Defensive continuity.
That is what No. 2 Maryland men’s soccer head coach Sasho Cirovski emphasized as the key to success for the Terps this season heading into their top-five, Labor Day matchup with No. 5 Georgetown.
For the first time this season, the Terps’ starting backline mirrored the group from their prior game and showed vast improvement in a gritty 3-2 victory over the Hoyas.
Lillian Fichelle, Ljubomir Popovic, Farouk Cisse and Franklin Affanyi were posed with one of their toughest challenges
this season in slowing down the Hoyas’ 6-foot-5 striker, Mitchell Baker. The tallest of the Terps’ backline measures up to just 6-foot-2, three inches shorter than the Hoyas’ leading goalscorer.
Baker got the best of Maryland’s defense in the 16th minute as he soared above the backline on a free kick, heading a ball at Laurin Mack. Mack stopped the initial scoring threat but wasn’t able to corral the rebound, leading to a tap-in goal by Tate Lampman.
Outside of the opening goal, the Terps’ defense stayed in lockstep, leaving no man left unmarked in the box and maintaining physicality with Baker and the rest of the Hoyas in the midfield. On multiple occasions, Popovic, Fichelle and Cisse closed down on Baker, stifling the Hoyas’ offensive momentum.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our team,” said Cirovski. “We showed a lot of resilience to handle the moment after their first goal . . . we stood tall and found a way to win.”
The game was physical from the start to the finish. Ten minutes into the game, Albi Ndrenika and Terrance Reynolds found themselves in a pushing match in the corner. Four yellow cards were distributed in the match.
The Hoyas entered the matchup with serious momentum after recording 3-0 victories against then-No. 19 Duke and No. 10 Oregon State. They also sported the seventh-best scoring defense in collegiate soccer, having allowed just two goals this season. But Maryland’s attack was up for the challenge.
Ndrenika scored first for the Terps; a marvelous golazo into the top right corner that gave keeper Charlie Demarco no chance to make a save. The two assists on the score were fellow midfielders Henry Bernstein and Leon Koehl. Bernstein entered the match fourth in the nation in assists.
“It was one of Albi’s best goals of his career,” said Cirovski. “It was a great little interaction, a couple quick passes with Leon and Henry and landed nicely to [Albi] and he hit it perfectly.”
In the 26th minute, Popovic took a free kick for the Terps, curving the ball over the keeper’s head and careening off the left post. A familiar sight for Maryland followed, as Rodrigo Neri was in the right position to score off the rebound for his third goal of the season.
After 35 minutes of continued physicality and defending, Said El Eyssami scored the eventual game-winning goal for the Terps, receiving a header pass from Neri and finishing the play from a tight angle.
Georgetown’s Eric Howard scored in the 84th minute, cutting the lead to one, but the Terps maintained possession and shut the door on the cross-town rival Hoyas.
“You have to be prepared for all the duels, all the competitiveness, and all the skill on both sides,” said Cirovski. “This is a game where you have to have not only the skill but the will to compete and finish off plays, and I thought our guys did that.”
Three things to know
1. Brilliant minds. Cirovski and Georgetown’s head coach Brian Wiese have combined for 56 years of head coaching experience, so both coaches had unique strategies in constructing their lineups for the match. Wiese’s lineup featured two traditional defenders and a striker with seven players rostered as midfielders, allowing for a fluid attack.
Cirovski’s key adjustment was starting the Terps’ hybrid midfielder, Kenny Quist-Therson for the second time this season. In addition to four defenders and midfielders, the Terps frontline consisted of just two players, Neri and Rocket Ritarita.
“I thought Kenny did a great job . . . he’s a warrior,” said Cirovski. “We have the makings of a very good backline, and I thought the central partnership was the best we’ve seen all year.”
2. I Said he’s back. Said El Eyssami entered the game midway through the first half for the Terps, and he finished the game with a goal on just three shots in 28 minutes. El Eyssami hadn’t played since his injury in the New Haven game. In the season opener, El Eyssami scored a brace in a 2-1 victory over Pitt.
“I missed two games, and that was really frustrating, but there’s no better way than coming back and playing Georgetown . . . with this crowd at home,” said El Eyssami.
3. 6,110. That was the attendance for Monday’s top-five matchup at Ludwig. The figure is the highest since a match against Indiana in 2017. The Crew has certainly been a factor in the Terps’ early home success.
