises to road win over Indiana, 8-2

To start off the fourth quarter, No. 9 Maryland field hockey was up against Indiana, 7-2, after an explosive first three quarters. One minute into the final frame, midfielder Emma DeBerdine stole the ball from Indiana and sprinted in transition, where she found a trailing midfielder in Hope Rose.

The freshman evaded Indiana’s Arabella Loveridge as she stepped up to defend Rose on the right side of the cage. Rose glided the ball past and shot a rocket into the left side of the net to secure her second goal of the day, continuing Maryland’s domination putting it up, 8-2.

The Terps’ six-goal win and Rose’s two-goal game at the Indiana Field Hockey Complex in Bloomington, Indiana, helped the program to its second straight win and its sixth win in eight games to kick off the 2021 season.

The Terps began the game with outstanding ball movement, as they flew all across the field identifying areas within the Hoosiers’ defense that they could exploit. However, with about 11 and a half minutes remaining in the first quarter, Indiana sprinted into transition, as forward Jemima Cookson shot an agile goal into the left side of Maryland’s cage to give Indiana the early 1-0 advantage.

Maryland responded in beautiful fashion, as midfielder Brooke DeBerdine brought the pressure to Indiana’s offense ultimately causing the Hoosiers to slip up and commit a turnover.

Brooke DeBerdine passed the ball down the sideline to forward/midfielder Anna Castaldo, who worked her way into the inside of Indiana’s defense and delivered a beautiful pass to midfielder Kyler Greenwalt as she scored a beautiful goal that went directly into the right side of the cage to tie the game at one.

With about five minutes to go in the first quarter, highly touted freshman forward Hope Rose used her speed to get Maryland in transition, as she stopped on a dime to deliver a complete missile, swishing straight to the back of Indiana’s cage extending the Terps’ lead to 2-1.

However, Maryland’s offense didn’t stop there. It continued to exhibit why its offense is so deep, as midfielder Julianna Tornetta delivered a shot with deadly precision that went into the right side of Indiana’s cage, extending Maryland’s lead to 3-1 less than two minutes after Rose’s goal.

The Terps’ contributions continued to come from all over the field as just a little over a minute after Maryland’s third score of the game, forward Margot Lawn sprinted into the interior of the defense and delivered a thunderous shot that hit the cage directly in the middle to give Maryland the imposing 4-1 lead.

Maryland took complete advantage of their scoring opportunities, scoring goals on all four of their shots in the first frame of the game.

In the second quarter, Rose ran up the right side into Indiana territory and delivered a pass to a sprinting midfielder/forward Taylor Mason, who shot a Sportscenter top-10 worthy goal as she twirled and fired a shot that swished through the net to extend the lead to 5-1.

Indiana’s Kennedy Reardon infiltrated Maryland’s defense and delivered a goal that barely skimmed past Maryland’s goalie Christina Calandra, to trim the Terps lead to 5-2.

Maryland responded instantly, as forward Bibi Donraadt showcased quick ball-handling. She shot a high shot that entered the top left side of Indiana’s cage as Maryland increased its lead to 6-2.

With Donraadt’s goal, Maryland had six different players score a goal in the match up to that point and the Terps’ offense continued to strike.

With about four minutes left in the third quarter, Castaldo scored Maryland’s seventh goal of a rebound after Indiana’s goalie made a jumping save, which wasn’t enough to impede Castaldo’s aggression.

With a little over 14 minutes remaining in the game, Emma DeBerdine made the defense pay in transition that set Rose up for her second goal of the game as she put the Terps up, 8-2.

Maryland (6-2) continues to dominate Indiana in Big Ten play, increasing its all-time series lead to a 9-0 record versus the Hoosiers.

The Terps have not registered at least eight goals in a game since a Nov. 2, 2018 victory in the Big Ten tournament versus Ohio State, in which they won 9-1.

Three things to know

1. Maryland bounced back in a big way in the first quarter. After the Terps conceded the opening goal of the match to the Hoosiers in the first frame, Maryland answered back with an explosion of offense. The Terps proceeded to score on all four of its shots in the first quarter to help them grow a dominant lead early on in the contest. From there, Indiana wasn’t able to respond after Maryland’s first-quarter run.

2. The Terps’ strength in numbers cannot be underestimated. Maryland showcased why its depth is one of the greatest strengths in a talented Big Ten conference, as all of its goals each came from a different gifted athlete. Lawn, Rose, Mason, Greenwalt and Tornetta scored the Terps’ five goals in the first half to carry the program to a win. Donraadt and Castaldo added goals in the second half to bring Maryland up to a total of seven different goal scorers.

3. Maryland’s record remains unblemished versus Indiana. Coming into the game, Maryland had been a perfect 8-0 versus the Hoosiers. Since the Terps joined the Big Ten in 2014, Indiana has had their hands full with the Terrapins. Maryland recorded eight goals in a game for the first time since a Big Ten semifinal game versus the Ohio State Buckeyes on Nov. 2, 2018, in which they dominated 9-1.