In a game that proved to be a defensive masterclass by both teams, it was Maryland who did just enough against Ohio State on Saturday to pull off an 8-7 win inside SECU Stadium.
Eric Spanos led the way with four goals in the win, including the last two, as one of five goal scorers for Maryland.
Both teams and goalies managed to get stops to open the game until Maryland drew first blood roughly four minutes in after Ryan Siracusa netted his lone goal in the win and 12th on the season. The Buckeyes responded with consecutive goals as turnovers became a problem yet again for Maryland while giving Ohio State goalie Caleb Fyock easy saves along the way, but Eric Spanos broke the cold spell with a goal with three minutes left in the first quarter to tie the game back at two.
The second quarter was much like the first quarter with both defenses causing plenty of turnovers with ten combined turnovers heading into halftime. Both the Terps and the Buckeyes were only able to get two shots on goal each in the second quarter and both teams could only add one goal to their tally in the second. The Buckeyes scored early in the quarter on a man-up opportunity, and Braden Erksa would tie the game back up at three with 3:52 left in the quarter to make it 3-3 heading into halftime. Maryland goalie Logan McNaney had five saves on eight shots on goal through the first half. One of the goals he originally stopped between McNaney’s ankles before misstep trying to find the ball gave the Buckeyes a late goal. Terps’ face-off man Luke Wierman was 6-of-8 on face-offs in the first half as well.
In the third quarter, to start things off, it looked like the Terps were going to start to pull away after finding the back of the net for three consecutive goals, two coming from long pole defenders in transition. Jack McDonald scored the first goal in the Terps’ run to give him his first of the season and just his second in his career. Spanos scored the second goal of the Terps 3-0 run to give him his second goal on the day. Nick Alviti scored the third goal on the Terps 3-0 run giving him his first on the season and giving the Terps a 6-3 lead with 5:10 to go in the third quarter. The Terps’ defense was causing tons of chaos for the Ohio State offense in the third quarter but it was not until 30 seconds left in the quarter that the Buckeyes would finally find the back of the net. Ohio State turned the ball over six times in the third quarter and shot three shots on goal.
The goal the Buckeyes scored at the end of the third quarter was a massive momentum boost for them and it would help them go on a three-goal run of their own. Ohio State was able to tie the game up at six with 6:28 to go in the game. The Terps offense was struggling and looking for a spark. It was not until 5:17 left in the game that Spanos would find the back of the net for his third goal to give the Terps the lead back. Just under a minute later, Spanos would score his fourth goal on the day to give the Terps a two-goal lead yet again with just 4:34 to go in the game in what proved to be the game-sealing goal. Maryland’s defense was still causing turnovers and keeping Ohio State off the scoreboard. With 1:37 to go in the game Ohio State cut the Terps lead to just one but they were never able to tie the game back up and the Terps defense would hold on for the win.
This week’s players of the game are Eric Spanos, Luke Wierman, and Logan McNaney. Spanos finished the day with five total points on four goals and an assist leading the Terps offense on the day. Wierman finished the day going 13/18 from the face-off and picking up eight ground balls. McNaney was a brick wall today saving the ball at a 59% rate getting ten saves and just allowing seven goals.
Another Spanos goal!
Pretty feed from Erksa to make it a two-goal lead#BeTheBest pic.twitter.com/QBawL7K8Uw
— Maryland Men's Lacrosse (@TerpsMLax) April 6, 2024
The Terps avoided having a losing record in conference play for the second time this season. Losing this game would have hurt their RPI rating massively and made it even harder to make the NCAA tournament. The Terps will be back in action next Saturday in SECU Stadium when they host the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at 7 PM EST. The Terps will be looking to go 3-1 in conference play and earn a potential first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament.
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