Buckley delivers for field hockey in 2-1 win at Duke

Tied at one goal apiece with just more than 10 minutes to play Saturday afternoon against Duke, the Terrapins field hockey team desperately needed a spark.

With the game on the line, midfielder Jemma Buckley gave the Terps exactly what they needed.

As the Terps lined up for a penalty corner with a chance to retake the lead from the Blue Devils, forward Katie Gerzabek sent the ball in to defender Harriet Tibble. After one pass, Buckley drilled a shot past Duke goalkeeper Samantha Nelson to give the Terps a lead they would never relinquish.

It was the second goal of the day for Buckley, and it proved to be the game winner as the No. 3 Terps held on to beat the No. 8 Blue Devils on the road, 2-1.

"When you have a corner, you have a free shot on goal, so you have to put those ones away," Buckley said. "I'd been struggling with that, but I put the ball in the back of the net and we came away with a win."

Although Buckley's two goals put the Terps (11-1, 4-0 ACC) out ahead of the Blue Devils (7-5, 2-2), Melissa Vassalotti's performance in net may have ultimately sealed the team's victory. Vassalotti allowed just one goal while recording seven saves, the highest single-game save total for the Terps this season.

Vassalotti's start in goal was an interesting one for the Terps, who, before this weekend, had been switching off between her and Natalie Hunter in goal every game. But Saturday was Vassalotti's second consecutive game in the cage, breaking the team's rotation pattern and perhaps offering a clue to the team's preference at goalkeeper.

"Vassalotti played a very strong game for us," coach Missy Meharg said. "We've been really fortunate to be able to look at how the goalies perform during the week and then make a decision just like we do with other positions on the field."

Though the Terps came away with the win, there was some concern about the team's offensive output. The Terps took just nine shots against Duke, their lowest total of the season, and the team's two goals marked its worst offensive effort in more than a month, dating back to a 2-1 victory over Michigan on Sept. 4.

But the low-scoring affair may have had more to do with a stingy Duke defense than the Terps' offense. Duke entered the weekend with the ACC's second-best defense, allowing fewer than two goals per game on the season, and Meharg said the Blue Devils' strong individual defenders and backfield speed stifled the Terps' attack.

"Duke is a very fit team, and [they] were able to keep us out of any sort of attacking run," Meharg said. "We never really got into a sustained rhythm on attack, which made it difficult, but I am very, very pleased with the women and how they found a way to win."

Despite escaping one of their worst offensive showings of the season with a victory on Saturday, getting the team's attack back on track will be paramount this week. The Terps host No. 1 Old Dominion — which handed them their only loss of the season, a 4-0 shutout on Sept. 2 — on Friday.

"It definitely gives us a bit more motivation going forward," Buckley said. "Everyone is excited to go out there and play Old Dominion. We're a totally different team than we were the first time we played them. We've grown so much, so hopefully we take a step forward."

vitale@umdbk.com