COLLEGE PARK, Md. – It was a tale of two halves, as the Navy men's soccer team (5-7-4) dropped a 3-0 contest to in-state adversary Maryland (4-7-3) in non-conference action Tuesday night at Ludwig Field.
 
After controlling play and nearly taking the lead multiple times in the first half, the Midshipmen had to deal with a resurgent Terrapin side in the second half, as last year's Big Ten champions put on an offensive display over the final 45 minutes in each team's final non-conference match of the season.
 
After a pair of Navy chances were blocked in the third minute by a new-look Maryland lineup, a header from sophomore Bryce Robisch in the 12th minute nearly gave the Mids a lead when it went just over the crossbar, while senior Cristian Coelho put a shot up and to the right in the 20th minute and sophomore A.J. Schuetz did the same at 28'.
 
Henrik Sakshaug tried to get the Terps' offense going in the 30th minute with a shot to the left of the Navy net, as Navy junior goalkeeper Pierce Holbrook had to stop Luke Van Heukelum in 36th minute before the Mids responded with a near-side shot from sophomore Andrew Schug that forced a save from Saxon Wolcott on the ensuing counter.
 
With the Terps switching back to a familiar starting group in the second half, Maryland forced some early pressure before Luke Van Heukelum one-timed a pass from Kimani Stewart-Baynes in the 54th minute to break the scoreless tie. Stewart-Baynes then fed a pass to Max Riley, who put the Terps up, 2-0, in the 58th minute with a shot inside the box that beat Holbrook to the right post.
 
Holbrook kept the game at 2-0 in the 67th minute with a highlight-reel save on Stefan Copetti after Copetti's initial chance was blocked back to him, and the Navy keeper made another save with the diving effort on Stewart-Baynes in the 74th minute before stopping Leon Koehl at 76'. Unfortunately for the Mids, Maryland finally broke through for its third goal in the 77th minute when Riley scored off a Koehl corner kick.
 
Holbrook ended his night with four saves, while Wolcott wrapped up the shutout with two saves for Maryland.
 
Head Coach Tim O'Donohue Comments
"I thought our possession was really good and played really well between the 18-yard lines all night, but we needed to take care of our chances in the first half by putting one or two away there. Us not doing that kept them in the game, and they came out hot in the second half and went up 2-0. I thought we should have pulled one back, but then they made it 3-0. We played the game well tonight and we've got to move forward. I'm really proud of our guys, we're playing good despite the results. We're now in the same spot we were in last year, as it's all about Colgate on Saturday and all about what's ahead of us in the Patriot League."
 
Match Notes
• After Tuesday, Maryland now leads the all-time series with Navy by a 18-13-9.
• Holbrook tallied four-or-more saves for the seventh time this season.
• Schuetz racked up three-plus shots for the eight time on the campaign.
 
Up Next
Navy makes the trip on Saturday, Oct. 28 to Hamilton, N.Y., taking on Patriot League foe Colgate at 7 p.m.