London calming

London Woodberry's not afraid to admit it: He's a head case.

Since arriving in College Park in the summer of 2009, the Terrapins men's soccer defender has struggled to manage his temper. He gets frustrated with himself easily and has a tendency to lash out at inopportune moments. After surrendering a goal, Woodberry's first inclination is to kick the goal post and curse.

"I've always been a guy who has high emotions," Woodberry said yesterday. "If things aren't going my way, I'm not going to be happy about it. I guess that's kind of where I get the head case part of it."

It's hard to believe that the focused, matured Woodberry now patrolling the Terps' backline had a reputation as a malcontent through his first year and a half at this university. After entering his freshman season as a prized recruit, the former under-18 men's national team member struggled to find his place on a roster loaded with MLS talent. He started just one game at right back and tallied zero points on the year.

During his sophomore campaign, however, Woodberry carried over his strong showing from the previous spring and began to emerge as a key contributor for the 2010 ACC Champions. He started nine of the Terps' first 13 games last season and notched five points during that stretch.

But during a home matchup against Colgate last October, that positive progression came to an abrupt halt. After allowing two goals against an unranked Clemson squad just three days earlier, the Terps' backline was struggling to defend against the unheralded Raiders.

And as coach Sasho Cirovski expressed dissatisfaction with Woodberry's play midway through the first half, the self-proclaimed "head case" flipped. Woodberry and Cirovski exchanged some heated words, and the McKinney, Texas, native was benched at halftime.

The coach-player relationship had reached a breaking point. Cirovski met with Woodberry four times that week, and the former high-school All-American didn't play the following match against Wake Forest.

"He was really challenged to embrace everything we're doing here," Cirovski said, "or he wasn't going to have success here."

Woodberry had plenty of time to reflect on that challenge. Just days after sitting out the Wake Forest game, he suffered a leg injury and didn't return to action until the Terps' season-ending loss to Michigan in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals.

But that extra time to reflect, according to goalkeeper Will Swaim, may have been exactly what Woodberry needed.

"I think it was an epiphany somewhere down the line after that incident [against Colgate]," Swaim said. "He realized that, ‘Hey, the people who've succeeded here have taken it upon themselves to become a better person on and off the field.'"

That realization has paid dividends for Woodberry and the No. 3 Terps this season.

Recognizing that his standing on the team was still tenuous, Woodberry entered practices last spring with a renewed sense of urgency. Cirovski called Woodberry his "best player" during those scrimmages, and he's come to embrace that new title this season.

Playing alongside best friend Alex Lee as a center back for the first time this year, Woodberry has helped anchor one of the top defenses in the country. The Terps are allowing less than a goal a game — a statistic all the more impressive considering the offensive talent they've faced this season.

Cirovski's team has played four squads currently ranked in the top 25 of the NSCAA Coaches poll, and has squelched some of the nation's top goal scorers.

"Me and Alex kind of get upset when big guys come in here thinking they're big shots just because they're having a great season or whatever," Woodberry said. "If they've got a stud on their team, we want to make him feel like he's nothing."

That was evident during the Terps' 4-2 win over then-No. 22 Duke on Friday. Woodberry and Lee nullified the impact of forward Andrew Wenger — with 15 goals this season, the scoring leader in Division I — keeping him scoreless for just the third time in five weeks.

For Cirovski, Woodberry's shutdown of Wenger did more than help capture the Terps' 13th win. It reminded him why he started coaching in the first place.

"Those moments are the internal rewards that you get that aren't always seen in victories," he said. "When you see you're impacting the development of the person, that's very rewarding. And London has reacted positively to the challenges. He's flourishing right now."

Today marks the one-year anniversary of Woodberry's blowup against Colgate. Just 12 months after screaming at his legendary coach during a game, he speaks with the wisdom of a player who knows where he's been.

"It comes down to me ultimately," Woodberry said. "I've matured a lot because I want to be here. I want to help this team. I've learned from my mistakes."

letourneau@umdbk.com