March 23, 2006

College Park, Md. - The No. 4 Maryland men's lacrosse team (5-1) travels down Tobacco Road for the second time this season for a key ACC game. This time the opponent will be North Carolina (2-6), who is coming off of a heartbreaking 11-8 loss at Duke last Saturday. In that game, the Tar Heels led 6-0 before the Blue Devils outscored them 11-2 in the final 41:50. The game is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start at Fetzer Field in Chapel Hill, N.C.

• The Terps enter the game off of a dominating 1-42 victory over Dartmouth this past Tuesday in College Park. Maryland is 1-0 in ACC play this season, having defeated then-No. 1 Duke 8-7 in overtime in Durham, N.C., on March 4.

• Carolina has lost its last six games after starting the season 2-0. After neutral site wins over Ohio State and Air Force, the Tar Heels have dropped decisions to Denver (11-8), Navy (11-3), Penn (13-4), Notre Dame (9-7), Hofstra (6-5) and Duke (11-8).

Top 5 Terp Tidbits
• Maryland leads the all-time series with North Carolina 32-18.

• The Terps' are 14-8 vs. the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill with the last loss coming in 1996 (17-16 UNC).

• Of the Terps' 89 points (56 G, 33 A) in 2006, 65 (73.0%) have been produced by seniors, including 24 by Xander Ritz and 23 by Joe Walters.

• Walters leads current Terps in scoring vs. Carolina with eight goals. Michael Hartofilis is second with five points on one goal and four assists.

• Dave Cottle won his 50th game as.head coach of the Maryland Terrapins in the Terps' 14-2 win over Dartmouth (3/21).

Coaching Match-Up
• Head coach Dave Cottle has a 9-10 record vs. North Carolina, winning three of his last four games vs. the Heels. Against UNC coach John Haus, Cottle has a 4-2 record. Cottle led Loyola to a 14-5 over Haus-led Johns Hopkins in 1999 and beat him again in 2002, 2004 and 2005 while with Maryland. Overall, Cottle has a 230-88 record in 24 years at Maryland and Loyola. He is 50-18 with the Terps in four-plus seasons.

• Carolina's John Haus is in his fifth year at his alma mater has a 38-36 (.514). Overall in 12 seasons, he has a 106-64 (.621) record at Washington College, Hopkins and UNC.

The Maryland-North Carolina Series
• Since Maryland and North Carolina began their series in 1964, Maryland holds a 32-18 (.640) advantage. The Terps have won nine of the last 10, with the lone loss coming in 2003, a 10-6 UNC victory at Byrd Stadium on March 22. Maryland has not lost to North Carolina in Chapel Hill since 1996, a 17-16 Tar Heel win.

• Last year Terrapin goalie Harry Alford stopped 20 UNC shots to lead the fourth-ranked Terps to a 9-4 win over Carolina in College Park. Michael Hartofilis turned in the finest performance of his Maryland career with a goal and a career-best three assists. Brendan Healy, Michael Phipps and Joe Walters each scored twice in the Maryland win.

• The last meeting in Chapel Hill saw Maryland pick up a thrilling 10-9 victory at Fetzer Field on March 27. The Tar Heels used a five-goal third quarter to take a 8-7 lead into the fourth, but two goals by Maryland's Mike Brown and another by Joe Walters gaves the Terps a 3-1 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter and the 10-9 win. Walters finished the game with four goals, while Michael Phipps scored two goals in the victory.

• In the 2003 at Byrd Stadium, two years ago, No. 13 North Carolina upset the No. 2 Terps as goalie Paul Spellman had a career-game with 25 saves. Joe Walters scored two goals for the Terps in the defeat. Bill McGlone also added a tally in the win. UNC was paced by Austin Garrison, who had four goals.

• Six of the last 14 meetings with North Carolina have been decided by one goal.

• The Terps lost their only NCAA Tournament meeting with the Heels in 1986, 12-10.

• In ACC Tournament action, Maryland picked up its first win over UNC since the tournament started in 1989 with a 13-8 win on April 17, 1998. The Terps had dropped the first six games against the Heels in the ACC's all during a stretch from 1990 to 1995

Individual Terps vs. North Carolina
• Six Terps have posted points against UNC over their careers. Joe Walters leads the way with eight points on eight goals, including a four goal effort in 2004's 10-9 victory at Fetzer Field and adding another two scores last season

• Michael Phipps scored two goals in each of his two games vs. UNC. Bill McGlone has scored one goal in each of his three games vs. the Tar Heels.

