By Andrew Diveley
In a high-stakes Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal, No. 2 seed Maryland defeated No. 7 seed Iowa, 1-0, in a shootout Thursday in College Park.
The game remained scoreless through regulation and two overtime periods. Maryland’s defense — led by Ericka Morris-Adams, Josie Hollamon, and Rayne Wright — was instrumental in stifling Iowa’s offense. Maryland limited Iowa to five shots on goal and consistently clogged passing and shooting lanes.
“Iowa came out super strong, and I think took us a little bit by surprise, but we found our way,” said Morris-Adams.
Alyssa Klebasko was solid in the cage, recording five saves in regulation, including a crucial diving stop on an Iowa penalty corner in the third quarter. Klebasko’s play shut down the Hawkeye offense, establishing a new career high six shutouts this season.
Maryland’s offense dominated the offensive side, outshooting Iowa 31-7 and earning a 10-3 advantage in penalty corners. However Iowa goalkeeper Mia Magnotta proved difficult to beat making 17 saves — tied for the second most in Big Ten Tournament history — and keeping Maryland off the scoreboard.
In overtime, Maryland had two fast-break opportunities.
Hope Rose’s initial shot was blocked and Maci Bradford’s rebound went just wide. Another close call came in double overtime as Rose’s shot on a penalty corner was stopped, forcing the game into a shootout.
Maryland came through in the shootout with critical conversions from Rose, Bradford, and Annemijn Klijnhout. Backup goalkeeper Paige Kieft made a key save to seal the Terps’ victory marking Maryland’s first shootout win since Nov. 13, 2022, against Syracuse.
“Yeah, well, I mean, this is the third time on this field that Paige has advanced us in postseason play,” said Maryland head coach Missy Meharg. “So Paige knows this deal, and she works on it every single day, and she’s proud of it.”
With the win, Maryland moves to 22-6-1 all-time against Iowa, with a 9-1 record in postseason matchups. This was also the Terps’ second win over the Hawkeyes this season, having previously won 5-0 in Iowa City earlier this season.
Iowa’s (9-9) tournament run ends in College Park with the loss.
The No. 5 ranked Terps (13-5) advance to the semifinals, where they’ll face No. 3 seed Michigan Friday.
