COLLEGE PARK, MD — Strong defense and timely offense led No. 7 Maryland (3-1) over No. 21 UMass (4-1), 1-0 Friday afternoon at the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex. The Terps owned the first quarter by putting up six shots while giving up none to the Minutewomen but the score remained 0-0 after 15 minutes of play. Maryland had three penalty corner but the best chance for Maryland came when forward Anna Castaldo fired a shot that hit the post. Maryland continued to pressure UMass offensively and finally broke through in the 20th minute. Margot Lawn took a centering pass and thanks to some fancy stickwork was able to find Riley Donnelly for a deflection past the goalie.

The Minutewomen flipped the script in the final 10 minutes of the half as they tried but couldn't crack goalie Noelle Frost and the Maryland defense. The third quarter was a battle as both teams ran up and down the field looking for chances but neither could find the mark. Maryland was in prevent mode during the majority of the fourth quarter as they didn't allow UMass to gain any kind of momentum. UMass pulled their goalie with about four minutes to go but could still not get behind the impenetrable Maryland defense. 

Missy Meharg's Take
"UMass is an incredibly deep team, which is not what we had seen on video. I love that this brand of Maryland brings out the best in other teams. I would have loved to have scored more goals since we took 23 shots. We will clean that up. We also weren't framing the goal cage, so we will work hard on that. We look forward to executing on more of our shots on Sunday and penalty corners as well. We'll continue to practice them and connect on them."

Under Pressure

• Maryland had the first nine shots of the game and was living in the UMass zone for the majority of the first half. 
• During that 20 minute stretch of dominance, Riley Donnelly accounted for three shots with Julianna Tornetta having two of her own.

Dutch Defense

• Netherlands native Maura Verleg had one of her strongest games of the season as she turned away any and all chances that came her way.
• After a giveaway in the third quarter, Verleg was left one-on-one against a UMass attacker but Verleg stuffed her at the point of attack and neutralized the threat 

Back-To-Back Shutouts

• Goalie Noelle Frost posted her second straight shutout of the season after having to only make one save on the afternoon.
• Friday's game marked Frost's 12th career shutout.
• The Terps have now not allowed a goal in 10 straight quarters.

Up Next

• Maryland will conclude the Terrapin Invitational on Sunday afternoon as they'll take on the California Golden Bears at 2 pm. 
• The Terps own the series over Cal, 11-0. Most recently, the Terrapins won 5-0 in Berkeley on Aug. 26, 2018.