Sept. 11, 2009
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
The 18th-ranked Maryland Terrapin women's soccer team (6-0) will put its undefeated record on the line on Sunday, Sept. 13 when it hosts James Madison. Opening kick for the Terps and the Dukes is slated for 1 p.m. at Ludwig Field..
Ticket Information
• Click here for ticket information for all 2009 Maryland women's soccer home games.
Event Multimedia
• Fans will be able to listen to the game by logging on to
www.wmucsports.com or they can follow the games on
Gametracker.
Ranked Terps
• Fresh off their 1-0 victory over then-No. 22 Santa Clara, the Terps entered the Soccer America Top 25 at No. 18 this week. For the Terps this is their first time being ranked among the top 25 since finishing the 2004 regular season with a No. 19 ranking. Last season, Maryland received votes in the top 25 poll after opening the season with a 5-0 win over George Mason, but never cracked the actual poll. The 5-0 Terrapins are off to their best start to a season since the 1996 team opened that year with a 14-0-1 records. The Terps are one of six ACC schools ranked in the Soccer America Top 25 and are one of just four teams in the ACC that remains undefeated.
• Maryland is also receiving votes in this week's NSCAA Top 25. The Terrapins are the third-highest team out of the top 25 with 50 points. Maryland is also fifth in the ultra-competitive Southeast Region, trailing five other ACC schools.
Scouting The Terps
• For the first time since 2001 the Terps have rattled off four straight wins. The Terps' 4-0 record is its best to begin a season since 1996. That year Maryland went 14-0-1 in its first 15 games.
• Maryland opened its 2009 season with a two-game road trip to New York for games at Army and Fordham. In the season opener at Army, the Terrapins dominated the Black Knights en route to a 3-0 shutout victory. After a scoreless first half, sophomore Ashley Grove got the Terps on the board with the team's first goal of the year off an assist by senior Megan Watson. Less than two minutes later, sophomore Jasmyne Spencer tallied her first collegiate goal. Senior goalkeeper Mary Casey started the play with a good punt, which was then flicked on by junior Caitlin McDowell. The third goal came was an unassisted blast by freshman Caitlin Mooney.
• After the Army win, Maryland moved to the Bronx to challenge the Fordham Rams. This time the Terps got on the board midway through the first half when freshman Olivia Wagner played the ball through to Spencer, who beat her defender and finished from 20 yards out with a low shot. Fordham tied the game at 1-1 in the 53rd minute, but it took Maryland less than 30 seconds to score the go-ahead goal. Once again it was Spencer scoring the goal, with the assist going to Grove, to give Maryland the 2-1 victory.
• The Terps continued their winning ways in their home opener on Friday, August 28 against Seton Hall. Freshmen Olivia Wagner and Caitlin Mooney scored goals for Maryland, leading the Terrapins to a 2-0 victory over the Pirates. Wagner scored the first goal on a 25-yard blast that was too much for the Seton Hall keeper to handle in the 51st minute. Mooney added the insurance goal on a quick turn-and-shoot effort in the 81st minute.
• The undefeated streak was in jeopardy for a half in the Terps' game against Loyola. The Greyhounds took a 1-0 lead into halftime, but that didn't stand up for long. Sophomore Sade Ayinde, who was inserted into the line-up at the beginning of the second half, scored in the 51st minute to knot the score at 1-1. Less than a minute later freshman Danielle Hubka gave Maryland the lead with a 30-yard shot into the upper right 90. After the Greyhounds tied the match in the next minute, the Terps regained the lead in the 53rd minute on another Ayinde goal. Ayinde was on the giving end of Terps' fourth goal,playing a give-and-go with freshman Caitlin Mooney, who finished from 15 yards into the lower left corner. SophomoreAshley Grove finished off the scoring with a 40-yard rip from the far left side of the field, giving the Terps a 5-2 victory.
• Maryland faced its toughest test so far on Sept. 4 in traditional powerhouse Santa Clara, but a goal by sophomore Ashley Grove propelled the Terps to a 1-0 victory. Senior keeper Mary Casey made five stops to earn her third shutout of the season.
• The Terps were not sharp when they played at American on Sept. 9, but Maryland still found a way to win the game - a 1-0 decision. Jasmyne Spencer scored the lone goal of the game in the 49th minute with the assist going to Caitlin McDowell.
• With her goal against the Eagles sophomore Jasmyne Spencer snapped a tie with fellow second-year Ashley Grove for the team lead points and goals. Spencer now has with nine points and four goals, while Grove is just two points and one goal behing. Junior Caitlin McDowell has picked up assists in each of the Terps last two games and is tied for the team lead with three with senior Megan Watson. Senior All-ACC goalkeeper Mary Casey has played every minute for Maryland so far in net and has a goals-against average of 0.50 with a save percentage of .833.
Scouting The Dukes
• James Madison enters Sunday's game with a 3-2 record (not including its Friday night match at Navy).
• The Dukes opened the season with a 3-0 loss at home to Richmond. From there, JMU defeated Xavier and Bucknell in its own tournament, 5-1 and 3-0, respectively. A 4-0 loss to Georgetown evened the Dukes' record at 2-2. James Madison then defeated Liberty at home, 3-0, on Sept. 6. The Dukes play at Navy on Friday night before heading to College Park on Sunday.
• Offensively, Corky Julien leads JMU with five goals and 10 points. She is followed by Cate Tisinger, who has six points on two goals and two assists. Defensively, goalkeeper Diane Wszalek has started all five games and has a 1.68 goals-against average with a save percentage of .667.
Deeg's Diary
• Every week Colleen Deegan is filing "Deeg's Diary" on umterps.com. Log on each week for her latest insights on Terps women's soccer.
Media Information
• Email Straight To You: If you would like the latest Maryland women's soccer news emailed directly to you as soon as it breaks, email women's soccer contact Patrick Fischer with "Women's Soccer E-Mail" as the subject and you will receive every update.
• Terps on the Web: For up-to-date game stories, statistics, schedules and results, and other Maryland athletic department information, please log-on to www.umterps.com on the Internet.
• GameTracker: Follow Terps games live in 2009 on your computer with GameTracker. Links for all games that will be available can be found at www.umterps.com.
