Maryland 2024

[keno in reno]

Can Maryland shoot 35% or better? They shot 33% against Richmond

Man...we were really spoiled in the past with both Connor Kelly and then Logan Wisnauskas. Both could just shoot it...and when Kelly had his senior season and the shooting percentage dropped, you had Wisnauskas there to pick up the outside shot.

We really miss that one outside stretch shooter.

Murphy was a 40% shooter in '22 with 34 goals, and he looked great on Saturday. In a supposedly positionless offense, he could probably help the team score more by getting 1st team minutes.

I really debated adding Murphy to that post and he definitely has that potential, but left him out because he didn't really play great last year or even on Saturday. Up until that last shot (granted, the most important one lol) he had 4 missed shots and a turnover. 1/5 (20%) isn't a great shooting day by any stretch.

He had a great bouncer that was was close enough to be challenged as a goal, plus at least 2 other dangerous looks that nobody else was getting on their own. Last year was tough for him. He was out of place being a primary ball carrier with Malever out, then he got injured. He looks great now, and he's a scorer, something this team needs. Unless several other guys who get more time time than Murphy step up, every minute that he's on the sideline is a gift to the opponent.

[PulpExposure]

Can Maryland shoot 35% or better? They shot 33% against Richmond

Man...we were really spoiled in the past with both Connor Kelly and then Logan Wisnauskas. Both could just shoot it...and when Kelly had his senior season and the shooting percentage dropped, you had Wisnauskas there to pick up the outside shot.

We really miss that one outside stretch shooter.

Murphy was a 40% shooter in '22 with 34 goals, and he looked great on Saturday. In a supposedly positionless offense, he could probably help the team score more by getting 1st team minutes.

I really debated adding Murphy to that post and he definitely has that potential, but left him out because he didn't really play great last year or even on Saturday. Up until that last shot (granted, the most important one lol) he had 4 missed shots and a turnover. 1/5 (20%) isn't a great shooting day by any stretch.

He had a great bouncer that was was close enough to be challenged as a goal, plus at least 2 other dangerous looks that nobody else was getting on their own. Last year was tough for him. He was out of place being a primary ball carrier with Malever out, then he got injured. He looks great now, and he's a scorer, something this team needs. Unless several other guys who get more time time than Murphy step up, every minute that he's on the sideline is a gift to the opponent.

Fair enough. I mean he does offer that outside threat. Love to see him take anny opportunity given and run with it.

[courtdog]

Big one today, I think they right some demons from a year ago!

[Finster]

See Maryland’s Big Ten network schedule has come out and will include the UVA game

This weekend's game versus Loyola will be really interesting to me. I have seen Maryland, but not Loyola. Loyola's win against G-town surprised me both from the win as well as the margin. Wish I had a better feel for who wins here.

Maryland has Cuse after this game, and Loyola has Hopkins, so neither has an easy out next.

Weather looks almost perfect outside of some sprinkles...60 degrees.

I think Maryland's defense is superb. If anything, this might be the difference.

Fascinating storyline.

If any of you have predictions, would love to read them.

Two related questions about how Maryland handles the match-ups against Loyola's attack unit. 1) Who takes Minicus (assuming Zappitello takes James and Burlace takes Poitras)? 2) Does Schaller replace Canfield at close (see question 1).

Loyola shorter TJ Haley last week for the entire game. I think they'll do it again on Maltz (or Kelly if he plays attack). I also think Loyola is going to make the Terps beat them dodging. The Terps don't like unassisted goals, but I bet Loyola forces them to do just that.

Loyola is an old team. Seniors and graduate students all over the offensive end.

Can Maryland take advantage of Loyola's relative inexperience on defense?

Can Maryland shoot 35% or better? They shot 33% against Richmond with Maltz shooting 2 for 9, and 7 of those 9 were on goal. Loyola's goalie made 19 saves last season against the Terps. He pretty much won that game for them.

Toomey last year gave the blueprint on how to deal with Wierman and how to curtail the Terps' transition. Tillman and Phipps didn't let the Terps do much in early offense (although Richmond was quite successful in theirs) despite having some really good match-ups with shorties on attackmen. Will Tills and Phipps let the offense take chances in early offense and transition? There's a trust factor there that is needed, and I wonder if it's developed yet.

