A man up, men's soccer lets up late in loss at Clemson

The Terrapins men's soccer team knew securing a win at Clemson wouldn't be easy.

The Terps had dropped two of their previous three meetings at the Tigers' Historic Riggs Field and were without both of their starting center backs. It also didn't help that Clemson needed a win over the No. 1 Terps in its pursuit of a spot in the upcoming ACC Tournament.

"It's really tough playing down there," forward Matt Oduaran said last week, "and it's not going to be any easier going down this year."

Oduaran's prediction proved true Friday. Just four days after earning their first No. 1 ranking in more than a month, the Terps suffered a 2-1 loss to the Tigers, who are No. 7 in the ACC, on a rain-drenched night in front of 1,257. That dropped them to No. 2 in the ACC standings, just one point behind North Carolina with one game to go.

The Terps' troubles started long before kickoff, however. Defender London Woodberry was shown a red card and ejected in the second half of a tie at North Carolina on Oct. 21, making him ineligible against Clemson (6-8-1, 3-4 ACC). Just a minute later, fellow center back Alex Lee suffered a leg injury, sidelining him as well.

That forced the Terps (13-2-2, 4-2-1 ACC) to assemble a makeshift backline that featured two true freshmen and sophomore midfielder Helge Leikvang for much of the game. Clemson, looking to capitalize on the Terps' inexperience, attacked the back four, registering multiple shot attempts in the game's opening minutes.

"It was definitely hard losing London and Alex," defender Taylor Kemp said yesterday. "They're such big personalities on our team. I think that's what we were missing more than anything else. It wasn't so much about losing their talent. It was about losing those personalities."

Even without them, though, the frantic pace shifted in the Terps' favor during the 23rd minute. Clemson midfielder Jack Metcalf received a red card and was ejected for slide-tackling midfielder John Stertzer. The call left the Tigers a man down for the duration of the game.

For at least a little while after that, the Terps seemed poised to capture their fifth conference win.

Just 13 minutes after writhing on the ground in pain after Metcalf's tackle, Stertzer flicked a header over Tigers goalkeeper Cody Mizell for his 13th goal of the season.

Stertzer's score would be one of the Terps' lone highlights on a night marred by rain and miscues.

Five minutes into the second half, defender Widner Saint Cyr was called for a handball in the penalty box. Clemson forward Brynjar Benediktsson converted the ensuing penalty kick, knotting the game at 1-1. It was the second time in a week the Terps had surrendered a goal after a defender was whistled for handling in the box.

"We can't go on the road and give away penalty kicks," coach Sasho Cirovski said. "That's just not how you win games in the ACC."

Cirovski, understanding a win would position his team for the program's 20th ACC regular-season title, put reserve forward Jake Pace on the frontline early in the second half. The move gave the Terps a three-forward front of Pace and fellow forwards Casey Townsend and Patrick Mullins.

That adjustment nearly proved fruitful when Pace broke into space during the 67th minute and launched an 18-yard bid that sailed mere inches above the crossbar.

Defender Kyle Roach, making his second start of the season, experienced similar luck nine minutes later when his attempt grazed Mizell's hands and soared over the net.

And with just six minutes separating the Terps from their fourth overtime of the year, Roach appeared in the spotlight once again. After losing the ball to Clemson defender Matt Erasmus, Roach chased down his marker and tackled him late, prompting a yellow card and a free kick.

"Kyle had a great overall game," goalkeeper Will Swaim said. "But I think after that play, it clicked in his mind that as a starting center back in the ACC, you can't take a single play off."