• Brendan Healy tallied two scores in last year's contest, while Michael Hartofilis upped his career total vs. the Tar Heels to five, the second most among active Terps, with a one-goal, three-assist outing.

• In goal, Harry Alford posted the second 20-save performance of his career in the 2005 meeting, while Teddy Murphy saw some late-game action.

• Maryland only won eight of 17 face-offs last season, but Will Dalton was six of nine at the X to help the Terrapins chew up the clock and ice the game.

Maryland-North Carolina Connections
• There are 31 players combined from the Maryland and North Carolina rosters that will face high school teammates in Saturday's game.

• Seven schools from Maryland will be represented by both teams, including St. Paul's which has five alumni in the game and Boy's Latin, Loyola and Severn will have four representatives each.

• 14 players on the North Carolina roster hail from the state of Maryland. The only player for the Terps from North Carolina is Chris Feifs (Durham, N.C.).

Home vs. Away
• A lot is made in sports about the home-field advantage, but for the Maryland men's lacrosse team it has been just as good away from home as it has been in College Park. The Terps have played three games at home and three on the road and the numbers show just a slight edge for Terps when they are on familiar ground.

• Maryland is averaging 9.3 goals per game in its home games and that number dips to just 8.9 on the road.

• Shooting percentage, which is one of Coach Dave Cottle's key statistics, is another tell-tale stat, but it shows that Maryland is actually shooting the same no matter where it plays. In College Park the Terps are shooting 25.9% (29/112) and on the road they are shooting 26.0% (27/104). Shots on goal percentage shows a clear advantage for road games, 62.5% to 56.2%.

• Xander Ritz, the team's leading scorer overall, is also the Terps' top scorer on the road with 12 goals and an assist for 13 points, but All-American Joe Walters leads the squad in scoring at home with eight goals and six assists for 14 points. Ritz and Walters are each second in the other category with Walters having four goals and five assists on the road and Ritz totaling 11 points on six goals and five assists.

• The Maryland defense has been dominating no matter where it has played this season. As a team, the Terps are allowing opponents just 4.8 goals per game at home and that rises to just 5.0 gpg on the road. Junior All-American Steve Whittenberg leads Maryland with 12 caused turnovers at home and shares top spot in road games with junior long pole Ryan Clarke with six CT's. In goal, Harry Alford, a Kelly Award candidate, has made 25 saves in the team's home games with a 4.94 GAA and a .658 save pct. On the road the junior has racked up 34 saves with a 5.01 GAA and a .694 save pct.

Terps Among NCAA & ACC Stat Leaders
• The Terps are off to a 5-1 start and have several players near the top the NCAA and ACC stat charts (games through 3/18).

• Xander Ritz is the conference's leading scorer in goals per game (3.0) and is second in points per game (3.8) Nationally, the senior midfielder/attackman's averages place him fifth in goals per game and 11th in points per game. He also is the ACC leader in man-up goals per game (1.0) and is tied for first with two game-winning goals. Ritz is also ranked fourth in shots per game in the conference.

• Joe Walters has climbed several of the ACC charts in recent weeks (and this doesn't even count his seven-point performance vs. Dartmouth). The senior attackman is fifth in the ACC in assists per game (1.6) and is sixth in points per game (3.2). The All-American is first in the conference in shots per game, taking 8.2 per contest. Nationally, Walters' assists per game average ranks him 19th.

• Michael Phipps checks in this week among the ACC's leaders in assists per game, tying for seventh with 1.0 apg. Other offensive players in the rankings include Brendan Healy (10th in shots per game), Max Ritz and Bill McGlone (tied for fifth with two man-up goals).

• David Tamberrino moved up a spot to second in face-off percentage (45/78, .577). Nationally, the senior face-off specialist is ranked 12th. Thomas Alford makes the ACC list in 10th position (3/6, .500).

• In goal, Harry Alford remains first in saves per game in the conference (11.40) and second in save percentage (67.1) and goals-against average (5.46 GAA). In the NCAA, Alford's saves per game and goals-against averages rank him third in both catergories.

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.

• 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 already done it four times in its first six games.

• At No. 7 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.

• Even though the Terp defense did not hold No. 1 Duke scoreless for any 20-minute stretch, it did hold one of the nation's most prolific offenses to the Blue Devils' lowest scoring output of the season. Prior to scoring just seven goals vs. Maryland, Duke had put up 20 on Butler, 13 on Villanova and 16 on Bellarmine for an average of 16.3 goals per game.

