No. 12 Maryland men’s lacrosse holds off No. 9 Ohio State in 8-7 OT win

Franklin Zessis
1 hour ago
3 min read

Riley Reese has hardly seen the field in his career with No. 12 Maryland men’s lacrosse.

The senior was playing in just his 18th career game for the Terps. But the son of former Maryland All-American defender Brian Reese and Maryland women’s lacrosse head coach Cathy Reese buried the overtime winner on a wide-open look.

The goal unleashed a wave of white jerseys from the Maryland sideline as the lights flashed at SECU Stadium in an 8-7 overtime win against Ohio State. The goal marks the second time the Terps have won in extended time this season.

“We go through situations like that all the time in practice,” Reese said. “Eric [Spanos] had great vision. He saw me on the pipe, and my guy kinda came off me … and it was open.”

For most of Reese’s career, he was a rotational part of Maryland’s (5-4, 2-1 Big Ten) defensive unit. But an injury to 2025 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Will Schaller forced Maryland to put him in their starting lineup.

While Reese played a crucial part in Maryland’s defense during the two prior games, Saturday marked just his third career start. The senior played one of the best games of his career, tallying three groundballs and a pair of caused turnovers along with the overtime winner.

“In the recruiting process, he was your classic late bloomer,” coach John Tillman said on Wednesday. “He's got a great stick. He's tough as nails … and he understands the defense.”

No. 9 Ohio State’s goalie Caleb Fyock dominated in both games against Maryland last season. The junior stopped at least half of Maryland’s shots on goal in both contests and tallied 19 saves in the Big Ten Title game.

But heading into Saturday’s contest, Fyock had struggled. Fyock posted a .400 save rate or lower in each of his prior two games, and his struggles continued into the opening quarter against Maryland.

The Terps frequently shot high on the Ohio State (8-3, 1-2 Big Ten) goalie, scoring four times in the opening six minutes — with three coming on shots to the upper half of the net. Maryland’s midfielders did most of the early scoring, tallying four of its five first-quarter goals.

Aiding the Terps on offense was the play of its faceoff unit. The contest seemed poised to be an even matchup as both teams boasted a faceoff specialist with a win percentage within the top 10 in the nation.

But Maryland dominated the matchup early in the game. The Terps won eight of the first ten faceoffs, allowing the Terps to control the pace and open the game on a 4-0 run.

Maryland ended the first quarter with a 5-2 lead. The Terps added a seventh goal with 9:08 remaining in the third quarter, marking the average Ohio State allows all season. But the offense fell silent from that point, scoring just two goals over the next three quarters.

“We gotta be a lot better. I’m frustrated to be honest,” Tillman said while slapping his palm on the table. “We won, but two goals in three quarters … [is] disappointing.”

Part of the reason for Maryland’s struggles was Fyock's improvement. The 2025 First Team All-American stopped eight of Maryland’s next 10 shots on goal in regulation, finishing with a .636 save rate and allowing the Buckeyes to mount a comeback.

Ohio State’s attack was methodical. The Buckeyes cut their deficit to a goal despite four second-quarter turnovers, and before graduate student attacker Alex Marinier’s second goal of the contest evened the game at seven.

The Terps were in a dire situation with seven seconds left in the game as Garrett Haas — the Buckeye’s top point scorer — had a clear path towards the goal. But Ruppel stymied the junior attacker, allowing Maryland to win the game in overtime.

The win is crucial for Maryland as it marks the first time all season the Terps have held opponents to single-digit goals in consecutive games and secured their first win against a top-10 opponent this year.

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