April 17, 2011
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KIRKWOOD, Del. -
The University of Maryland women's soccer team played in the Inaugural B+ Foundation College Classic Saturday afternoon. Proceeds from the event go toward helping fight childhood cancer. The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation honors the memory of Andrew McDonough, a 14 year old athlete and `A' student at Salesianum HS from Wilmington, Delaware. Andrew went from playing four soccer games on January 27, 2007 to cardiac arrest and a diagnosis of leukemia and sepsis just 48 hours later. Andrew's blood type and the family's motto was, and continues to be, "B+" ..."Be Positive". Andrew passed away on July 14, 2007.
Honored to play for the cause, the Terps came out flying in their first of two games. Behind goals from Becky Kaplan, Lydia Hastings, and Danielle Hubka, the Terps defeated Villanova 3-1 in a 45-minute game. Some clever passing from Jasmyne Spencer, Hubka, Amy O'Sullivan and Megan Gibbons led to Maryland's goals.
The Terps turned right around and played Navy, who they defeated by a score of 1-0 behind a goal from freshman transfer Alex Reed. Sophomore Olivia Wagner slipped a ball in behind Navy's defense, and Reed was able to track it down and push it past the goalkeeper for the game's lone goal.
"Our team was focused today, and eager to put out a good effort - and they did just that," said Maryland head coach Brian Pensky. "We had a good week of training leading into today.
"Soccer aside, we were happy to be a part of an event like this. Joe McDonough, Andrew's father and Founder of The B+ Foundation, addressed our team on the bus before our games. We are touched by their story, and want to do anything we can to help this endlessly worthy cause. This coming Monday afternoon our kids will head to Children's Hospital in Washington, D.C., to do Easter-themed art projects with a number of young patients. We are very fortunate, healthy people, and our players try not to take that for granted. So hopefully we can make some young children smile, who are far less fortunate than we are."
Maryland returns to action next Friday, April 22 when it hosts Penn State at Ludwig Field. Admission is free and the match is set for a 7 p.m. start.
