No. 9 Maryland field hockey rolls over No. 12 Duke, 4-0

Just four minutes into the game, defender Riley Donnelly found forward Bibi Donraadt who corralled in the assist and swept the ball past No. 12 Duke’s goalie to put No. 9 Maryland field hockey up, 1-0. Donraadt’s energy and tenacity were noticeable from the onset of the game and she was one of the most dominant players on the field for Maryland.

Just a few minutes later with just eight minutes left in the first quarter, Donraadt came right back on the offensive end once more and scored after she rebounded a shot into the net off a shot from her speedy teammate, midfielder Kyler Greenwalt extending Maryland’s lead to two while Duke remained scoreless.

Maryland responded to its loss against No. 7 Boston College in a major way by applying maximum pressure on Duke’s offense and scoring an impressive four goals to defeat the Blue Devils, 4-0.

Maryland returned to Williams Field at Jack Katz Stadium to take on the hosting Blue Devils in the finale of the Big Ten/ACC Cup.

The Terps wasted no time attacking Duke, as Donraadt passed the ball to midfielder Julianna Tornetta as she took her first shot of the game. However, Tornetta misfired her attempt to get the Terps on the board as both teams remained scoreless.

With about 12 minutes remaining in the first quarter, Tornetta made another great play to draw a penalty corner for the Terps but was unable to cash in as Duke’s outstanding goalie rejected their shot.

However, Donraadt quickly scored her back-to-back goals within a few minutes of each other. First came the forward’s goal off an assist from Tornetta and then the goal off of Greenwalt’s shot rebound extended Maryland’s lead quickly to 2-0.

Donraadt registered an impressive two goals and four shots on goal in the first quarter to give the Terps a comfortable lead.

The Terrapins’ defense was swarming the Blue Devils by sending several players to pressure the ball to generate turnovers to get the ball back to their high-scoring offense. With 6:15 left in the first half, the Blue Devils did not register a single shot due to the Terrapins’ intense defensive pressure.

Eventually, the Terps turned defense into offense in the blink of an eye with 3:45 left in the second quarter. Redshirt senior forward Mayv Clune applied pressure on the Blue Devils and swiftly stole the ball, then delivered a quick assist to freshman forward Hope Rose for the first goal of her promising career.

It was obvious that head coach Missy Meharg’s group focused on defense this game, as they were constantly around the ball and looking for the glowing weak spots in Duke’s offensive armor. The Terps allowed the Blue Devils to take just two penalty corners, far less than the 10.5 Duke averaged before this meeting.

The pressure continued in the second half as sophomore forward/midfielder Anna Castaldo and junior defender Maura Verleg pressured the Blue Devils on their side of the field with unique angles and traps to steal the ball to put Maryland at an advantage.

Pam Bustin’s Blue Devils squad struggled mightily to generate any offense versus the Terps. The Blue Devils received their first penalty corner with 10:49 in the third quarter but were unable to capitalize on one of the team’s lone opportunities.

The Blue Devils are missing their leading scorer from last season in Darcy Bourne, who generated a scoring and a fluid offense for Bustin’s group.

Maryland’s star goalie Noelle Frost played a major role in registering opportune saves and shunning the Blue Devils away from the net.

With 2:40 in the third quarter, junior forward Margot Lawn delivered a swift pass to Tornetta, as she fired a great goal into the Blue Devils’ net to extend their lead to 4-0.

From that point on, Maryland was fully in control of the match and never gave the Blue Devils any kind of chance to form a miraculous comeback. Both sides were held scoreless in the final period of the game, but that quarter evidently tilted to Maryland’s favor as the Terps eventually closed out the four-goal victory on the road as time expired.

Three things to know

1. The Terps’ defense was out to make a statement. Defenders Greenwalt and Tornetta were on the front line to pressure the Blue Devils every move, and they did so brilliantly which led to a Maryland victory. Maryland’s defense held Duke to just two penalty corners, four shot attempts and zero shots on goal. Before this matchup, the Blue Devils were averaging 9.6 shots per game, showing that the Terps’ defense was as good as they could have been on Sunday.

2. Maryland went scoreless on penalty corners. Although the Terps earned seven corners during the contest, they could not turn any of those opportunities into points. However, they still walked away with four goals on the afternoon, which ties their season-high. If Maryland wants to continue its success, it will have to identify ways to capitalize on its opponents’ mistakes.

3. Star freshman forward Hope Rose scored her first goal as a Terp. The highly-touted freshman came to College Park with great expectations to play and learn from legendary head coach Missy Meharg. Rose excelled on the field against Duke and even scored her first career goal. She will likely be an integral piece for this program and she’s certainly a player to keep an eye out for moving forward.