• In their first home game of 2006 against No. 15 Towson, the Terps dominated the first half of play, holding the Tigers scoreless for a 4-0 Maryland advantage at the half. Towson didn't get on the board until the 8:28 mark of the third quarter, which ended its scoring drought to 36:32. The Terp defense caused 14 of the Tigers' 24 turnovers, including a career-best five CT's by Steve Whittenberg. Maryland also controlled the game on the ground, beating Towson in groundballs 40-21.

• Maryland may have lost its first game of 2006 to Bucknell, 7-6 in 2OT, but the Terrapin defense turned in another stellar effort, led by junior All-American Steve Whittenberg, who surpassed his Towson-effort by causing six Bison turnovers and picking up five groundballs. As a team, the Terps caused 15 of Bucknell's 23 turnovers and won the groundball battle, 37-22. Even though Bucknell scored twice in each of the first three quarters for a 6-3 lead heading into the fourth, Maryland's D shutout the Bison in the fourth, allowing the Terrapin offense to score three unanswered goals to tie the game. Overall the Terps held Bucknell scoreless for 27:47 before giving up the game-winning goal with nine seconds left in the second overtime.

• It didn't get to 20 scoreless minutes, but that's because the clock ran out during Maryland's dominating defensive performance in its 9-4 win at UMBC. The Terp defense gave up just the four goals and there was only one assist on the Retriever scores. Maryland held just a one-goal lead going into the fourth quater, but the defense shutout UMBC in the final period to allow the offense to score four unanswered goals. It was the sixth time this season that Maryland has not allowed a goal in a quarter.

• It will be hard to top the Terrapin defense's effort in the 14-2 thrashing of Dartmouth. While it is impressive that the Terps held the Big Green scoreless for the first 53:32 of the game, it is even more impressive that Dartmouth did not even get off a shot until the 6:56 mark of the second quarter. The Big Green comitted 25 turnovers in the game with 19 of those caused by a Maryland player, including four by Ryan Clarke and three each by Joe Cinosky and Ray Megill.

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

• Joe Walters' point scoring streak is now at 39 games. He tallied three assists vs. the Hoyas in the '06 season opener. He followed that up with a one-goal, two-assist effort at Duke. Against Towson the senior came out firing and finished the game with three goals and an assist for a game-high four points. After scoring the game's first goal, Walters also dished out two assists for a three-point effort vs. Bucknell. Three fourth-quarter goals helped the Terps toa 9-4 win at UMBC. The streak was never in jeopardy vs. Dartmouth as Walters picked up an assist on the game's first goal. In total, Walters tied his career-best with seven points vs. the Big Green on four goals and three assists.

• Xander Ritz now has a point scoring streak of 23 games. After scoring a then-career-best four goals at Georgetown, the senior midfielder/attackman scored five goals to re-set his career high and added an assist at Duke. While Ritz didn't dominate Towson like he did the Hoyas and Blue Devils, he still managed a goal and an assist in Maryland's 9-6 win. Ritz continued his torrid scoring pace against Bucknell with two goals and two assists, his fourth multi-point game in four games this season. Ritz's fifth multi-point game of the season came with a three-goal effort at UMBC. Rtiz not only kept up his point-scoring streak with five points on three goals and two assists vs. Dartmouth, but it was also the sixth-straight multi-point game for the Terrapin senior.

• 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.

• While not as long of a streak as Walters' or Ritz's, Bill McGlone has managed to score a goal in each of Maryland's six games this season.

In College Park Under Coach Cottle
• Home field advantage is a big factor in college men's lacrosse and it's no different for the Maryland Terrapins under Coach Dave Cottle. Since Cottle took over the reigns of the Terps' program prior to the 2002 season, Maryland is 17-5 (.773) at Byrd Stadium. During the four-plus seasons, Maryland has had to play seven games (6-2) at the Field Hockey/Lacrosse Complex. If you add those to Maryland's Byrd Stadium total, the Terrapins are 24-7 (.774) in games played in College Park since 2002. The Dartmouth game was be the first for a Cottle-coached Terrapin team at Ludwig Field (a 14-2 Terp victory).

Three on 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 666-215-4, 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 73-26 for a .737 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.

• In the latest IL Media Poll, seven of Maryland's opponents are ranked in the Top 20, including three of the top five and five of the top 10. In addition to those seven teams, Bucknell, Dartmouth and North Carolina are among others receiving votes and are also 2006 Terrapin opponents.

• Maryland has already played two Top 10 teams on the road and are 2-0 in those contests. Additionally Maryland topped No. 15 Towson in its home opener.

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.