After No. 2 Maryland men’s soccer put together its most successful half of offense of the young season, defensive miscues plagued its second half.
Following a late goal by freshman Mason Booz, Delaware thought it had completed the dream comeback against the Terps. The Blue Hens’ Frederik Flaskager beat Laurin Mack one-on-one and scored the equalizer, tying the game at three.
Minutes later, Delaware’s dream turned to a nightmare. Dennis Kalanzi netted his first goal of the season for the Terps when
they needed it most as Maryland came away with a narrow, 4-3 victory.
“It was a disjointed game to be honest,” head coach Sasho Cirovski said. “Delaware played very direct and we struggled with keeping the ball in possession … and some missed assignments in the back.”
Entering Friday’s match, the Blue Hens boasted the seventh-best scoring defense in college soccer, allowing a single goal in their first four games.
The Terps’ offense imposed their will quickly, beginning with a dangerous scoring chance from Rodrigo Neri just 23 seconds into the game following a cross from Henry Bernstein.
Bernstein, a proven playmaker for Maryland’s attack, provided another beautiful pass in the seventh minute to fellow midfielder Albi Ndrenika, who scored his first goal of the season. Ndrenika jockeyed for position in the box and finished the play right in front of the goal mouth. With his two assists, Bernstein now has four on the season.
“Henry’s a special player,” Cirovski said. “He’s a great passer and can create goals for himself while also putting other guys in play.”
Less than three minutes later, Rocket Ritarita launched a ball toward Delaware keeper Eric Widrick. The netminder couldn’t secure the catch, leading to a rebound goal for Rodrigo Neri, his second of the year. Neri has turned into a weapon at the traditional striker position for Cirovski, something the Terps have been missing in recent seasons.
Despite the Terps’ early success, the Blue Hens clawed back. In the 20th minute, German Argueta chipped a ball inside the box to Rich Monath. Franklin Affanyi was late to his defensive assignment, allowing Monath to make a slick pass to Marius Stenner, sneaking the ball past Laurin Mack and cutting the lead to one.
Monath, the reigning Summit League Midfielder of the Year, had zero points coming into this game, despite logging 51 from the following four seasons with the Blue Hens. He found his rhythm Friday night, notching his first two assists of the season.
The Terps’ weren’t finished in the first half. In the 38th minute Zack Harris netted his first of the season, drifting left and scoring across the grain past the outreached gloves of Widrick. Widrick, a Colgate transfer, hadn’t allowed more than two goals in a game since Oct. 14.
Lilian Fichelle made his return to the starting lineup for the first time since the Pitt game. Despite missing the last two games with an injury, he didn’t miss a step. With his return, the Terps shifted back to their traditional backline of four defenders, along with Farouk Cisse, Ljubomir Popovic and Franklin Affanyi.
Following the defensive lapses in this game, Cirovski faces a unique problem. The seasoned coach will have to determine what formation will give the Terps the best chance for complete team consistency ahead of their top-five clash with No. 5 Georgetown. In the Terps’ lone shutout victory this season, Cirovski played three defensemen, with Kenny Quist-Therson making his first start of the year in a hybrid midfielder role.
“We need to get a little better play on the defensive side from the whole team,” Cirovski said. “We’re a team that prides itself on our defensive pressure and resilience . . . that’s the area we need to clean up right now.”
Three things to know
1. Déjà vu. Maryland’s defense has shown moments of great composure paired with crucial mental mistakes. The last time the Terps allowed three goals in a regular season game was in the regular season finale against Michigan State last season. The Terps’ topped the Spartans 4-3 with the help of Sadam Masereka’s hat trick.
2. D-man shuffle. Maryland’s starting backline in this game, Fichelle, Popovic, Affanyi and Cisse was the fourth combination in as many games. The mixup is new for the Terps’ as last year, Luca Costabile, Lasse Kelp and Tristen Rose started all 19 games for Maryland on defense. The Terps’ may elect to make Fichelle’s return to the lineup permanent and further promote lineup continuity going forward.
“We haven’t been able to keep our backline together, that’s clear,” Cirovski said. “[W]e’ve had to make a lot of adjustments and plug a lot of holes and we’re gonna keep doing it.”
3. Wunderkind. Three freshmen Terps have been credited with game-winning goals this season. Said El-Eyssami was credited with the game winner against Pitt, Neri against High Point and Kalanzi against the Blue Hens. Several freshmen on the roster have made instant impacts and been key contributors to the Terps’ undefeated start.
