Courtesy of UAlbany Sports Information
College Park, Md. ? Susie Rowe recorded two goals and one assist
to lead No. 1 Maryland to a 4-2 win over No. 20 UAlbany in the first round of
the 2008 NCAA Division I Field Hockey Tournament on Saturday afternoon at the
Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex.
The Terrapins
jumped out quickly, scoring two goals in the first 10 minutes of play. Nicole
Muracco struck first at 3:43 with a hard shot from the middle of the circle.
Rowe added her first goal in the eighth minute, as Katie O’Donnell gathered the
ball in a scramble in front of the cage and passed over to Rowe, who slipped
the ball past UAlbany goalkeeper Ashley Ross. The Great Danes would get on the
scoreboard before the end of the first half, as junior forward Nicole Savage
dribbled in and knocked an unassisted shot into the cage at 26:46.
Maryland (19-2)
went ahead 3-1 early in the second stanza, as Danielle Keeley took an assist
from Rowe on a penalty corner in the 39th minute. Rowe then gave the Terrapins
their largest lead of the game with a penalty corner goal at 53:29 off an
assist by Alexis Pappas. Jess Lindsey would cut the Great Danes’ deficit in
half late in the game on UAlbany’s only penalty corner of the game. Senior
Michele Polizois passed the ball back to Lindsey off the initial insert and
Lindsey was able to shoot the ball past Maryland goalkeeper Alicia Grater.
Maryland outshot
the Great Danes, 20-7, and held an 8-1 advantage in penalty corners. Grater
made two saves in the cage for the Terrapins while Ross stopped nine of
Maryland’s 13 shots on goal in the game.
“It was a very
good experience overall,” said UAlbany head coach Phil Sykes, who led the Great
Danes to the program’s first-ever conference title this season. “We came out a
little nervous in the first 10 minutes, but we calmed down. We had several good
opportunities in the second half to make it an interesting game, but we
couldn’t capitalize. The team didn’t get overwhelmed with their opponent or the
situation and I’m really proud of them for that.”
UAlbany finishes
the season with a 12-10 overall record, and ends the year in the national
rankings for the second consecutive season.