By: Conner Hoyt
Maryland’s women’s soccer team barely had time to settle in before they looked up at a 1-0 deficit to guest Northwestern on the scoreboard Sunday. Sophomore Marisa Viggiano’s 4th minute corner kick peeled towards the near post and found its way into the back of the net to give the Wildcats an early lead.
“I tried the best I could to get there, but obviously I didn’t get there quick enough,” said Maryland goalkeeper Katelyn Jensen.
The Terps trailed 3-0 at halftime, which coach Ray Leone attributed to insufficient defense in key areas.
“The final ball was not pressured, and that’s where [Northwestern] got us,” said Leone.
It was a role reversal of sorts for the Lady Terrapins, who in their victory against Illinois on Thursday scored twice within the first five minutes of the game.
“Confidence is huge,” said Jensen, a sophomore. “You can’t question your decisions as a goalkeeper, right or wrong.”
In non-conference play, the trio of Katelyn Jensen, Rachel Egyed and Stephanie Senn each saw significant time in net. Sunday, however, marked the fourth consecutive game that Jensen started. Egyed relieved Jensen of her duties in the 62nd minute during a stoppage in play after freshman Jlon Flippens’ first career Big Ten goal. Flippens coolly finished a penalty kick that was awarded to Maryland after Jarena Harmon was fouled by Northwestern junior Nikia Smith.
“I knew [Flippens] was going to put it home because she’s such a confident player… I know that one day she’ll be a leader on this team,” said Jensen.
In the 80th minute, Northwestern spoiled all hopes of a Maryland comeback as Kayla Sharples scored on a corner kick service from Marisa Viggiano. The Wildcats defeated the Lady Terrapins 4-1.
The loss drops Maryland to 3-7-1 on the campaign, with a 1-2-0 record in conference play. Northwestern is now 10-1-0 and 3-1-0 in the Big Ten. Maryland travels to East Lansing on Thursday to take on Michigan State. The Spartans return home after a three game stretch to begin conference play, in which they were 1-2.
“We’ve got to concentrate on our possession because that’s what was poorest,” said Leone. “I’m not discouraged at all because they’re trying as hard as they can and they’re learning from the mistakes that they’re making.”
