Behind suffocating defense No. 1 Maryland men’s lacrosse storms back to defeat Johns Hopkins earning third Big Ten Tournament championship

(Photo Courtesy of Maryland Athletics.)

With six:24 remaining, Cole Williams searched for space equally he was hounded by Maryland's defense and launched a pass awry past the stick of Joey Epstein out of premises.

That was a common theme in the 2d half as the Blueish Jays' had 14 second-half turnovers unable to solve Maryland's stifling defense. Kyle Long took advantage of that miscue on the ensuing possession, as he sprinted down the alley and stung the far post giving Maryland a 10-9 lead with v:34 remaining.

3:37 later, Daniel Maltz completed his hat-trick on the doorstep after a feed from Logan Wisnauskas pushing Maryland'southward lead to 11-9, inching them closer to a Big Ten Championship.

Matt Narewski scored for Johns Hopkins with 1:44 left, but Anthony DeMaio responded with 21 seconds remaining firing a shot into the open net with the Bluish Jays desperately looking to cause a turnover.

DeMaio's goal clinched Maryland's 12-10 victory over in-land rival Johns Hopkins, extending their undefeated season.

As the final buzzer sounded, a sea of ruddy and white jerseys stormed the stop of the field that Maryland'south defense thoroughly dominated in the 2d half. The Blueish Jays mounted just two goals in the final thirty minutes, including a 27:16 drought without a goal.

"Certainly proud of our guys to get the regular season and the conference tournament undefeated," head coach John Tillman said. "It didn't come easy tonight, we didn't wait it to, but guys just stuck together. Afterwards falling backside I was impressed with the way we battled and just kind of dug in defensively."

Nick Grill, Matt Rahill and Brett Makar combined to force five turnovers, while Logan McNaney finished with seven saves stepping up in the second half when the Terps needed information technology most.

Although Maryland's defence force stepped up big in the 2d one-half, the offense delivered timely finishes. DeMaio led the fashion with four points (2G, 2A), while Wisnauskas (2G, 1A), Jared Bernhardt (2G, 1A) and Maltz (3G) each added three points.

Bubba Fairman, Long and Eric Holden each tacked on a goal rounding out a diversified Maryland offensive set on. Unlike the terminal meeting against the Blue Jays, Maryland was more successful at the confront-off X, winning xiii of 26 split betwixt Justin Shockey and Luke Wierman.

The first quarter was an offensive explosion with both teams combining for 11 goals on 13 shots on net. Johns Hopkins orchestrated two divide 3-goal runs with v dissimilar goal scorers in the opening period.

The Blue Jays offense flowed flawlessly in the opening quarter, rotating the brawl from side-to-side. Maryland's defense struggled to recover quickly on slides and also dealt with some unfortunate outcomes with defenders slipping and their sticks snapping.

After an early three-1 deficit, Maryland's quick strike offense responded with a trio of goals from Wisnauskas, DeMaio and Maltz. Now abaft 4-3, it was the Blueish Jays' plough to respond every bit Brendan Grimes, Garrett Degnon and Casey McDermott each beat McNaney.

Wisnauskas airtight out the high-scoring first quarter beating Tim Marcille with ane:13 remaining, completing an opening 15 minutes with an eclectic pace.

Starting out the 2nd quarter, Epstein was the leading catalyst for the Blueish Jays law-breaking with back-to-back goals in the opening half-dozen minutes. He showcased elite speed and athleticism wrapping around the cage to trounce McNaney.

The Blue Jays defense force fed off of Epstein'south energy equally they stifled Maryland's offense blocking several shots. The Terps looked rushed offensively not converting on elementary passes with eight-first half turnovers. In need of a spark, Holden delivered, catastrophe the Terps fourteen:57 scoring drought with 1:15 remaining in the first half.

That completed a fast-paced opening thirty minutes where Maryland trailed viii-6 in big part due to careless mistakes offensively and uncharacteristic defensive miscommunications.

"Getting halftime to take hold of our breath and make some adjustments defensively, I thought Logan saw the ball a little better as the game went on," Tillman said. "I idea nosotros moved our feet a little bit meliorate."

59 seconds into the second one-half, the Blue Jays picked upward correct where they left off as Brett Baskin rifled a shot past McNaney. From that moment, Maryland'due south defense locked down and refocused, shutting down the Blue Jays, while the criminal offence slowly chipped away at the lead.

Bernhardt and Fairman each found the back of the net, setting up the Terps with a one-goal arrears entering the last quarter and building momentum.

"We went out in [the 2nd one-half] and tried to infinite the field a little bit meliorate," DeMaio said. "That was definitely a problem in the first half just getting too jammed up and manifestly we feed off the defence force's free energy."

Maryland'due south physicality and defensive intensity maintained into the fourth every bit Maltz tied the game at nine with 11:17 remaining on the feed from Bernhardt. With each passing infinitesimal Maryland's defence force locked up tighter and tighter, every bit the turnovers mounted for the Blue Jays.

And then the Terps responded with both same goals from Long and Maltz, which pushed their lead to xi-9 with 1:57 remaining.

With both teams exchanging goals after that, Maryland completed a difficult-fought 12-10 victory and at present will await their NCAA Tournament seeding with the selection bear witness at nine p.m. Lord's day on ESPNU.

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Source: http://wmucsports.net/behind-suffocating-defense-no-1-maryland-mens-lacrosse-storms-back-to-defeat-johns-hopkins-earning-third-big-ten-tournament-championship/

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