After allowing a penalty corner in the first nine minutes of play, No. 4 Maryland field hockey goalkeeper Alyssa Klebasko watched as the ball bounced off her forearm pad and into the net, allowing No. 5 Duke to snatch the first goal of the game.
Though freshman Jordyn Hollamon answered almost 40 minutes later with an aggressive penalty corner shot into the back of Duke’s net, the Blue Devils capitalized again on a penalty corner opportunity, sealing the Terps’ 2-1 defeat Sunday in Durham, North Carolina.
Duke’s second — and game-winning — goal also came on the back of a penalty corner, inserted by last season’s leading scorer, Alaina McVeigh. Though they only were awarded two penalty corner opportunities thanks to clean gameplay by the Terps, the Blue Devils took advantage of both. Maryland, meanwhile, went 1-5 on the set plays.
In an attempt to add more pressure on Duke’s offense and tie the game again, head coach Missy Meharg pulled Klebasko from the goal with three minutes left to shift all gameplay down towards Duke’s 25-yard attack zone. But the Terps were not able to slide one more goal through.
Strategic motion proved to be the most important aspect of today’s game. As Duke maintained tight coverage in the middle of the field, it was up to Maryland’s offense to squeeze through tight windows toward a shot. After getting just one shot off in the first half, the Terps adapted, shifting their shape to bring their offense forward. Maryland pressed Duke’s midfielders and forwards from the front and side as opposed to the back.
Maryland’s defense kept Duke under pressure throughout the game, on multiple occasions forcing an aerial ball to avoid the defense entirely. The defenders limited Duke’s fireball offense to just two shots on goal all game, both of which were successfully blocked by Klebasko.
Jordyn Hollamon led the pack at the attacking end of the field, attempting three shots on goal and scoring the Terps’ only goal. With her goal today, the Big Ten Freshman of the Week moved to three goals on the season.
The Terps weren’t able to lock down McVeigh, though, who slid the game-winning score right
by Klebasko.
“It’s McVeigh,” Meharg said, in regards to what made playing the Blue Devils difficult. “It’s 14.”
Maryland hasn’t been able to steal a win from Duke since 2022. It also lost to the Blue Devils during the first round of the NCAA playoffs last year, a fact Meharg knows well. Though the emotions are high for her team as they return to a familiar feeling, Meharg is looking toward conference play. In her eyes, Sunday’s matchup against Duke was a class act in field hockey gameplay.
“Energy today was all Maryland,” Meharg said. “What you take away is [that] we play at a good level. We can play at a good enough level to beat any team in the country. “
Next week, Maryland is headed back to College Park to host the Terrapin Invitational against the University of Pennsylvania and No. 9 Saint Joseph’s.
Three things to know
1. An addition to the tradition. Duke and Maryland have played each other every year during the second week of the season for the past 10 years.
2. A family affair. Madison Beach, a freshman Duke midfielder, is the daughter of Katie Beach, who played field hockey under Meharg from 1992-96. Her father, Keith Beach, is also a former Terp. Beach assisted Julia Boehringer in the first goal of Sunday’s game.
3. All-time record maintained. Even after their loss against Duke, Maryland still holds an all-time winning record against the Blue Devils, 17-13.
