No. 15 Maryland men’s soccer could only be denied the game’s opening score so many times Friday night. After watching two goals wiped away from offsides calls in the first half — both of which left head
coach Sasho Cirovski visibly upset — the Terps finally struck.
In a chaotic sequence of events inside the box, Sadam Masereka collided with No. 13 Michigan defender Will Baker and immediately went down. This time, video review wouldn’t take away Maryland’s goal-scoring opportunity.
Leon Koehl calmly placed the ball on the spot. He took two shuffles to his left, sprinted towards the goal and passed the ball into the net past the diving goalie.
Koehl’s third straight score from the spot this season fueled Maryland’s 2-0 victory at Ludwig Field. The Terps moved just one point behind Washington for the top spot in the Big Ten with the win.
“Michigan’s an exceptional team. They’re good in possession, they’re athletic and they’re technical,” Cirovski said. “We had a crispness in our execution tonight that allowed us to do that. One of our better performances of the year. That’s a very good team, and we held them to very few opportunities.”
While Maryland eventually found the game-winner in the second half, it was the better side throughout the opening 45 minutes. The ball very rarely ventured into Maryland’s defensive half, and when it did, Lasse Kelp and Tristen Rose easily recovered possession.
Cirovski has continually emphasized the need for strong starts, with Maryland looking flat-footed and sloppy on the ball early against Wisconsin and Penn State. The veteran head coach got that from his side, but the Terps had nothing to show for it at halftime.
“It was really important for us to start on the front foot,” Cirovski said. “I thought on both sides of the ball we were very sharp. … This is the standard that we certainly want to have for our guys to make sure that we have that kind of positive start.”
Maryland created the game’s first chance off the boot of Stephane Njike. The speedy left winger cut inside onto his preferred right foot and sent a curling effort just inches over the goal in the second minute.
The Terps tacked on more pressure soon after.
In the seventh minute, Joseph Umberto Picotto drilled a volley directed towards the near post. Michigan goalkeeper Isaiah Goodson pushed the short-range effort out of harm’s way. That was one of three first-half stops for the junior netminder.
A nifty passing sequence just outside the box six minutes later put Luca Costabile through on goal. While the senior defender was ruled offside by a fraction, Maryland’s momentum never let up.
The Terps continued to dominate the possession afterwards, working the ball around with a rejuvenated pace. Clean passing and quick ball movement kept the Michigan backline on its toes, never allowing the Wolverines to break out of their defensive half.
“We practice those quick combinations in training a lot,” Koehl said. “We try to be very mobile in the midfield and have those quick combinations. I think in the first half you saw a lot of those.
Michigan’s best chance came in the third minute, when midfielder Shuma Sasaki fired a harmless shot from outside the box. That was just one of two saves Laurin Mack was forced to make on the night.
After being held scoreless for 158 straight minutes dating back to Maryland’s 4-1 victory over Pittsburgh, just 16 minutes separated the Terps’ two second-half scores.
With a defender on his back, Albi Ndrenika flicked a nifty backheel pass to Njike. No one could stop Njike from putting away his fourth goal of the season. He placed the ball into the far post netting to double Maryland’s lead.
Three things to know
1. Perfect Big Ten home record. The Terps have had three Big Ten games away from College Park, coming away with five points. But they’ve been untouchable at Ludwig Field. Recent wins – over Northwestern and Michigan – have been by a combined five goals, comfortably cementing Maryland as a Big Ten title contender.
2. Njike’s celebration returns. After scoring against Pittsburgh earlier this season, Njike shied away from his typical backflip celebration. The sophomore displayed his incredible acrobatics after his fourth goal of the season.
“It was a great flick by Albi, and then just his composure on that finish was first class,” Cirovski said. “That’s a good goalkeeper Michigan has, and he picked up the corner beautifully. When he starts flipping and the lights are blinking, things are good here.”
3. Difficult home schedule ahead. With a pair of Big Ten teams added to the top 25 Monday, Maryland’s upcoming slate looks a lot tougher. The Terps host three ranked teams at home: No. 18 Rutgers, No. 20 Indiana and No. 22 Washington. But Maryland has shown it can hang with any team in the country when playing at its best.
