Box Score ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The top-seeded Maryland field hockey team beat fourth-seeded Penn State, 1-0 Friday in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals at Michigan's Phyllis Ocker Field. The Terrapins (18-2, 7-1 B1G) won their 13th straight game to advance to the Big Ten championship game Sunday afternoon.
The second-ranked Terrapins found themselves in a defensive battle with the fifth-ranked Nittany Lions (15-5, 5-3) throughout the match. The Terps had eight penalty corners to seven and took 14 shots to 10.
"When we look at our statistics this year, Penn State is a team that out-cornered us and outshot us," head coach Missy Meharg said. "They're very dynamic. They're very aggressive. They play a different style of hockey than we do. We've been waiting for a time to have a real hockey battle and that means that you have to fight hard for the win. It was a needed step."
Redshirt sophomore Emma Rissinger scored the Terps' goal when she buried a shot off a rebound in a penalty corner three minutes into the second half.
Redshirt senior goalkeeper Brooke Cabrera picked up seven saves to preserve the Terps' eighth shutout of the season. Penn State goalkeeper Kylie Licata also had seven saves.
The Terps will take on third-seeded Northwestern (15-6, 6-2) Sunday at 1 p.m. in the Big Ten championship game in Ann Arbor. The matchup will be televised worldwide on the Big Ten Network.
Live Stats will be available for the Terps' game Sunday. Live updates will also be posted to the Maryland Field Hockey Twitter feed, so "Follow" to get the most recent updates.
Log on to umterps.com for full information on the Terps' first trip to the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament, or visit the tournament central at http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/w-fieldh/spec-rel/big-ten-2014.html.
Senior Maxine Fluharty was named Big Ten Player of the Year, junior Sarah Sprink was named Defensive Player of the Year and freshman Moira Putsch earned the Freshman of the Year honor. Meharg was named Big Ten Coach of the Year.
Cabrera, Katie Gerzabek and Dessoye were all named to the All-Big Ten Second Team. Fluharty and Sprink were named to the First Team. Junior Alyssa Parker was honored with one of the league's Sportsmanship Awards.
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