The Maryland women’s lacrosse team lost nearly as many games in the last two seasons (10) as it did the previous 10 — a decade of dominance in which the Terps compiled a 215-13 record and won five NCAA championships.
Proclamations of the dynasty’s demise, however, could yet prove premature.
No. 5 Maryland answered a scoreless second quarter with an eight-goal explosion in the third, defeating No. 10 Virginia 17-13 in Charlottesville, Va., on Friday.
Johns Hopkins transfer Aurora Cordingley provided the spark, scoring all four of her goals in the second half and adding two assists in the victory, which moved the Terps to 3-0 heading into another top-10 showdown against Florida next week.
— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) February 19, 2022
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Aurora Cordingley lit it up tonight with 4G/2A, scoring falling down to punctuate @MarylandWLax’s 8-0 3Q in 17-13 win over UVA. pic.twitter.com/2XEGqsmG8R
With both teams shooting near 50 percent, the game between Maryland and Virginia turned into a matter of heavyweight offenses exchanging haymakers. The Terps led 6-4 after the first quarter, with Libby May scoring four of her game-high five goals in the frame.
But the Cavaliers (2-1) won five of six draws in the second quarter and shot 5-for-6 to take a 9-6 lead into halftime.
Maryland flipped the script in the third quarter, though, pouring in eight unanswered goals, including two in the last 20 seconds to take a commanding 14-9 lead. The Terps won seven of nine draws and outshot Virginia 14-3 in the quarter. All 14 shots were on goal.
Then back came the Cavaliers, who pulled within one in the fourth quarter before Cordingley iced the win with two straight goals and Hannah Leubecker (four goals) provided an insurance tally.
Rachel Clark and Ashlyn McGovern scored four goals apiece for Virginia, which shot 6-for-6 on free positions. Goalie Ashley Vernon made 12 saves in the loss. The Cavaliers host No. 13 Princeton on Sunday.
STATEMENT WIN FOR USC
It’s just the second Friday of the Division I women’s lacrosse season, and in the span of 10 days, three ranked teams have already fallen in upset fashion. USC provided the latest surprise.
Shelby Tilton scored with 49 seconds remaining, lifting the Women of Troy in a seesaw matchup against No. 19 Jacksonville — a program whose stock looked ready to rise thanks to Virginia Tech’s Wednesday win over No. 14 James Madison.
Shelby Tilton completes the with the game on the line and @USCTrojansLax defeats No. 19 Jacksonville 13-12. Big road win for the Women of Troy, who overcame a four-goal deficit and a five-goal performance by @JAX_WLAX's Sarah Elms to improve to 2-0. pic.twitter.com/iZSMiB6SXL
— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) February 18, 2022
Instead, it’s now USC that’s on the map, thanks in large part to Tinton but also thanks to a six-goal run in the third quarter that flipped a 7-4 deficit into a 9-7 lead. Jacksonville scored three straight to retake the lead from there, but the 6-0 run was still a game-changer.
After Alyssa Arnold fed Jenny Kinsey with 13:45 left in the game for a 10-9 Jacksonville lead, Tilton, Ella Heaney and Maddie Dora scored during another USC run, this one putting the Women of Troy ahead 12-10.
Jacksonville (1-1) again rallied. Sarah Elms took it upon herself to score twice in a 48-second span, the second of which tied the score at 12 with 2:06 left. Claudia Shevitz won the ensuing draw for USC, setting up the Tilton winner.
Now 2-0, USC is trending upward.
NOTABLE
— Nobody can stop Duke right now. The Blue Devils improved to 3-0 after a resounding 23-5 win over William & Mary in which Catriona Barry scored five goals and Katie DeSimone scored four. Duke outscored W&M 16-2 after the first quarter. Through three games, Duke has outscored Gardner-Webb, Elon and W&M by a combined 70-13.
— Hannah Morris had four goals and one assist and Kokoro Nakazawa recorded a hat trick as Louisville (1-2) topped Marquette 18-9. Marquette (1-2) trailed 6-5 before a 9-1 run from Louisville put the game out of reach.
— Pittsburgh remains undefeated in its inaugural season. The Panthers, victorious in their first-ever game last week against Duquesne, defeated Siena 12-5 to improve to 2-0. Pitt went 8-for-10 on free positions and got five goals from Kate Elam in the win.
HOW THE TOP 20 FARED
No. 5 Maryland 17, No. 10 Virginia 13
No. 7 Duke 23, William and Mary
No. 11 Michigan 11, Arizona State 9
No. 18 Denver 8, No. 16 Stanford 6
USC 13, No. 19 Jacksonville 12
FULL SCOREBOARD
No. 7 Duke 23, William and Mary 5
No. 18 Denver 8, No. 16 Stanford 6
East Carolina 17, Winthrop 7
Holy Cross 13, UMass Lowell 6
Louisville 18, Marquette 9
No. 5 Maryland 17, No. 10 Virginia 13
Mercer 15, Oregon 12
No. 11 Michigan 11, Arizona State 9
Pittsburgh 12, Siena 5
San Diego State 15, Cal 6
USC 13, No. 19 Jacksonville 12
Wofford 14, Akron 9
Youngstown State 11, Saint Francis 3