At the 9:12 mark of the second quarter, No. 13 Maryland field hockey had its second penalty corner of the game. Babs van Hest handled the insert and set up the ball for Feliz Kuhne, who buried a shot past Boston College goalkeeper Charlotte Kramer for the Terps’ second goal off a penalty corner in as many quarters.
Penalty corners were the difference on Friday night as the Terps defeated the Eagles, 2-0.
Maryland’s penalty corner game has been a revelation in 2026. The Terps struggled last year, but
this year, they’ve excelled.
It was a track-meet pace to open the match on Friday night, as both teams endlessly ran up and down the pitch. Maryland worked the sidelines while Boston College exploited the middle of the field, but neither offense found sustained success in the early going.
However, it wouldn’t take long for the Terps to break through. At the 5:29 mark, Francisca Eschoyez hammered a shot past Kramer to start the scoring. It was Eschoyez’s third tally of the season – all of which have come off penalty corners.
Maryland has scored first in all three of its games on the young season. The early goals have been extremely helpful in generating momentum.
On defense, Maryland faced pressure from Boston College’s attackers, but senior netminder Alyssa Klebasko notched a pair of saves – including one off a dangerous centering pass – in the first quarter to keep the Eagles off the scoreboard.
Boston College continued to push forward in the beginning of the second frame but was unable to take advantage of a Maryland green card, and once the Terps returned to full strength, they went right to work. van Hest received a long pass, advanced into the attacking third with speed and centered the ball towards the middle of the shooting circle. While the Terps couldn’t score initially, they forced a penalty corner and cashed in with Kuhne.
Maryland spent seven minutes in the second quarter with only 10 players on the field thanks to a green card and a yellow card each. Despite the disadvantage, the Terps weren’t deterred. The Eagles had a pair of penalty corners, but Kuhne deflected both of them before they could reach the cage.
After the flurry of offense from Boston College, Maryland nearly scored a third goal before halftime. With the Terps still down a player, Maci Bradford found van Hest wide open on a breakaway, and when Kramer came out of her net, she tripped up van Hest, resulting in a penalty stroke. However, the Eagles keeper bounced back, denying Josie Hollamon and keeping the score at 2-0 heading into intermission.
Maryland had another chance to extend the lead early in the third frame but couldn’t convert. Both van Hest and Maia Adamson were denied close to the cage, and the Eagles shut down the ensuing penalty corner to remain within striking distance.
Offense was a premium the rest of the way. As the game wore on, Boston College became increasingly desperate, hoping to avoid a 1-2 start to its season. One of the Eagles’ best chances of the match came in the form of a penalty corner with about three minutes to play. Madeline Leigh took the shot after the insert, but the ball didn’t even make it halfway to the net, as the Terps knocked it down and quickly cleared it away to end the threat and the Eagles’ comeback bid.
Three things to know
- Impenetrable wall. Maryland has not allowed a goal from open play this season. The only score they’ve allowed came on a penalty stroke.
- Penalty corner power. The Terps have scored half of their goals off penalty corners, a welcome sight after last year’s struggles.
- Major matchup looms. The Terps return to action on Sunday against No. 6 Duke. The Blue Devils will be the Terps’ first ranked opponent of the season.
