April 26, 2006

College Park, Md. - Head coach Dave Cottle leads the No. 3 Maryland men's lacrosse team into the 2006 ACC Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament as the No. 2 seed and will take on No. 3 seed North Carolina. The teams face-off in the men's semifinal game at 8:00 p.m. at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The winner will meet No. 1 seed Virginia in the finals on Sunday, April 30, at 3:30 p.m.

• This year marks the first time that the Terps and the Tar Heels will meet in the tournament since 1998. The Terps are 1-3 all-time against Carolina in ACC semifinal games.

• Maryland is the host school for this year's tournament. The Terps also hosted last year when they won their second-straight ACC tournament title. Maryland defeated Virginia, 9-8 in overtime in the semis, before topping top-seed Duke, 9-5, in the finals.

Friday Coverage of ACC Men's & Women's Lacrosse Championship to be Broadcast Live at www.theacc.com

Lacrosse Championship Page

Live Webcasting Site
(Registration Required. Available on event date only.)

Raycom Sports and Lincoln Financial Sports, in conjunction with the Atlantic Coast Conference, are pleased to offer exclusive live video webcasts of the 2006 ACC Men's and Women's Lacrosse Championship on April 28 (complete schedule listed below). Fans with broadband (high-speed) connections on personal computers will be able to watch live coverage of the event through Raycom Sports & Lincoln Financial Sports at www.theacc.com.

To access the webcasts viewers simply need to log on to www.theacc.com and click on the ACC Lacrosse "Live Webcast" Championship button below the "Events" tab of the home page. The webcasts are offered as part of an initial test period and will be provided free of charge to the user. Viewers will need to complete a brief registration prior to viewing the events. Live coverage will be held from M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland.

Webcast Schedule for 2006 ACC Men's & Women's Lacrosse Championship (Baltimore, Maryland)

Friday, April 28
3:00p Women's Semifinal #1
5:30p Women's Semifinal #2
8:00p Men's First Round Game

Top 5 Terp Tidbits
• Maryland leads the all-time series with North Carolina 33-18.

• The Terps' are 1-6 all-time vs. the Tar Heels in the ACC Tournament.

• Of the Terps' 172 points (105 G, 67 A) in 2006, 65 (65.7%) have been produced by seniors, including 44 by Joe Walters and 32 by Xander Ritz.

• Walters leads current Terps in scoring vs. Carolina with 13 goals. Michael Hartofilis, Bill McGlone and Michael Phipps each have five points vs. UNC.

• Fifteen different Terps have scored goals in 2006, including four who have scored more than 10 each.

Coaching Match-Up
• Head coach Dave Cottle has an 11-10 record vs. North Carolina, winning four of his last five games vs. the Heels. Against UNC coach John Haus, Cottle has a 5-2 record. Cottle led Loyola to a 14-5 over Haus-led Johns Hopkins in 1999 and beat him again in 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2006 while with Maryland. Overall, Cottle has a 234-90 record in 24 years at Maryland and Loyola. He is 53-20 with the Terps in four-plus seasons.

• Carolina's John Haus is in his fifth year at his alma mater has a 40-39 (.505). Overall in 12 seasons, he has a 107-67 (.615) 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 33-18 (.647) 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.

• In this season's regular season meeting Joe Walters scored five goals to lead the No. 4 Terps to a 9-6 win at North Carolina on March 25. Sophomore attackman Max Ritz added two goals, while Bill McGlone and Michael Phipps each scored one. Defensively, Harry Alford stopped eight shots and allowed just six goals in net for the Terps.

• 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 2004 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 game at Byrd Stadium, 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
• Eight Terps have posted points against UNC over their careers. Joe Walters leads the way with 13 points on 13 goals, including a four goal effort in 2004's 10-9 victory at Fetzer Field. He added another two scores last season and posted the only five-goal performance of his career earlier this season at UNC.

• Michael Phipps scored two goals in each of his first two games vs. UNC and added a goal and an assist earlier this season.

• 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 and dished out two assists this season.

• Xander Ritz has four points in three games vs. the Tar Heels, but is still looking for his first goal against Carolina.

• Max Ritz scored twice in the 2006 regular season meeting between the two schools.

• Michael Hartofilis upped his career total vs. the Tar Heels to five, tying him for the second most among active Terps, with a one-goal, three-assist outing in the 2005 game.

• Junior long-pole Ryan Clarke tallied his first of three assists on the season in the victory over UNC.

• In goal, Harry Alford posted the second 20-save performance of his career in the 2005 meeting. This season the All-American made eight saves, while allowing only six goals. Teddy Murphy saw some late-game action in 2005.

• 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. This year, face-off specialist David Tamberrino won nine of 17 draws for the Terps.

