Coming into the 2026 season, the matchup between then-No. 1 Maryland and No. 14 Virginia looked like it would have huge implications.
Now five weeks into the season, this game remains incredibly important, but for different reasons.
Dropping 11 spots in the rankings, No. 10 Maryland (2-3) is trying to recover from its disastrous start.
Virginia (3-3) is now out of the rankings completely and fighting to save its season weeks before ACC play begins.
For Maryland, the rivalry game against the Cavaliers comes at a crucial point in the season, with Big Ten play starting next week against No. 9 Penn State.
“You got conference play coming down the pike here pretty soon,” head coach John Tillman said. “Playing a team that [is] talented, skilled, athletic, it’s only going to make it better and only going to prepare you more for what we’re going to see.”
Virginia
Virginia’s rocky start this season is a continuation of an extremely disappointing 2025 season, given the sky-high expectations the program has had under Lars Tiffany.
The Cavaliers have lost to both ranked opponents they’ve faced this season. They lost to both Johns Hopkins and Richmond and now No. 20 Towson last weekend.
Despite the struggles, the offense has had some success this year. It averages over 14 goals per game, with that number dipping down to a still respectable 11.3 against ranked opponents.
The Cavaliers are extremely top-heavy on offense, with only six players having more than three points. Leading the attack for Virginia is junior McCabe Millon, who has totaled a team lead of 38 points, scoring 15 goals on the year. His brother and No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class, Brendan Millon, is second in points with 27, while senior Truitt Sunderland leads the team in goals with 16 on the season.
Along with Ryan Colsey, Ryan Duenkel and Chase Band, the top six point leaders for the Cavaliers make up 84.7% of the team’s total points and 82.6% of all goals scored.
Despite Virginia’s top-heavy nature, its elite players produce at a high level. McCabe Millon’s 6.3 points per game is the best in the nation, while Brendan Millon ranks 21st in PPG.
Virginia’s defense has been bad this season. It has struggled mightily against higher-level competition. They held Stony Brook and High Point to seven goals each, which lowers their season stats. But against every other team, the Cavaliers have allowed 14.75 goals per game.
Virginia has played two goalkeepers this season, neither of whom has been able to perform at a high level.
Graduate senior Jake Marek has played the most games this season, starting four. He has made 39 saves this season while saving 47% of the shots he faced. Kyle Morris has started two games for the Cavaliers but has struggled mightily. Morris has made just 18 saves for a measly 38.3% save percentage.
Can Maryland build some momentum?
It has been a struggle of a season so far for Maryland, but a win against its long-time rivals could help get it on track before conference play starts. Even with Virginia’s struggles to this point in the year, Maryland would still claim its best win of the season so far if it can take care of business at home.
Maryland still has some looming concerns after the 12-8 win against Delaware, including a season-high 19 turnovers that caused the offense to sputter at times.
The matchup with the Cavaliers will be the last chance for Maryland to address some of its struggles before the gauntlet to end its schedule, which includes three ranked opponents in conference play.
