Maryland beats Syracuse 15-12 for National Championship

Maryland jumped out to a 5-0 lead less than five minutes into Sunday night’s National Championship Game and it looked like the Terrapins would run away with the title.

Lacrosse is a game of runs, so that thought was quickly dispelled by the Syracuse Orange. Syracuse answered with the next four goals to pull right back into the game. The Terrapins went on a 6-1 second-half run to take a 15-8 lead, but the Orange wouldn’t go away quietly. They scored four goals in less than three minutes to give themselves a chance, but it proved too little, too late.

Maryland held on for the 15-12 victory and its 12th national title in front of 10,311 screaming fans at Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium.

“What an amazing night for our lacrosse program,” said Maryland head coach Cathy Reese. “Our girls came out and fought hard from the opening whistle until the end. Lacrosse is a game of runs and there were a lot of them tonight. We really stuck together and played the full 60 minutes. I’m really excited to be sitting up here coming away with a national championship.”

The crowd was a record for the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship Game. Fans for both sides were loud from the beginning, creating a deafening atmosphere at times.

“You look around the stands and it was just a great atmosphere out there,” said Reese. “The fans were loud on both sides. It was helpful when we started out on that 5-0 run. I think we pretty much lit the place up there; that was exciting. Then we wanted to keep the fans in their seat towards the end there when Syracuse had those quick goals.”

Going into the game, a big spotlight shined on the four Tewaaraton Award finalists, two per team. Maryland’s Taylor Cummings had three goals, one assist and eight draw controls while ACC Defensive Player of the Year Megan Douty posted a pair of groundballs. For Syracuse, Alyssa Murray recorded three goals and one assist while Kayla Treanor had two goals and one helper.

Katie Webster also posted a hat trick for Syracuse while Amy Cross scored twice. Beth Glaros, Maryland’s only senior starter, enjoyed a monster game with five goals and one assist.

“I think I’ve said seven times that this is the happiest day of my life,” said Glaros. “I can’t stop saying it and I can’t stop smiling. This team is so special. Since the first day of fall ball, we knew it was going to be a special group of girls. We had such a great dynamic all season long and put it together in the end.”

After the nightmarish start, Syracuse pulled right back into the game as Treanor sparked the Orange with two of their first three goals including a nifty move and finish from behind the net. Murray scored her first of the evening at 9:42 of the first half to pull Syracuse within 5-4. The Terps answered with three straight goals, but Syracuse scored two of the final three first-half goals to pull within 9-6 after 30 minutes of play.

Murray opened the scoring just over two minutes into the second half, but Maryland had an answer. The Terrapins’ lead eventually swelled to 15-8 but Syracuse began to score and winning the draw which led to a big momentum switch. After Murray pulled the Orange within 15-12, Syracuse won the next draw but a turnover gave the ball back to Maryland and effectively squelched the momentum.

In the end, Maryland earned its national title, finishing the season 23-1. In doing so, the Terrapins rebounded nicely from a heartbreaking loss to North Carolina in last season’s title game.

“Last year, we sat up here after a heartbreaker,” said Reese. “That was a super long game, super intense and tough being on that side of it. We’re a really young team. Everyone else felt the pain of the loss and returned this year to play. I think that fueled their fire all season long. They didn’t want to have that feeling again.

“We didn’t talk about it, but I know they think about it,” Reese continued. “They worked hard all season long and we just continued to get better and focus on what we needed to do which put us in position to sit up here and celebrate today.”

Maryland was a perfect 3-0 against Syracuse this season. The Orange were 21-0 against everyone else they played. Sunday night also marked the end of an era for Maryland as the Terps are headed to the Big Ten next season.

“When you’re in college I don’t know that you think about all of those things,” said Reese. “Having played and coached in the ACC, that’s all I know. This is a big moment. We beat our future Big Ten rival (Northwestern) on Friday night then we won our last ACC competition. It feels really good for all of us.

“I think that’s a detail that as a player you say hey, I just won the national championship, that’s awesome.”