Maryland men’s soccer forward Luke van Heukelum seems to be everywhere in the box, and the ball often finds him there.
The junior’s killer instinct in the attacking half fueled the Terps’ offense across its recent nonconference slate with a brace against Saint Francis (PA) the culmination of his efforts. Against Pacific on Saturday, his presence was felt again.
Maryland earned its first corner 10 minutes into the game. Forward Stephane Njike stood over the ball on the far side of the pitch, delivering
an inviting cross that bent right to the six-yard box. The ball found van Heukelum’s head and looped across the goalmouth into the back of the net.
Van Heukelum’s third score in two games set the tone for the Terps en route to a 4-0 victory against Pacific. The win capped off an undefeated three-game homestand that moved Maryland to 3-0-1 on the season.
“Second game in a row that we’ve scored off a corner,” head coach Sasho Cirovski said. “We’re getting more dangerous on our set pieces, which is something we need to do to be a good team. … [Luke] asked me to change his role [on set pieces], and he scored himself.”
While the Terps’ offense exploded for six goals in their last game, the team’s backline has been its calling card through the first four contests. They have yet to allow a goal from open play and rank 39th in the nation with 0.7 goals allowed per game. Maryland held Pacific off the board for its third forced shutout of the year.
The Terps controlled possession in the Tigers’ defensive half early in a manner reminiscent of the Saint Francis game. That limited Pacific to just three shots in the first half, with only one threatening goalie Laurin Mack.
In the 30th minute, Pacific forward Josephat Yangyuoru fired a shot low from the edge of the box. Mack dove to his left and corralled the ball into his gloves for his first save of the game.
Outside of that half-chance, Mack wasn’t really tested. After tallying a career-high six saves in the season opener, Maryland’s defense has tightened it up since. He made just five stops in the pair of games leading up to Saturday and was only required to deal with four shots on frame.
“We haven’t allowed too many shots in the last few games,” Cirovski said. “We came out of the Georgetown game, where we had to rely on our goalkeeper a lot, and we’ve done a better job in front of him minimizing the damage.”
Maryland’s attack had chances to extend its lead in the first half, but it failed to convert.
After creating 30 shots against Saint Francis, the Terps created 16 through 45 minutes Saturday, putting themselves on pace to better that number. Outside of van Heukelum’s 11th-minute goal, the Terps’ abundance of shots collectively posed little threat.
Defender Lasse Kelp generated Maryland’s first shot on target in the eighth minute but goalie Mateus Ruiz-Hurst comfortably caught it. That stop was one of his six first-half saves to keep the Terps’ lead at one at halftime.
In the 43rd minute, defender Luca Costabile also missed the team’s second penalty of the season.
Maryland maintained the momentum out of the locker room, but repeated fouls and cramps on both sides halted its offensive rhythm. That changed in the 75th minute.
Forward Sadam Masereka took a few dribbles towards the edge of the box, picked up his head and unleashed a laser towards the near post. Masereka’s second score of the season doubled the Terps’ advantage.
Soon after, Maryland struck once more. Defender Mack DeVries lobbed the ball to the back post and freshman forward Rocket Ritarita easily controlled it. Ritarita got a half step past his defender and calmly tucked home his first career goal.
“I just saw Mack on the ball and thought I should drift behind the defender,” Ritarita said. “I knew he’d find me with the pass. Just composure to settle down and then a quick little yard of space and just keep the composure in the finish, go for a corner.”
The Terps continued to pile it on with their third goal in 12 minutes.
Forward Aidan Sheppela capped off Maryland’s explosive second-half with an easy left-footed chipped shot just over the head of Ruiz-Hurst.
Three things to know
1. Second-half team. The Terps have enjoyed a 1-0 halftime lead in their past two games, but their attacking depth has fueled late-game scoring improvements. Maryland produced five goals in the second half against Saint Francis, and three today.
2. Young pieces show promise. In the last contest, Mateo Caride and Henry Bernstein each buried their first career goal. Today, it was Ritarita’s turn to shine on the pitch. The highly-touted freshman recruit totalled a goal and two assists across the final 15 minutes of the game.
3. Grueling Big Ten schedule ahead. The Terps last two games have come against weaker nonconference opponents, and they’ve feasted for two blowout victories. But their schedule picks back up with conference play starting on Friday and a ranked matchup against No. 10 Pitt two weeks away.