I'm going to go 14-13 Maryland, but I bet everyone on the Loyola thread has it the other way with some room to spare. Loyola played really well last weekend. Really well.

This game is unpredictable from a fan's standpoint. I still say Maryland lacks confidence on the offensive end, so might need a half to shake that out of their system. That too cute too much tic-tac passing/zero dodging against Richmond was bewildering. Whereas from what I could see on YouTube with G-town/Loyola, Loyola seemed to motor by their defenders at will.

That all said, lacrosse is bizarre in the sense that teams often seem to all 'catch colds' at the same game. Maybe that was just a bad MD game, and a bad G-town game. If I had to pick, I'd say MD by 2-3 over Loyola. But no result should surprise anyone here, even blowouts either way.

[The Orfling]

Very confident showing by the Terps today against Loyola. Nice game for Maryland.

[jrn19]

Already +1 on last year. Keep stacking Ws. Onto Cuse.

Pros:

- I'm so glad Mac is back. He's the cool side of the pillow. A familiar pair of slippers. Just the best. He's 38-2 as a starter and has a winning record against every team he's played
- I run out of superlatives for Zappitello. Evan James had 5 goals and 4 assists last weekend against a really freaking good Georgetown defense. Like, consistently Top 5 *every year*. He had a double bagel today. He took 2 shots.
- Koras was a beast on the wings after Wicks went down. One of the more spirited pointless games you'll see.
- Stamos got targeted after Wicks went down, but man that dude is an athlete in the middle of the field. He popped. I thought on the whole this was their best transition game in a long time. They've been missing that.
- I'm glad Siracusa was rewarded with the start for how he played last week, and he should continue to start. He's playing well
- First quarter was what the offense needs to be. Quick ball movement, get guys isolated on shorties in advantageous matchups, be decisive and make good decisions. Everything you'd want.
- Thoroughly dominant defensive performance, especially the poles. Never got beat

Cons:
- I still worry about shooting with this team. 6 or 7 pipes, however many it was, that's obviously unlucky. But this is still a team lacking guys from the outside who can consistently stretch the defense and opponents play them like that and I think you saw that. Loyola was getting sticks in lanes and blocking shots and there were good looks from distance you just gotta make. Playing like they did in the 1Q consistently will alleviate a lot of it but it's a weakness.
- I think as Malever gets more and more comfortable and confident, there's a tweak to be had with the offense where he becomes more of the quarterback and the guy who is on the ball consistently. He is a much better facilitator than Erksa is. Erksa is the best dodger the team has. They need him in situations where he can put his foot in the ground and get past guys and get the defense reacting. But the ball in his stick a lot and him thinking....his decision-making and passing haven't quite caught up with his athletic abilities and dodging yet. It will come - it happened with Rambo, with Kelly, etc. - but it's not there yet. Malever had that as soon as he came on campus. Natural passer, sees the game. Getting him on the ball more up top and Erksa behind the cage, flipping how they're playing right now, is the way to go. Right now Malever is out of the game a bit and Erksa is late on some stuff/forcing things
- Turnover rate 29% this week, would like to see that hopefully get below 25% as schedule ramps up a bit next few weeks

Overall, two tough opponents, two good wins. Gets tougher next few weeks, hopefully keep it rolling
-

[masondixonlax]

Good summary. Defense looked incredible. Hope Wicks is okay. Sharkey has just fit in so well so far and is very reliable. McNaney is incredible - so is weirman. Interesting that Ruppel wasn’t the back up when McNaney was subbed in.

Maltz looked great and Spanos sees the field well and had a beautiful assist to Maltz. Erska seems to be the most athletic but I agree his field visions hasn’t quite caught up. Turnovers, forced passes in the middle, and took 2 or 3 shots with no angle whatsoever. Would rather have Malever quarterbacking, he sees the field better and doesn’t seem to force it and knows when to pick his shots - just unfortunate he had like 3 pipes.

Dubick looked good for the little time he played. Didn’t know much about him coming in as a recruit but looked good.