Maryland-North Carolina Connections
• There are 31 players combined from the Maryland and North Carolina rosters that will face high school teammates in Friday'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 better away from home than it has been in College Park. The Terps have played six games at home (3-3) and five on the road (5-0) and the numbers show an edge for the Terps when they are in enemy territory.

• After putting up 18 goals on Sacred Heart at Byrd Stadium on April 18, Maryland is now averaging 9.46 goals per game in its home games, which is just slightly more than the 9.36 goals the Terps average on the road. Before the SHU game the Terps were scoring less than eight goals per game at home.

• Shooting percentage, which is one of Coach Dave Cottle's key statistics, is another tell-tale stat, and it shows that Maryland is shooting much better on the road. In College Park the Terps are shooting 23.7% (58/245) and on the road they are shooting 27.3% (47/172). Shots on goal percentage shows a clear advantage for road games, 61.0% to 57.1%.

• Player of the year candidate Joe Walters, the team's leading scorer overall, is also the Terps' top scorer on the road with 15 goals and seven assist for 22 points. Xander Ritz has 15 points in road games on 13 goals and two assists. Walters also leads the squad in scoring at home with 13 goals and nine assists for 22 points. Ritz is second in home scoring, totaling 17 points on 11 goals and six assists.

• The Maryland defense has been dominating no matter where it has played this season, but the 15-5 loss at home to Virginia swings the numbers in favor of the road. As a team, the Terps are allowing opponents 6.36 goals per game (just 4.8 gpg before the UVa game) at home and just 4.9 gpg on the road. In goal, Harry Alford, a Kelly Award candidate, has made 43 saves in the team's home games with a 6.76 GAA and a .623 save pct. On the road the junior has racked up 51 saves with a 5.04 GAA and a .671 save pct.

Shooting Tells The Story
• The difference between winning and losing for Maryland this season is simple - when the Terps shoot well they win. Coach Dave Cottle is on record saying that good teams will shoot at least 30%. As it turns out 30% is the magic number for the Terps this season.

• In Maryland's five victories this season the Terrapins are shooting nearly 30% (29.3%, 88 goals/300 shots). In their three losses the Terps' shooting percentage is cut in half to 14.5% (17 goals/117 shots).

• Maybe just as telling is the shots on goal percentage. Maryland has put 184 of its 300 shots on goal in its seven wins (61.3%), but just 61 of 117 shots were on net in three defeats (52.1%).

• Sometime things are not always black and white. The Terps are actually averaging more groundballs per game in their three losses (39.3) than in their eight wins (32.1). Maryland is also facing-off slightly better in defeat, winning 61.0% as opposed to 57.2% in victories.

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 six times in its first 10 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.

• Maryland turned in another impressive defensive performance in its 9-6 win at North Carolina to raise the Terps' record to 6-1. For the fifth time this season, Maryland held an opponent scoreless for more than 20 minutes - this time 21:26, bridging the third and fourth quarters, during which the Terrapin offense was able to score five unanswered goals. Ryan Clarke and Jimmy Borell were impressive in the defensive midfield, combining for eight groundballs and two caused turnovers.

• After struggling during the first half against Navy, the Terp defense turned things around by allowing just two goals in the final 30 minutes to allow the offense to get back on track and erase a 5-1 deficit. Maryland allowed a goal at the 5:48 mark of the third quarter and did not allow another goal until eight seconds left in the fourth, a span of 20:40. Back-up goalie Jason Carter made seven saves in the game after subbing in for Alford midway through the first period. The sophomore also caused three turnovers and picked up three groundballs. Junior All-American Ray Megill set a career-high with four caused turnovers vs. the Mids.

• Against Johns Hopkins, Maryland turned in one of its most dominating performances of the season against one of the nation's elite programs. The Terps held the Blue Jays to four goals (tying their season low) - more than six goals below their season average. Harry Alford made nine saves in goal for Maryland and picked up two groundballs. Other defensive standouts for the Terps include junior All-American Ray Megill, who caused three Hopkins' turnovers and picked up a career-high five groundballs. All-American Steve Whittenberg caused two turnovers and picked up four groundballs. Maryland's third starting defenseman, sophomore Joe Cinosky, finished the game with a career-best four groundballs. The Terps held the Blue Jays to just one goal in the first 27 minutes of the game and allowed the offense to build a 5-1 lead that was never surrendered.

• Much like the Dartmouth game, the Pioneers of Sacred Heart were smothered by the Terp defense en route to an 18-2 Maryland victory. The Terps shutout Sacred Heart in the first half and allowed the Pioneers' two goals in a 1:30 span in the third quarter before shutting Sacred Heart out for the final 22:18. The Terrapin defense didn't just play defense against SHU as three defenders got into the scoring column as well. Sophomores Ryne Adolph and Jacob Baxter tallied their first career assists, while junior long-pole Ryan Clarke picked up his third assist of the season.

