By: Victoria Ebner

In a hard-fought battle, the No. 10 Maryland Terrapins lost to the No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats, dropping their record to 2-1 in the Big Ten and 6-4 overall.

The Wildcats wasted no time getting on the board, deflecting a shot into the back of the cage off their first penalty corner, just three minutes into the first half.

The Terps struggled early on to gain control over a scrappy Wildcat offense and were unable to stop Northwestern from weaving its way through defenders and into the circle.

It wasn’t until late in the first half that Maryland was able to get some opportunities, with senior midfielder Lein Holsboer earning a shot on goal deflecting off the top crossbar. Holsboer continued to take the ball into the circle, but the Terps offense struggled to perfect its passing and maintain strong control of the ball.

Maryland was finally able to answer back when fifth-year senior midfielder Brooke Adler received a pass from junior forward Sabrina Rhodes, directing a hit right between the goalie’s legs.

“When you go down 0-1 in the first half, your energy drops,” Adler said. “Being able to get a quick equalizer back really brings the energy back into the game.”

The first half ended with the score tied 1-1, with four penalty corners for Northwestern, three corners for Maryland and seven shots each.

With renewed energy after halftime, the Terps mirrored Northwestern’s early goal, sinking a shot from Holsboer three minutes in, upping their lead to 2-1.

The victory was short-lived, as Northwestern answered with back to back goals at 49:01 and 54:21, regaining the lead.

With the clock quickly running down, the Terps still struggled to remain to keep passes crisp and control the ball, resulting in the mishandling of a key penalty corner.

In a frantic last minute move, goalie Sarah Holliday was removed and the Terps kept sophomore defender Bodil Keus as an additional player. Although they made numerous plays up the field, the Terps weren’t able to connect, and the score remained 3-2.

Despite the disappointing outcome, head coach Missy Meharg remains positive about the team’s future.

“Overall, I’m super pleased with the growth of the team.” Meharg said. “We definitely played a really good brand of hockey… We’re a work in progress.”

The game ended with a count of 16 shots and five penalty corners for Maryland, with Northwestern at 15 shots and seven penalty corners.

After three close games, Maryland will continue its season against Michigan (3-0, 7-2 overall) in Ann Arbor at 6 p.m. on Friday.