#4 Maryland (1-0) (0-0 B1G) vs. #12 Loyola (1-0) (0-0 Patriot)
February 10, 2024
SECU Stadium
Noon
B1G+
COLLEGE PARK, MD - No. 4 Maryland (1-0) returns to SECU Stadium for the first time in 2024 as it welcomes No. 12 Loyola (MD) (1-0) for the Terps' home opener.
The Terps opened their 2024 season in thrilling fashion as
Owen Murphy scored the game-winning goal from deep to propel the Terps over No. 19 Richmond in double overtime.
Braden Erksa notched a hat trick and
Logan McNaney made 13 saves in his return from injury.
Loyola made a statement in its opening weekend win, cruising past No. 11 Georgetown 18-10 in a game it led for over 58 minutes. Evan James scored a career-high nine points (5g-4a) to lead the way.
series history
- Maryland holds a 23-2 record against the Greyhounds. Since the NCAA-era began in 1971, the Terps are 4-3 vs. the Greyhounds.
- Prior to 1971, Maryland won all 18 meetings between the in-state squads. The long-standing series took a hiatus after 1959 when the Terps defeated Loyola 22-4 in Baltimore.
Jack Koras against Loyola in last season's 12-7 loss in Baltimore.
About the 2024 terps
- The Terps welcome a large number of key returners from the 2023 team, including defenseman Ajax Zappitello, faceoff specialist Luke Wierman, attackmen Braden Erksa, Daniel Maltz and Daniel Kelly, and midfielders Jack Koras, Jack Brennan, Eric Spanos, Zach Whittier and Owen Murphy. Zappitello and Wierman were both First Team All Big-Ten and All-Americans last season while Erksa was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year.
- Zappitello will don the heralded and historic number one jersey for the Terps.
- In total, the Terps return over 90 percent of last year's goal scoring.
- The Terps also get back two key pieces from season-ending injuries suffered in 2022 NCAA Tournament MOP Logan McNaney and attackman Eric Malever who totaled 48 points (26G, 22A).
Ajax Zappitello is the second consecutive close defenseman to wear the Maryland No. 1 jersey.
Wierman on the charts
- With his 12th of 17 face-off wins on Saturday, Luke Wierman became Maryland's all-time program leader in face-off wins. He broke Andy Claxton's record of 648 that had stood for over three decades. Wierman, who went 17-of-29 on the day, won the opening face-off in both overtime periods, setting the Terps up for a 12-11 2OT win over No. 19 Richmond in its season opener.
- Wierman is also climbing up the career groundballs list and is one of only three Terps in history to scoop up 300 or more groundballs. He joined the exclusive 300 Club with his first of eight groundballs vs. Johns Hopkins on April 22, 2023. With 10 groundballs against Richmond, Wierman now has 349 total, good for third overall in program history. Next on the list is No. 2 Brian Haggerty (1996-99) with 380.
Luke Wierman became Maryland's all-time leading faceoff win leader against Richmond.
McNaney Returns, continues to climb rankings
- When Logan McNaney took the net at Richmond on Saturday, it marked his first game action in just under a year. After suffering a season-ending ACL injury against Loyola last season, McNaney missed the remainder of the 2023 season. Against the Spiders, McNaney played all 65:05 minutes and made 13 saves, including two in overtime.
- McNaney has 419 career saves, good for sixth all-time. He is just 81 saves away from becoming just the four Terp ever to eclipse 500 career saves.
Luke Wierman became Maryland's all-time leading faceoff win leader against Richmond.
History of success
- The Terps boast four NCAA Championships, 28 Final Four appearances and 522 All-Americans.
- With a 14-9 win at No. 5 Johns Hopkins on May 4, 2023 in the Big Ten Tournament Semifinal, the Terps extended their streak of double-digit win seasons to 20, the longest active streak in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse. The streak also coincides with the Terps making 20 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, also the longest such streak in the country in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse.
- Since joining the Big Ten in 2015, Maryland is 38-7 (.844) in conference play. The 38 wins are 14 more than Johns Hopkins, which has 24. Penn State and Rutgers each have 23 wins, Ohio State has 20, and Michigan has seven.
The Terps won the 2022 National Championship with a perfect 18-0 record.
99th season of maryland men's lacrosse
- The Terps boast an all-time record of 883-283-4 (.756), dating back to the first varsity team in 1924 (a team was not fielded in 1944 and 1945 due to World War II). Maryland has finished with a .500 or better record in all 97 seasons. The program reached the 800-win milestone with a 12-6 victory on April 12, 2017, at Albany.
- Maryland finished the decade of the 2010s 134-42 for a .761 winning percentage, making it the winningest decade in Terrapin lacrosse history. Nine of those seasons came under the direction of head coach John Tillman, who has posted a 122-38 record and a .763 winning percentage at the helm for Maryland.
- During the decade of the 2000s, Maryland went 111-49 for a .694 win percentage. In the decade of the 1990s, Maryland posted a 95-47 record. The .669 winning percentage matched Maryland's win percentage of the 1980s when the Terps went 83-41 and also compiled a .669 win percentage.
The Terps on the sidelines.
Staff Updates
- On Dec. 21, 2023, head coach John Tillman announced that he had hired Michael Phipps as the team's offensive coordinator/assistant coach. Phipps, a 2007 graduate of the University of Maryland, returns to College Park after two stints at Navy in addition to a five-year tenure at Georgetown where he oversaw prolific offenses. While at Maryland as a player, Phipps was a three-starter and a USILA honorable mention All-American in 2007 as an attackman. Phipps' grandfather, father and brother were all Terp lacrosse players as well. Phipps' hire came on the heels of Jake Bernhardt departing to become the head coach at Colby College.
- Additionally, Tim O'Branski, who joined the Terps in September 2022 as the team's volunteer assistant coach, was promoted to assistant coach. Before becoming a Terp, O'Branski spent two years as offensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator at Mercer University.
- The Terps also added a Maryland legend, Tewaaraton Winner, 2017 National Champion and a former NFL player to staff when they hired Jared Bernhardt (Maryland '21) as the Director of Player Development on Aug. 31, 2023.
Jared Bernhardt joined the staff in August as the Director of Player Development.
