STORRS, CT – The No. 2 Terps' phenomenal season came to a heartbreaking close in the NCAA Semifinals with a 2-1 loss to No. 3 Northwestern on Friday afternoon at the George J. Sherman Family Sports Complex. Maryland finished the season with a 19-4 record, including winning the Big Ten Championship.
Playing in their 21st NCAA Final Four, the Terps battled the Wildcats to a scoreless tie into the fourth quarter before Northwestern broke the ice with a Bente Baekers penalty corner goal early in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats added an empty net goal with 2:07 left for a two-goal edge.
The Terps got on the board as
Emma DeBerdine scored with 1:13 left in the game off a feed from Danielle Van Rootselaar.
Maryland had a chance to tie the game twice in the final minutes as the Terps were first awarded a corner with 35 seconds left and Van Rootselaar's shot was stopped. The Terps requested a video review, but it was not overturned.
Then with just one second left, Maryland was awarded another corner,
Hope Rose's shot was blocked over the goal as the game ended.
The Terps and Wildcats were locked in a scoreless defensive battle through three quarters before the dramatic fourth quarter.
In the goal, Christina Calandra made three saves for Maryland. The Terps outshot the Wildcats, 10-7.
The Wildcats (20-4) will play No. 1 North Carolina (20-0) on Sunday for the NCAA Championship. Northwestern is seeking a repeat after winning the 2021 title.
Watch Coach Meharg had to Say
"We've had such a phenomenal season and had recently been playing some of our strongest hockey, to out shoot Northwestern ten-to-seven and to out penalty corner them. You know, that was a strong team we played...but I couldn't be more proud of our team."
Breaking Down The Action
- Both teams felt each other out in a physical opening quarter and neither was able to claim an early lead. Calandra came up with a clutch save and Van Rootselaar notched a shot for the Terps.
- In the second stanza, Northwestern earned two corners and the Terps got one, but both teams came up with stops as the defensive battle continued into halftime.
- Maryland had a golden opportunity to score the game's first goal as the Terps had three shots (two by Rose and one by Maura Verleg) in an 11-second span in the final minutes of the quarter but Annabel Skubisz stopped all three shots to keep the game scoreless.
- Northwestern took a 1-0 lead as Baekers converted a penalty corner with 12:59 left in the fourth quarter. Kayla Blas and Alia Marshall were credited with assists. The Wildcats added an empty net goal with 2:07 left in regulation to take the two-goal advantage.
- DeBerdine's goal cut the deficit to one, 2-1, with 1:13 left in the game. Maryland had those two chances in the final minute, but were unable to come up with the equalizer.
