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University of Maryland Athletics

Women's Lacrosse Celebration at Syracuse
9
Winner Maryland MARYLAND 1-0, 0-0
5
Syracuse SYRACUSE 0-1, 0-0
Winner
Maryland MARYLAND
1-0, 0-0
9
Final
5
Syracuse SYRACUSE
0-1, 0-0
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Maryland MARYLAND 3 3 1 2 9
Syracuse SYRACUSE 0 1 2 2 5

Game Recap: Women's Lacrosse |

No. 7 Terps Make Statement In 9-5 Season-Opening Win Over No. 13 Syracuse

Lauren Lapointe’s five-goal game and JJ Suriano’s 16-save performance paved the way to a huge road win to start the Terps’ 2026 campaign.

SYRACUSE, NY — The No. 7 Terps got their season started with a dominant 9-5 road win over No. 13 Syracuse on Friday night. 16 saves from JJ Suriano and a five-goal performance from Lauren Lapointe paved the way as the Terps improved to 18-2 in season openers under Cathy Reese. 

The Terps struck first on Friday night with the only three goals of the first quarter. Kayla Gilmore recorded Maryland's first goal of the season on a free position shot while Lapointe netted two of her five goals as the Terps opened a 3-0 lead. 

The barrage continued in the second quarter as Lapointe clinched her ninth-career hat trick, freshman Ava Meyn scored her first-career goal, Notre Dame transfer Kristen Shanahan found her first as a Terp, and Suriano made a collection of huge saves. 

Defense was king for Maryland on Friday night. The Terps held the ranked Orange scoreless in the first quarter and grabbed 11 ground balls in the win. Maddy Sterling led the charge, picking up three ground balls as the Suriano and the Terps stood strong. Maryland forced a pair of shot-clock violations in the win. 

Suriano got her season in net started with a hard-earned victory after facing 38 shots and making 16 saves, including nine in the first half. She repeatedly came up big for Maryland, including several key saves on Syracuse free position shots.

Suriano made a game-high five saves in the third quarter as Shanahan scored her second goal of the night, giving Maryland a 7-3 lead to take into the final 15 minutes. The Terps closed it out as Lapointe scored two more times in the fourth quarter to wrap up the program's 42-ever season-opening win in impressive fashion. 

How It Happened:
1st Quarter:
  • Suriano made the game's first save in the opening minutes.
  • Gilmore scored the Terps' first goal of the season on a free position shot in the sixth minute.
  • Lapointe netted her first goal of the year 10 minutes in.
  • Syracuse was dealt a green card in the 11th minute, putting the Terps on the advantage. 
  • Lapointe scored her second goal of the first quarter on a free position shot in the 13th minute, putting Maryland up 3-0.
  • The Terps led 3-0 after the first quarter.
2nd Quarter:
  • The Orange got on the board in the opening minute. 
  • Shanahan was left alone in front of the net in the seventh minute, and she buried her first goal of the season.
  • Suriano came up big with a free position save midway through the quarter.
  • Lapointe clinched her hat trick with a wide-open goal with four minutes to play.
  • Ava Meyn's first-career goal put the Terps up 6-1 with three minutes left in the half. 
  • Maryland was dealt a yellow card with a minute to play, putting Syracuse on the power play. 
  • The Terps led 6-1 at halftime.
3rd Quarter:
  • Suriano opened the quarter with a pair of quick saves as Maryland fought off the rest of the yellow card. 
  • Syracuse scored a shorthanded goal to strike first in the second half.
  • Suriano's 12th save of the game came on a free position shot midway through the quarter.
  • Maryland killed off another yellow card, only allowing one shot on the Syracuse power play.
  • Shanahan's second goal of the game put the Terps up 7-2 with 5:36 to play in the quarter.
  • The Orange scored with 2:28 to play, cutting Maryland's lead to 7-3.
  • Suriano made her 14th save on a free position in the final seconds. 
  • The Terps led 7-3 after three.
4th Quarter:
  • Lapointe's fourth goal of the night opened the fourth-quarter scoring. 
  • Lapointe's fifth goal tied her career high and put the Terps up 9-3.
  • Maryland forced its second shot-clock violation of the night.
  • Syracuse scored shorthanded on a breakaway with 1:37 to play. 
  • The Orange added a late goal with 30 seconds to play. 
  • Maryland closed out a 9-5 win.
Multi-Point Terps:
  • Lapointe (five goals) recorded the ninth hat trick of her career and her 12th-career multi-point game. 
  • Shanahan (two goals, one assist) recorded her first multi-goal and multi-point game as a Terp while recording her 22nd-career multi-point game and 16th-career multi-goal game.
  • Suriano (16 saves) tallied her ninth-career game with double-digit saves. Her 16 saves are tied for her second-most in a game in her career.
  • Jordyn Lipkin (two assists) recorded her 27th-career multi-point game.
Season-Opening Success:
  • Maryland improved to 42-11 all-time in season openers.
  • Under Reese, the Terps are now 18-2 in season openers.
Squeezing The Orange:
  • Friday marked the 29th all-time meeting between Maryland and Syracuse, with the Terps winning 24 of the previous games. 
  • The Terps improved to 17-4 against the Orange under Reese. 
  • Maryland once won 12 straight games over Syracuse, stretching from 2013 to 2019.
  • The largest Terps win in series history was a 20-4 victory in 2005.
Reese's Takeaways:
  • "Good win tonight for the Terps. It's nice to start our season off being able to go home with a victory against a really good Syracuse team."
  • "I thought we had some good moments and some tough moments."
  • "JJ made some fantastic saves."
  • "Now, we reset and regroup to host Virginia."
Lapointe's Huge Night:
  • "We went into the game really confident. We have a great group this season, and everyone's really meshed well together. Everyone knows everyone's tendencies and how to play with each other and communicate."
  • "We worked really well across the entire field. JJ made a ton of saves and our attack went right at the goal. We were really fluent."
Numbers To Know:
  • 1: The Terps earned their first ranked win of the season. Maryland currently has nine games against ranked teams on its schedule.
  • 1: Syracuse's lone first-half goal was its lowest total in a half since a 17-2 loss to Boston College in April of last season.
  • 3: Lapointe's three goals earned her the first hat trick of Maryland's season.
  • 5: Lapointe's five goals tied her career high.
  • 11: Maryland snared 11 ground balls. 
  • 16: Suriano's 16 saves are tied for second-most in a game in her career.  
  • 18: Maryland is 18-2 in season openers under Reese.
  • 25: Maryland won its 25 all-time game over the Orange. 
  • 42: The Terps improved to 42-11 all-time in season openers.
Up Next:
  • Maryland returns to College Park for its home opener against No. 10 Virginia on Feb. 14. The game is set for 12 PM and will air on B1G+.
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