2,818 miles away from College Park, No. 3 Maryland women’s lacrosse looked right at home in Oregon’s defensive zone.
The Terps commanded the pace and rhythm of the game on offense, as a six-goal performance from Lauren LaPointe underscored their eighth win of the season, a 15-7 thrashing of Oregon, in their conference slate opener.
The Terps started frantically on defense, double-teaming Anna Simmons after she controlled the opening draw. Simmons drew multiple defenders driving into the arc, forcing
Lyla Ingrilli to foul Oregon’s Gabby Santucci. Santucci’s free position found the net to give the Ducks the lead four minutes in.
But this would be Oregon’s only goal for over 12 minutes, as total team domination rocketed the Terps out to a five-goal advantage before the Ducks could answer.
Lauren LaPointe was left uncharacteristically open early on, scoring two consecutive goals. Kristen Shanahan and Kori Edmondson added on in the eighth minute with snipes of their own.
At the close of the quarter, Maisy Clevinger marked her first start of the season with a score before LaPointe completed her hat trick with just nine seconds left. Maryland outshot Oregon 13-7 in the first frame, and it also held a modest 5-3 lead in the draw circle.
Despite missing Kennedy Major for a third consecutive game, Maryland’s backline was firing on all cylinders. The defense edged out the Ducks on groundballs, 14-13, and was rock solid on the perimeter of the fan. JJ Suriano’s .538 save percentage on seven saves was also an added bonus.
The effort was highlighted by a pair of defensive stands in the second quarter, where the Terps forced two consecutive shot clock violations without allowing a single shot from Oregon’s attackers.
Edmondson was on a mission in the first half, securing her fifth hat trick of the season on three long range goals — two came on free position chances. LaPointe, however, outdid her senior captain, finishing the half with four goals and an assist to notch her fourth five-point performance in 2026.
Maryland’s offensive dominance continued into the second half, as Kayla Gilmore and Leah Miller found nylon before LaPointe launched a shot past keeper Francesca Viteritti for her fifth of the contest with five minutes left in the third quarter.
The Terps’ shooting abilities were on full display on Saturday, much to Viteritti’s chagrin. The redshirt junior faced 22 total shots on frame and could only come up with seven saves on the day as Maryland touted an 81.5% shots on goal percentage, its third-highest mark of the season.
Many lesser-known Ducks had chances to shine today, mostly due to Maryland’s complete shutdown of Simmons. Oregon’s highest producer was entirely silenced, failing to log a single goal or assist as her impact was reduced to the draw circle.
This gave Lexi Jenkins and Lyla Hurley opportunities to score in back-to-back fashion to open up the final quarter and cut the Maryland lead to seven. Then, after another LaPointe score, Maryland’s role players struck back, as Devin Livingston shuttled a dime to Lexi Dupcak with 10 minutes left in the bout.
Kayla Gilmore was once again phenomenal in the draw circle, as the Terps outdueled Oregon 18-6 on total draw controls.
Three things to know
1. LaPointe keeps it rolling. The junior’s production was far from limited in the first conference matchup of 2026, as she buried a career-high six goals on nine shots. LaPointe has emerged from relative obscurity on Maryland’s depth chart and cemented herself as the primary scoring option every time the Terps drove down the field.
2. Production all around. Maryland’s early lead allowed Reese to plunge deep into her bench on Saturday, as 27 of Maryland’s 33 available players saw the field. The high substitution activity shed light on the team’s overall goal to get every player involved on the field.
3. Quick turnaround. After their weekend victory, the Terps will return to Maryland to host a marquee matchup on Tuesday against Penn. The Quakers beat Maryland twice last season and ended its postseason run in an overtime thriller. The Terps will need to recover fast for a game they’ve had marked on their calendars since the season began.
