March 3, 2006

College Park, Md. - The No. 2 Maryland men's lacrosse team hits the road for the second-straight week as it travels to Durham, N.C. for a showdown with No. 1 Duke. The game is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. start at Duke's Koskinen Stadium.

• Maryland is coming off of an impressive 10-4 road victory over No. 7 Georgetown in its 2006 season opener. Sophomore attackman Max Ritz led the Terrapin offense with a career-best five points on four goals (another career high) and one assist. Older brother Xander Ritz also had a career day vs. the Hoyas, scoring a personal-best four goals.

• The Blue Devils are 3-0 on the season and are coming off of a 2005 season that saw them come within a goal of the NCAA title. The only loss for Duke from that 2005 squad is National Goalie of the Year Aaron Fenton, but the Blue Devils return 2005 Attackman of the Year Matt Danowski. Duke opened it's 2006 season with a 20-3 win over Bulter on Feb. 18. The Blue Devils followed that win with a 13-2 victory over Villanova on Feb. 25. They went to 3-0 by beating Bellarmine 16-1 on Tuesday.

Top 5 Terp Tidbits
• Maryland leads the all-time series with Duke 53-15.

• The Terps' 53 wins over the Blue Devils are the most over any oppnent in Maryland's 81-year history.

• Of the Terps' 170 goals in 2005, 108 (63.5%) came from this senior class, including 38 by Joe Walters.

• In seven career games vs. Duke, Joe Walters has scored 18 goals and added five assists for 23 points, the most vs. any opponent.

• Goalie Harry Alford averaged more than 10 saves per game in three meetings with Duke in 2005.

No. 1 vs. No. 2
• For the first time in the long Maryland-Duke rivalry the Terrapins and Blue Devils enter the game as the top two ranked teams in the nation.

• For the Terps, the No. 2 ranking is the highest ranking since April 5, 2004 when they were ranked No. 1. Maryland dropped to No. 3 the following week following a 9-6 loss to eventual NCAA runner-up Navy at Byrd Stadium. The Terrapins held the top ranking for two weeks, having gained the top spot on March 29, 2004 after beating fourth-ranked North Carolina, 10-9, in Chapel Hill.

• This will be Maryland's first 1 vs. 2 match-up since March 28, 1987 when the second-ranked Terps hosted No. 1 North Carolina. Maryland took over the No. 1 ranking after handing the Tar Heels a 16-6 loss. The Terps held onto the top ranking the rest of the season before falling to Johns Hopkins in the NCAA Semifinals.

Coaching Match-Up
• Coach Dave Cottle has an 8-9 career record against Duke while coaching at Loyola and Maryland. He was 4-4 vs. Duke while at Loyola. He is 4-5 vs. the Blue Devils as the coach at Maryland, but his Terp teams have outscored Duke 87-83 in the nine games over the last four seasons.

• Now in his 23rd season as a head coach, Cottle comes into the game with a 227-87 career record for a 72.3 win percentage, third-highest among active coaches. His win total is eighth among active coaches. He is 46-17 (73.8) in his four-plus seasons at Maryland. Mike Pressler is 226-100 (69.3) in 22-plus years as a head coach. His win total is eighth among active coaches. He is in his 16th year at Duke with a 150-80 (65.2).

Series History Vs. Duke
• Maryland and Duke battle for the 69th time on Saturday afternoon. The Terps hold a 53-15 edge (.779) in the series that dates back to 1940. Maryland's 53 wins against the Blue Devils are the most against any opponent. Eleven of the last 29 games in the series have been decided by one goal; seven of the last 17, including three of the last nine -- all won by Duke.

• Last season the two teams played three times with the Blue Devils winning two of the three games. It was the second time in the series the two squads played three times in a season. In 1992 the two teams played in early March, again in the ACC Tournament and in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Maryland won all three games that season.

• In the NCAA Semifinals, Duke ended Maryland's season with a 18-9 defeat at Lincoln Financial Field. Bill McGlone gave the Terps a 1-0 lead, but the Blue Devils responded with nine unanswered goals and took a 10-3 lead into halftime. Joe Walters scored three times in the third quarter, but Maryland could not close the defecit.

