May 13, 2001
The University of Maryland advanced to the NCAA women's lacrosse Final Four for the 12th-straight time with a come-from-behind 11-9 win today over ninth-seeded James Madison.
The Terrapins, now 21-0 and winners of 41 straight dating back to last year, had their second scare of the year (the first being at Dartmouth) as James Madison successfully slowed the game down after Maryland had jumped to an early 5-1 lead. After falling behind early, the Dukes held the Terps scoreless for a total of 26:23 (from 22:47 in the first half to 26:36 in the second) while scoring five goals of their own to close out the first half. JMU held a 6-5 lead at the break, marking just the second time this season that Maryland had trailed at the half (again, Dartmouth being the other).
The Terps came out in the second half, however, and rattled off three goals of their own while holding the Dukes scoreless for the frame's first 15 minutes. With Maryland up 8-6, JMU then scored three goals before the 10-minute mark and surged ahead, 9-8. The Dukes then slowed the game down even more, successfully running clock while Maryland waited for a scoring opportunity. Thanks to junior Meredith Egan, that chance finally came.
With just over 2:00 remaining, Egan stripped the ball from a JMU player on offense while Quinn Carney scooped up the ground ball and helped Maryland get in its offensive set. Then, with 1:35 left on the clock, Jen Adams escaped two defenders on the right side of the goal mouth then found the back of the net with a backhand to tie the game at 9-9. Egan then came up big again, controlling the ensuing draw, and the Terps went down to set for a game-winning shot attempt.
With the clock winding down, Carney made a charge at the left side of the cage but lost the ball. In the mad scramble to maintain possession, a Madison defender accidentally scooped the ball past goalie Jen Corradini and into the net for what ended up being the game winner at 0:18 remaining. The Terps tacked on another quick goal for good measure at 0:11 as Courtney Hobbs scored on a fast break opportunity.
In the game, Adams scored three goals and added an assist for four points total. Her three goals gave her 84 for the season, a new Maryland single season record, and her four points set the single-season collegiate mark as she now has 137. Both records she broke were her own from a year ago. Also noteworthy was the continued strong play of backup goalie Virginia Solomon. Solomon came on in relief again today and made eight saves versus five goals allowed. In the last three games, Solomon has seen increased action and her numbers have been strong (22 svs., 10 GA).
Maryland will now prepare for the continuation of its drive for a seventh consecutive national title. Its opponent in the national semifinals will be Princeton, a winner today over conference rival Dartmouth. Game time on Friday, May 18th, is set for 6:00 p.m. The tournament will be played at Homewood Field, home of tournament host Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.
GAME SCORING
#9 seed JAMES MADISON 6 3 -- 9
#1 seed MARYLAND 5 6 -- 11
Half-Time Team, Goal (Assist) JMU-UM
1-27:06 Maryland, Quinn Carney (Adams) 0-1
1-25:59 Maryland, Courtney Hobbs (Comito) 0-2
1-25:35 Maryland, Courtney Hobbs (unassisted) 0-3
1-23:49 James Madison, Lisa Staedt (unassisted) 1-3
1-23:30 Maryland, Jen Adams (unassisted) 1-4
1-22:47 Maryland, Jen Adams (Comito) 1-5
1-21:39 James Madison, Lisa Staedt (unassisted) 2-5
1-17:38 James Madison, Lisa Staedt (unassisted) 3-5
1-12:29 James Madison, Jesseca Collins (Staedt) 4-5
1-8:56 James Madison, Lisa Staedt (unassisted) 5-5
1-2:07 James Madison, Mindy Leher (FPS) 6-5
2-26:36 Maryland, Allison Comito (unassisted) 6-6
2-22:24 Maryland, Quinn Carney (unassisted) 6-7
2-17:58 Maryland, Tori Wellington (unassisted) 6-8
2-14:42 James Madison, Mindy Leher (Molloy) 7-8
2-12:13 James Madison, Michelle Zurfluh (Molloy) 8-8
2-10:39 James Madison, Mindy Leher (unassisted) 9-8
2-1:35 Maryland, Jen Adams (unassisted) 9-9
2-0:18 Maryland, Own Goal 9-10
2-0:11 Maryland, Courtney Hobbs (unassisted) 9-11
TEAM STATS
Category James Madison Maryland
Shots 16-11=27 16-13=29
Saves 8-2=10 3-5=8
Draw Controls 4-0=4 8-8=16
Groundballs 7-10=17 13-11=24
Turnovers 3-6=9 2-2=4
Caused Turnovers 2-0=2 3-4=7
Free Position Shots 3-3=6 0-1=1
Fouls 1-3=4 5-5=10
INDIVIDUAL SCORING
Maryland Scorers Goals-Asst.-Pts.
Jen Adams 3-1--4
Courtney Hobbs 3-0--3
Allison Comito 1-2--3
Quinn Carney 2-0--2
Tori Wellington 1-0--1
James Madison Scorers Goals-Asst.-Pts.
Lisa Staedt 4-1--5
Mindy Leher 3-0--3
McNevin Molloy 0-2--2
Jesseca Collins 1-0--1
Michelle Zurfluh 1-0--1
GOALIES
Maryland Goalies Saves GA Min.
Alexis Venechanos 0 4 17:31
Virginia Solomon 8 5 42:29
James Madison Goalies Saves GA Min.
Jennifer Corradini 10 11 60:00
ATTENDANCE: 884