[PulpExposure]

The whole defense was great, but I have to call out that the SSDMs played really well. Sharkey, Redd, and Stamos all played really well. I take Wierman's dominance a bit for granted as we're used to it, but...I shouldn't. He's just really dominant and special.

McNaney is so good. So...I know he's a senior, but he's only played 3 full seasons (counting this one). Any chance he has more eligibility?

I thought Spanos had a great game. Two really nice assists, and then he just dodged a pole to score his goal, which is something we haven't seen enough of.

Oh and how good was it seeing Coffman on the field!!

[keno in reno]

Good summary. Defense looked incredible. Hope Wicks is okay. Sharkey has just fit in so well so far and is very reliable. McNaney is incredible - so is weirman. Interesting that Ruppel wasn’t the back up when McNaney was subbed in.

Maltz looked great and Spanos sees the field well and had a beautiful assist to Maltz. Erska seems to be the most athletic but I agree his field visions hasn’t quite caught up. Turnovers, forced passes in the middle, and took 2 or 3 shots with no angle whatsoever. Would rather have Malever quarterbacking, he sees the field better and doesn’t seem to force it and knows when to pick his shots - just unfortunate he had like 3 pipes.

Dubick looked good for the little time he played. Didn’t know much about him coming in as a recruit but looked good.

Pretty sure the plan is to redshirt Ruppel like he was supposed to last year. Defense is as dominant as I can remember; looked like one of Burlace's dad's teams. Burlace is 100% improved from the Loyola game last year. Offense got a ton of great looks for just 9 goals, I'll take that as a positive that they could/should be scoring 16 a game with better accuracy. Stamos could be the next great Terp ssdm.

[jrn19]

The whole defense was great, but I have to call out that the SSDMs played really well. Sharkey, Redd, and Stamos all played really well. I take Wierman's dominance a bit for granted as we're used to it, but...I shouldn't. He's just really dominant and special.

McNaney is so good. So...I know he's a senior, but he's only played 3 full seasons (counting this one). Any chance he has more eligibility?

I thought Spanos had a great game. Two really nice assists, and then he just dodged a pole to score his goal, which is something we haven't seen enough of.

Oh and how good was it seeing Coffman on the field!!

Mac has one more year of eligibility but this is his 5th year in school already, so not sure if he'd want to come back for a 6th. Feels like best assumption is this his last year and then if he decides to come back for one more, pleasant surprise

[Pork42]

The whole defense was great, but I have to call out that the SSDMs played really well. Sharkey, Redd, and Stamos all played really well. I take Wierman's dominance a bit for granted as we're used to it, but...I shouldn't. He's just really dominant and special.

McNaney is so good. So...I know he's a senior, but he's only played 3 full seasons (counting this one). Any chance he has more eligibility?

I thought Spanos had a great game. Two really nice assists, and then he just dodged a pole to score his goal, which is something we haven't seen enough of.

Oh and how good was it seeing Coffman on the field!!

Mac has one more year of eligibility but this is his 5th year in school already, so not sure if he'd want to come back for a 6th. Feels like best assumption is this his last year and then if he decides to come back for one more, pleasant surprise
[/quote

Listed as a grad student Applied Economics. believe he can string that out this year and next.

[Pork42]

The whole defense was great, but I have to call out that the SSDMs played really well. Sharkey, Redd, and Stamos all played really well. I take Wierman's dominance a bit for granted as we're used to it, but...I shouldn't. He's just really dominant and special.

McNaney is so good. So...I know he's a senior, but he's only played 3 full seasons (counting this one). Any chance he has more eligibility?

I thought Spanos had a great game. Two really nice assists, and then he just dodged a pole to score his goal, which is something we haven't seen enough of.

Oh and how good was it seeing Coffman on the field!!

Mac has one more year of eligibility but this is his 5th year in school already, so not sure if he'd want to come back for a 6th. Feels like best assumption is this his last year and then if he decides to come back for one more, pleasant surprise
[/quote

Listed as a grad student Applied Economics. Believe he can string that out this year and next.

[PulpExposure]

Thanks! Appreciate the additional detail.