• In last season's ACC Final, Maryland turned in its finest defensive effort of the year. The Terps held Duke, the nation's highest scoring offense, scoreless for more than 40 minutes en route to a 9-5 victory at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on May 1. ACC Tournament MVP Harry Alford made 15 saves on the afternoon, while freshman Will Dalton helped the Terps control the ball on face-offs, winning 7-of-10 draws. Offensively Maryland was led by All-American Joe Walters who scored his second straight hat trick vs. the Blue Devils, while adding an assist. Freshman attackman Max Ritz also chipped in a pair for goals in the victory.

• The 2005 regular season game saw Maryland dominated Duke at the Maryland Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex, but the Blue Devils found a way to get out of College Park with a 10-8 victory. All-American Joe Walters scored a hat trick for the Terps, but Duke outscored Maryland 6-3 in the second half to secure the win. Michael Phipps scored two goals and added an assist for his second career three-point game.

• The Terps dominated the series from 1955 through 1988, winning all 27 meetings.

• The teams have met three times in the NCAA Tournament with Maryland winning 13-11 in 1992, Duke retaliating 14-9 in 1994, and the Blue Devils taking last year's match-up 18-9.

Terrapin/Blue Devil Connections
• Maryland and Duke have several former high school teammates suiting up for Saturday's match-up. Fourteen (6 Terps, 8 Blue Devils) will be reunited with former high school mates on Saturday.

• Notably, former Landon School products will square off as the Terps' Brendan Healy, Mike Griswold and Rob Morrison will face a quartet of Duke players in Peter Lamade, David Evans, Gibbs Fogarty and John Walsh. All seven were coached by Rob Bordley, father of former Terp J.R. Bordley.

• The game with Duke is also a family affair for the Hartofilis family as Maryland senior Michael is the youngest of four lacrosse playing brothers. Older brothers Nick and Chris played lacrosse at Duke in the late 90s.

All-World Reunion
• The Maryland-Duke game will also be a mini reunion of players from the United States U-19 World Championship gold medal winning team. Maryland's Bill McGlone and Harry Alford will be on opposing sidelines from summer teammates Matt Danowski, Kyle Dowd, Peter Lamade, Nick Glenn, Bret Thompson and Matt Zash, all of whom play for Duke.

• In addition to the players from Team USA, Maryland's Josh Ardossi was a member of the Australian team, while Duke's Zack Greer was on the Canadian team. Both players were selected to the All-World team along with Duke's Danowski.

Individual Terps vs. Duke
• Junior Joe Walters leads all current Terps in scoring against Duke with 23 points on 18 goals and five assists in seven career games. He has also picked up 14 groundballs vs. the Blue Devils, the most vs. any opponent. In three regular season meetings with Duke, Walters has scored seven goals and added four assists for 11 points.

• Overall, 11 current Terps have points vs. Duke. Bill McGlone had his first career hat trick in the 2004 regular season win. In the 2005 NCAA game he scored twice and added an assist. For his career, McGlone has nine goals and four assists for 13 points.

• Ryan Lang and Michael Phipps each posted their first career goals in the 2004 regular seasonwin over Duke.

Defense Proves To Be Strong Again
• Heading into the 2005 season the big question mark surrounding the Terps was their defense. The entire starting close defense from 2004, consisting National Defensive Player of the Year Lee Zink and All-Americans Chris Passavia and Dave Wagner, Team MVP short-stick D-middie Paul Gillette, and All-America goalie Tim McGinnis were lost to graduation. Taking that group's place figured to be no easy task, but it proved to be easier than previously imagined. With nearly the entire 2005 defense returning for 2006 take a look at how this year's defense stacks up to the previous two:

• During the last two seasons, Maryland held its' opponents scoreless for long stretches of game time. The 2004 Terps kept opponents scoreless for stretches of 20 or more minutes eight times. Last year Maryland did it on seven occasions, and was just seconds away from keeping the high-powered Duke (1st meeting) and Navy offenses off the board for more than 20 minutes. This season the Terrapin defense has done it in its' only game of the season.

