Maryland’s men’s football has been plagued by first-half woes all season and often relies on second-half adjustments to remedy it. But things were different Thursday night in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament against Fairleigh Dickinson.
Maryland was decisive early on, as redshirt senior Nick Richardson’s cross led to the goal less than two minutes into the game.
Less than eight minutes later, Terps was back on the board as top scorer and senior midfielder Malcolm Johnston drilled a free kick into the top right corner of the net.
A quick 2-0 lead and three more goals was a challenge for the FDU as Maryland overthrew the Knights of the night, 5-2, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Terps’ win sets up a second round matchup against 14th seed Cornell Sunday.
The Terps started the first half with a sense of urgency and a clear game plan, despite weather with temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Redshirt senior Nick Richardson collected the ball just outside the box and flicked it into the box, which took Terps only 1 minute and 45 seconds to get on the board. Freshman forward Colin Griffiths made a beautiful header to keep the ball inbounds, while junior forward Stephan Copetti stabbed it into the net with his foot.
Griffiths continued to use his upper body as his first shot on goal was a header into the top right corner of the net. This time FDU Senior Goalkeeper Spencer King made the stop but snatched the ball out of the air.
King’s save only stopped Terps for a few minutes, but he was quickly back on the board in the 10th minute. lined up for
Terps have been working on free kicks throughout practice this week and it has paid off. Freshman defender Luca Costabile tapped the ball to Borma, who teed it up for senior midfielder Malcolm Johnston.
Johnston took three big steps before driving the ball into the top right corner of the net, giving Maryland a comfortable 2-0 lead.
Terps continued to dominate possession when Griffiths scored another shot on goal in the 18th minute, but was saved again by King.
Maryland’s third and final goal of the half came in the 26th minute. The ball was hit before Johnston delivered a beautiful heel-flick pass to freshman midfielder Albi Ndrenica deep in the box. Ndrenika shoved the ball into King’s leg and scored the first goal of his career.
The final 19 minutes of the first half saw neither team fare better, with Maryland going into halftime with a 3–0 lead.
Five yellow cards were dealt in the first 15 minutes (four for FDU and one for Maryland), making the situation volatile in the second half.
FDU freshman Matt Girardo scored two goals in the second half, but it came too late for Girardo and the Knights as Maryland beat FDU 5–2.
3 things you should know
1. The terp looked fresh. After an eight-day layover between games, Maryland was well rested and ready for the Knights. Terps dominated the ball in the first half, holding his 66% of total possession and scoring three goals. Once the break came to an end, Maryland played a little more conservatively, but still outperformed FDU by 2–1. Only he’s three days into the next game and the Terps should rest and play with the same level of energy.
2. Hunter George’s playtime was limited. Senior forward Hunter George was a staple of Maryland’s offense all season, but didn’t play much against the FDU. George has started all 18 games for the Terps to date, the eighth-most minutes on the team, but came off the bench on Thursday night, playing just 15 minutes. Nevertheless, Maryland had one of the best offensive games of the season, scoring five goals against a solid FDU defense.
3. Terps moves on. For the first time since 2019, Maryland will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. After he was upset by the LIU in the first round last year, the Terps got his revenge on the Sharks’ conference rivals and in a comfortable fashion he defeated FDU. Next up for Maryland is 14th-seeded Cornell, who plays Sunday in Ithaca, New York.
