Moments after the Terrapin field hockey team received the No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament Tuesday, coach Missy Meharg addressed the team.
The Terps (18-2) will face No. 20 Albany (12-9) at home in the first round Saturday, a draw that inspired an impromptu pop quiz.
"Now where is Albany?" Meharg asked the attentive bunch.
"New York," the Terps responded in unison.
"And where's New York, Meg?" Meharg continued, calling on midfielder Meghan Dean, the Terps' lone representative from the Empire State.
"North, about five hours from here," Dean said.
"All right," Meharg said. "And it's cold up there."
The exchange summed up most of what the Terps know about their first-round opponent. That is to say, not much. It's a reasonable oversight considering the teams exist in separate stratospheres within Division I field hockey.
The Great Danes are making their first appearance in the NCAA tournament after claiming the America East conference's automatic bid as league champions. Meanwhile, the Terps seek a return to the final four after being absent last season for the first time in five years.
Disparities aside, the Terps aren't taking anything for granted. Not after last year's quarterfinal exit.
"Every team that's in this tournament right now is a premier team, so any team that you're going to face is going to be a good team," forward Nicole Muracco said. "With a 16-[team] tournament there's not going to be any slips-ins, like, 'Oh, how did that team get in?'"
No team enters the tournament with more fanfare than the Terps.
The nation's top-ranked team is fresh off an ACC championship. Four Terps were named to the All-Tournament team, and Meharg and company will look to replicate that balanced effort Saturday.
But aggressive play should be expected from Albany. Although the Great Danes do not appear to dominate either side of the ball, they do rank fourth in the nation in penalty corners per game at 9.52.
The Great Danes also boast some experience against stiff competition. They have a win against then-No. 16 Michigan and have lost to tournament teams American, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Syracuse.
"They play a very good brand of indoor hockey, so I know that their tackling will be very good and that their technical skills will be strong," Meharg said. "Until I see them on video, I don't really know much about speed and tactics, but we will be [ready] Saturday."
The excitement of facing an unknown team has been to the Terps' benefit. Meharg said it would be "refreshing" to see an unfamiliar face in the first round.
Tuesday night, she told the team to seize this opportunity.
"What's exciting to me when I first saw [the bracket] come out is, we don't really know anybody," Meharg said. "It's fresh, it's all about us, and that's where we've been. Each step we've taken together we've talked about getting better, we've talked about defining new things. This gives us even more of an opportunity."
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