COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Persistent rain showered Ludwig Field Wednesday night as Maryland glided past Lehigh on the spongy grass, 2-0, for their third straight victory.
With 12 minutes left in the first half, Mael Corboz fed a driving David Kabelik who slipped past the Mountain Hawks' defense while staying onside. As two Terps raided the net uncovered, Lehigh keeper Ciaran Nugent floated towards junior forward Kabelik who swiftly passed to Mikias Eticha for an open-net finish.
The goal was the senior's second of the season, his first coming in the home opener against Coastal Carolina, and would prove enough to top Lehigh's lackluster attack that was unable to put any of their five shots on goal.
But Eticha would notch one more, helping seal the match in the 72nd minute, right-footing one with a defender in his face off a cross from Jereme Raley.
“I'm really happy for [Mikias] to get rewarded for all the good work he's done the last couple of games,” said head coach Sasho Cirovski. “He was very active again today, really starting to show his senior qualities and his experience.”
Eticha battled injuries at the beginning of the season but got the start tonight and made a couple key runs to the net to set up teammates for assists. The senior was able to do so as a second forward, a role he said he hadn't previously filled at Maryland.
With a healthy lineup that is becoming more consistent, Cirovski hopes the scoring will similarly fall into place. The Terps' 17 shots assaulted the Lehigh zone all night and Eticha happened to be the hero.
“The nice thing about our team this year is we don't know who's going to score,” said the 22-year Maryland coach. “The bad thing for our team is we don't know who's going to score,” he added, unable to hold back a laugh.
Since the “heartbreaking” overtime loss at Northwestern just 10 days ago, the Terps have outscored opponents 7-0, using the homestand to gain a winning record for the first time this season. Perhaps a blessing in disguise, the tough contest against the Wildcats instilled a “do or die” mindset. So far, the Terps are doing.
“It's a hardening process that we went through that got to an apex and I think now the team has finally said 'it's enough,'” said Cirovski. “That's why you are seeing a really tough team. We're competing hard on every single ball, there's no shortcuts being taken and we're starting to show other teams our 'A' effort.”
The Terps return to conference play Sunday, as they travel to Bloomington, Ind. for a marquee matinee with the No. 5-ranked Hoosiers, looking to keep the ball rolling.
“Starting with the VCU game, we've been playing with the mentality that we're in the playoffs already and we're not going to take anything less than a result,” said defender Mikey Ambrose, who has led the Terps to three straight shutouts. “We're going to try to win every game from here on out.”
Ben Strack, a senior journalism major at the University of Maryland, is a contributing writer to umterps.com.