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

• Joe Walters' point scoring streak is now at 44 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. At North Carolina Walters extended his steak to 40 and did something he had never done before - score five goals in a game. He has two six-goal games and seven four-goal games during his amazing career. The streak appeared to be in jeopardy, but an assist on Bill McGlone's third-quarter goal pushed it to 41 games. After the near end of the streak vs. Virginia, Walters wasted no time in getting in the scoring column vs. Navy, scoring the Terps' first goal of the game in the first quarter. He finished the game vs. the Midshipmen with two goals and one assist. Walters' amazing, career-best eight-point game vs. Hopkins extended the streak in fantastic fashion. He followed up that performace with a three-goal, one-assist outing vs. Sacred Heart.

• Xander Ritz now has a point scoring streak of 28 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. He kept the point-streak alive, but the multi-point streak came to an end at Carolina with just one assist vs. the Tar Heels. The one-game multi-point break was just that as Ritz scored two vs. No. 1 Virginia to keep his scoring streak alive. Ritz's streak was kept alive with one goal in the 7-6 loss to Navy. He added another one-goal game vs. Hopkins. The two-game string on one-point efforts was snapped against Sacred Heart as the senior scored two goals and added an assist for three points. • 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 11 games this season - the only Terp to score a goal in every game.

Healy Named NSCA All-American
• Brendan Healy has been named a National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) All-American, team strength and conditioning coach Marc Heinecke announced on April 3, 2006.

• Healy, a 2005 third team USILA All-American, was selected as a 2006 NSCA All-American after turning in the following performances during the team's winter conditioning program:

Bench Press: 320 lbs.
Squat: 570 lbs.
Power Clean: 280 lbs.
Vertical Jump: 31.5"
40-yard Dash: 4.6 sec.
Pro Agility: 4.25 sec.

• The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) is an international nonprofit educational association founded in 1978. Evolving from a membership of 76, the association now serves nearly 30,000 members in 52 countries. Drawing upon its vast network of members, the NSCA develops and presents the most advanced information regarding strength training and conditioning practices, injury prevention, and research findings.

Walters & Ritz Among Top Scoring Tandems
• The senior duo of Joe Walters and Xander Ritz are fourth among top goal scoring tandems in the NCAA this season. Walters leads the Terps with an average of 2.55 goals per game, while Ritz is scoring 2.18 per game.

1. Athan Ianucci (3.15), Chris Unterstein (2.31), Hofstra - 5.46 gpg
2. Frank Resetarits (2.92), Merrick Thomson (1.91), Albany - 4.83 gpg
3. David Mitchell (3.09), Joe Boulukos (1.73), Cornell - 4.82 gpg
4. Joe Walters (2.55), Xander Ritz (2.18), Maryland - 4.73 gpg
5. Matt Poskay (2.25), Matt Ward (2.0), Penn - 4.25 gpg

• Ritz has scored 24 goals so far this season, which is already seven better than his previous season-best of 17 as a freshman at Delaware. Walters, who overtook Ritz for the team lead with his six-goal outing at Hopkins on April 15, has 28 on the year. The duo has combined for 52 goals in 11 games. That toal represents 49.5% of Maryland's team total of 105 goals.

Terps In Pro Stadiums
• This will be Maryland's fifth game in an NFL stadium in the past two seasons and the third at M&T Bank Stadium.

• Last year, Maryland was 3-1 in NFL stadiums - 1-1 at Lincoln Financial Field and 2-0 at M&T Bank Stadium.

• At last year's ACC tournament the Terps beat Virginia and Duke at M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens, en route to their second straight ACC tournament title.

• Maryland followed that up a week later with a 21-6 drubbing of Penn at Lincoln Financial Field, home of the Philadelphia Eagles and the site of this year's Final Four. The final game of 2005 for the Terps came at The Linc in the NCAA Final Four. Maryland lost an 18-9 decision to conference rival Duke.

• All-time the Terps are 3-2 in professional stadiums. Maryland lost to Virginia in the 2003 NCAA Semifinals in M&T Bank Stadium.

Ritz & Walters Make Tewaaraton Trophy Cut
• Seniors Joe Walters and Xander were among 23 players on the 2006 Tewaaraton Trophy nominee list announced by the Tewaaraton Award Foundation today. The 23 nominees will be trimmed to five finalists for the award, which will be presented on June 1.

• Walters, a three-time nominee, was on the preseason "Watch List," while Ritz was one of three players added to the list on March 27 as a midseason addition to the list.

• Senior Bill McGlone and junior Harry Alford were on the preseason "Watch List," but did not make the official nominee 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 on June 1. 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 669-217-4 (.754), 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 76-28 for a .731 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.

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.