[AreaLax]

Press conference
https://youtu.be/C-Z1RuRoEmA?si=n5L4EwFaSVeEm5LG

[jrn19]

Yes, his first year was 2020 which everyone got back. He used two years of eligibility in 2021 and 2022. His fourth season but third season of eligibility was to be last year but he obviously got hurt and he could easily get a medical redshirt for that if he wanted (operative/key word being if.)

This is his 5th year in school but will only be his 3rd year of eligibility. So he can come back, but not every guy wants to come back for a 6th year. But some do. Wisnauskas did. So we’ll see.

[Matnum PI]

Daniel Kelly play attack or middy?

[AreaLax]

Daniel Kelly play attack or middy?

Both. He started today at midfield and later on he was at attack and then back to midfield

[Matnum PI]

Both. He started today at midfield and later on he was at attack and then back to midfield

Thank you.

[Wheels]

What else can you say about that defensive masterpiece that we saw today? Held Loyola scoreless for 19 minutes to open the game and the 34 minutes between their 3rd and 4th goals. Burlace's on-ball defense against Poitras was excellent. I thought we'd see Schaller inserted into the starting lineup to face Minicus, and that's what happened.

Stoudt still had 16 saves and the Terps hit 6 pipes today. While their overall shooting percentage was poor, some of it was luck (pipes) and some was Stoudt just being a really good goalie. It wasn't like the Terps were hitting him in the chest or body like they did last year. He had several really good saves.

Remember when people worried that Terps didn't have enough guys to win match ups? Seems like Loyola really struggled to win match ups today. The Terps were relentless in the dodging today. They isolated and abused Loyola's rope unit. Conversely, Maryland's rope unit was superb. Nick Redd continues to play at an All-American level. He's not getting enough national attention. Loyola didn't even try to dodge on him today.

Hopefully, Eric Kolar returns soon. He's not out for the year. You can't have Redd running double shifts and McDonald taking shorty runs like they both did today for too many games. Seeing Wicks go down was heart breaking. They guy is a such a program player. Waits hit turn. Plays a role on face-off wings. Finally gets a chance to play significant minutes as a senior and crumples to the ground on a non-contact injury.

Dante Trader watched the game from the Gossett patio. He was also at the tailgate after the game. He's been attending practices and games and clearly loves the sport and the team.

[Finster]

What else can you say about that defensive masterpiece that we saw today? Held Loyola scoreless for 19 minutes to open the game and the 34 minutes between their 3rd and 4th goals. Burlace's on-ball defense against Poitras was excellent. I thought we'd see Schaller inserted into the starting lineup to face Minicus, and that's what happened.

Stoudt still had 16 saves and the Terps hit 6 pipes today. While their overall shooting percentage was poor, some of it was luck (pipes) and some was Stoudt just being a really good goalie. It wasn't like the Terps were hitting him in the chest or body like they did last year. He had several really good saves.

Remember when people worried that Terps didn't have enough guys to win match ups? Seems like Loyola really struggled to win match ups today. The Terps were relentless in the dodging today. They isolated and abused Loyola's rope unit. Conversely, Maryland's rope unit was superb. Nick Redd continues to play at an All-American level. He's not getting enough national attention. Loyola didn't even try to dodge on him today.

Hopefully, Eric Kolar returns soon. He's not out for the year. You can't have Redd running double shifts and McDonald taking shorty runs like they both did today for too many games. Seeing Wicks go down was heart breaking. They guy is a such a program player. Waits hit turn. Plays a role on face-off wings. Finally gets a chance to play significant minutes as a senior and crumples to the ground on a non-contact injury.

Dante Trader watched the game from the Gossett patio. He was also at the tailgate after the game. He's been attending practices and games and clearly loves the sport and the team.

Injuries eventually catch up to any team; you won’t keep winning in D1 if your team hobbles.

This week’s game against Syracuse will reveal a lot about both teams. I’ll be interested to see if Tillman assigns a marker on Spallina to remove him from the offense, or simply goes with the normal defense. The other intriguing matchup will be at the faceoff. D3’s best FOGO from last year against Weirman. Possessions will be critical.

This won’t be too mind blowing, but my only prediction here at all is if one FOGO goes off at 60%+, that team will be the winner. If it’s 50/50, Dome home cooking might win the day.