• At Georgetown in the season opener, the Hoyas took a 2-1 lead with 0:13 left in the first quarter. Maryland's defense, lead by sophomore goalie Harry Alford, who totaled 14 saves in the 10-4 victory, didn't allow the seventh-ranked Hoyas another goal until 7:09 in the fourth quarter, a total time of 38:05. Of the Hoyas' four goals, two were scored during a Maryland penalty.

Maryland In Season Openers
• Maryland is now 77-3-1 (.957) lifetime record in season openers dating back to the 1924 season. The Terps have won their last 13 openers and 21 of the last 22, with the only loss coming to Duke in 1993, when it fell to Duke 9-5 on March 6.

• After losing their 1925 opener to Yale, 5-3, the Terps went on to win 40 consecutive season openers from 1926 through 1967. The streak was broken when Maryland tied Princeton, 6-6, in the 1968 opener. Following the deadlock, Maryland went on to win its next 14 openers, giving the Terps a 54-0-1 record over a 57-year span (Maryland did not field a team in 1944 and 1945 due to World War II.)

13 Straight In Season Openers
• Following their 10-4 win at No. 7 Georgetown, the Terps will enter the 2007 with a 13-game winning streak in season openers. Five of those wins came against Villanova (1994-98) and the last eight over Denver, Mount St. Mary's, Air Force, Hobart, Duke and Georgetown (three times). Over the 13-year stretch, Maryland outscored its foes 182-66 (an average score of 14.0-5.1) in those games.

• The Terps have not allowed more than seven goals to any opponent in a season opener over the last 13 years. Maryland has not allowed an opponent to score 10 or more goals in a season opener since Syracuse beat the Terps, 16-13 on March 9, 1983.

Streaking Terps
• Two Terps entered the 2006 season game with point-scoring streaks and both emerged from the Georgetown game in tact.

• Joe Walters' point scoring streak is now at 34 games following a three assist effort vs. the Hoyas.

• Xander Ritz now has a point scoring streak of 18 games after scoreing a career-best four goals at Georgetown.

• The last time Walters did not score a point in a game was May 24, 2003 in the NCAA Semifinals vs. eventual National Champion Virginia. For Ritz, he was last held scoreless in the 2004 NCAA Quarterfinal game vs. Princeton.

Three Terps Named To Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List
• Seniors Joe Walters and Bill McGlone are joined by junior Harry Alford on the preseason "Watch List" for the 2006 Tewaaraton Trophy. Walters is a two-time semifinalist for the award and McGlone was on the preseason watch list in 2005. For Alford, this is his first appearance on the watch list.

• The Tewaaraton Trophy is awarded each year to the top male and female varsity lacrosse player, as chosen by the selection committee. The sixth annual award will be given at a banquet in June. The event will take place in Washington D.C. at the National Geographic Society headquarters.

Terps' 81st Season of Lacrosse
• The Terps boast an all-time record of 662-214-4, dating back to the first varsity team in 1924 (a team was not fielded in 1944 and 1945 due to World War II). Maryland has finished every one of its previous 80 seasons with a .500 or better record, including last season when the Terps went 11-6. The program reached the 650-win milestone with a 16-12 win over Army in the first round of the 2004 NCAA tournament at Byrd Stadium.

• Since 2000, Maryland is 69-25 for a .726 win percentage. In the decade of the 1990s, Maryland recorded its most wins in any decade with a 95-47 record. The .669 winning percentage matched Maryland's win percentage of the 1980s when the Terps went 83-41 and also compiled a .669 win percentage.

Terps Second In Strength Of Schedule
• According to Face-Off Magazine, Maryland's 2006 schedule is ranked as the second toughest in the NCAA behind only North Carolina.

• The Terps are scheduled to play eight teams ranked in the preseason Inside Lacrosse media poll and two other opponents that received votes.

2006 Captains: Healy, Lang, McGlone, X. Ritz
• Four players have been named team captains for the 2006 season. The quartet, which was voted on by the team during the fall season, consists of seniors Brendan Healy, Ryan Lang, Bill McGlone and Xander Ritz.