May 1, 2004
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Third-ranked Maryland (11-2) scored with 19 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the score and got another goal in double overtime to rally for a 9-8 victory against #12 Notre Dame (7-5) in collegiate men’s lacrosse action Saturday afternoon at Byrd Stadium. The Irish, who had won five straight, led 3-1 at halftime and got a goal from junior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) with 1:23 left in the fourth quarter to go ahead 8-7, but then gave up a goal in the final 20 seconds in a one-goal defeat for the second time this season.
After the Terrapins tied the game with just less than 12 minutes to go, the defenses clamped down, denying any scores until Giordano took a pass from sophomore A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) and found the net for the second time to put the Irish on the verge of registering their highest-ranked regular-season victory in school history.
Maryland senior A/M J.R. Bordley came to the rescue for the Terps, scooping up the ball on a scramble and beating former high school teammate G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) with only seconds remaining for his second goal of the contest.
After a scoreless first overtime, in which both Crosland and Maryland’s G Tim McGinnis registered two saves, Maryland broke the tie 19 seconds into the second extra session. Senior M Drew Virk won the opening faceoff for the Terrapins, setting the stage for sophomore M Brendan Healy, another prep teammate of Crosland’s, who beat Notre Dame freshman M Bill Liva (Bryn Mawr, Pa./Malvern Preparatory School) to the front of the net and bounced the shot in to give Maryland the win.
In a back-and-forth contest, Notre Dame held six different leads – but never one of more than a single goal. The game was tied seven times, and the Terps led just one time for 1:23 prior to the game-winning score.
The Irish defense, which has been outstanding of late, was the story of the first half. Maryland netted just one goal in the opening 30 minutes – a man-up score by senior M Justin Smith late in the first quarter to even the game at 1-1. Irish senior D Brennan Creaney (Baltimore, Md./Loyola Blakefield H.S.) was a large part of the success, finishing with a game-high five turnovers caused, while picking up four ground balls. Crosland made 10 saves in the first half, continuing the hot play which saw him register a 5.26 goals-against average and .726 save percentage over the previous five games.
Notre Dame junior A Matt Malakoff (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore H.S.), who made his first start in more than two years due to senior A Matt Howell (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington H.S.) – the second-leading scorer on the team – not playing, put the Irish ahead 1-0 for the 10th time in 12 games this spring, taking a pass from sophomore M Drew Peters (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.) and converting after 10:04 without a goal to start the game.
Giordano, who missed the previous two games with an injury, was in on both Irish goals in the second period, which would put Notre Dame up heading into halftime. He scored an unassisted tally three minutes in and then assisted on a goal by freshman M John Greaney (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.), his second of the season, with just less than four minutes left before the intermission. Giordano has six multiple-goal games this season and 11 in his career.
The Terrapin offense, which came into the game ranked eighth nationally in scoring, caught fire in the third quarter, netting five goals, including three by sophomore A Joe Walters, who ranks third in Division I in scoring and reached 100 career points in the contest. The Terps scored four times in the opening 11 minutes of the stanza, with only an unassisted M Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) goal breaking up the Terp assault.
Trailing for the first time, 5-4, with four minutes left in the third, Irish senior A Dan Berger (Phoenix, Md./Boys’ Latin H.S.) grabbed a pass from freshman A Brian Boyle (Derry, N.H./Pinkerton Academy) and scored his 20th goal of the season with 3:03 left to tie the game. Senior M Steve Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) scored twice in the final 1:03 of the quarter to put Notre Dame ahead 7-6 entering the final 15 minutes. Prior to his goals 60 seconds apart on Saturday, Clagett had scored multiple goals in a game just once in his career.
The Irish had a great opportunity to take a two-goal advantage two minutes into the fourth quarter, but McGinnis stopped a point-blank Malakoff shot from behind the net. Sophomore M Bill McGlone scored a minute later to tie the game 7-7, setting up the late heroics.
Maryland, whose lone losses this season came against #1 Johns Hopkins and #2 Navy, ended with a 52-42 ground ball advantage. Senior D Lee Zink had a game-high eight for the Terps. Notre Dame was led by sophomore M Matt Ryan’s (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) seven and six from Crosland.
The Terrapins also outshot Notre Dame 51-41 and won 13 of 21 faceoffs. For the Irish, junior M Craig Bishko (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip H.S.) was victorious on half of the eight faceoffs he took, while his classmate, M Frank Matarazzo (Franklin Lakes, N.J./Bergen Catholic H.S.) won 4-9.
Notre Dame was making its first-ever regular-season trip to Byrd Stadium. A crowd of 3,008 took in the affair.
The Irish have lost six consecutive overtime games, dating back to 1997. Maryland also had lost five in a row, dating back to 1997, in overtime prior to Saturday. It marked just the second double-overtime contest in Irish varsity history, with the other a 7-6 home loss to Loyola in 2002.
Notre Dame finished the regular season with a 7-5 record. The Irish finished second to #7 Ohio State in the Great Western Lacrosse League, with a 4-1 mark, including a 9-8 loss to the Buckeyes on a goal with 12 seconds left in the game.
The Irish hope to earn one of the 10 at-large berths to the NCAA Championship for the first time in school history. The entire 16-team field will be announced on May 10 between 2:00 and 3:00 p.m. (EST) on ESPNews. The NCAA tournament begins May 15 and 16 on campus sites. The Irish have taken part in it 10 times since 1990.