After three consecutive close games, the Terrapins women’s lacrosse team couldn’t open up an big lead against Virginia in the first half of Sunday’s contest.
The second half was a different story, however. The No. 2 Terps used a late five-goal run to take command of the game and top No. 18 Virginia, 13-8, at the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex.
Early in the contest both sides were finding good looks on net, but neither side found the back of the net. Of the first six shots of the game, four hit the post or crossbar.
When midfielder Taylor Cummings broke the scoreless tie with 24:44 left in the first half, Virginia answered two minutes later. And despite Cummings and Griffin responding with back-to-back goals, the Cavaliers scored to prevent the Terps from running away with the game early.
The close score allowed Virginia to slow the pace and limit the number of possessions for the Terps. The Cavaliers also received a break when Terps midfielder Zoe Stukenberg scored, but the referees negated the goal after they ruled her stick was illegal.
Still, the Terps managed to extend the lead to two goals two more times during the first half. With six seconds remaining in the first half, however, Virginia scored its sixth goal of the game to tie the score before the break. Despite a total of 35 shots in the first half, the teams combined to score just 12 goals.
The back-and-forth nature ensued for the first 14 minutes after halftime, with each team scoring a pair of goals.
Again in the second half, the goal frame prevented the Terps from scoring multiple goals. The Terps hit the post twice in a row before midfielder Beth Glaros finally found the back of the net.
Her goal was the first of the five-goal scoring run that ended the Cavaliers attempt at an upset. Stukenberg scored 26 seconds after Glaros, and Cummings added her third of the game with 6:29 left.
The Terps slowed the game down and controlled the draws to prevent the Cavaliers from any chance at a comeback.