Terps stay undefeated with 3-2 win over Seton Hall

As Sade Ayinde strode to the penalty spot in the 81st minute last night, all fellow Terrapin women's soccer forward Jasmyne Spencer could do was watch.

Only seconds earlier, Spencer had been dragged down inside the penalty box, earning a penalty kick that could put the No. 8 Terps back ahead after desperately fighting to regain the lead they had squandered to host Seton Hall.

"I just had to take a deep breath and have all faith in Sade," Spencer said following the game. "I knew she definitely would put it in."

When she did, the Terps all but clinched a sixth straight victory and preserved their unbeaten record — even if it had taken a little more work than they might have expected.

Though the Terps were far from perfect, scoring only three times despite 25 shots on goal and allowing the Pirates to claw back from a 2-0 deficit, coach Brian Pensky saw a vastly improved will to win from the sloppy Terp team that slogged through a 2-0 victory over Stony Brook on Sunday.

"We played with much more of a bite today and created much more quality chances," Pensky said. "We responded pretty well."

The Terps' (6-0) inability to maintain a comfortable cushion again manifested against Seton Hall. While yesterday marked the first time they had blown a two-goal lead in a game this season, it was the third time in six games they had allowed an opponent to at least halve a two-goal deficit.

The Terps were nonetheless able to overcome a rowdy crowd, windy conditions and their own mental lapses to eventually take down the Pirates (1-3), a program that has won just two games in the past two regular seasons of Big East play.

"In some ways, I fear that our team is already thinking about the ACC games," Pensky said. "We've got to take one game at a time because tonight we almost got bitten."

Midfielder Olivia Wagner got the scoring started for the Terps late in the first half when she gathered a pass from Ayinde and slipped it past Pirate goalkeeper Jennifer Pettigrew. Early in the second half, forward Ashley Grove provided what appeared to be the backbreaker, taking a looping pass from defender Caitlin McDowell and burying her fifth goal of the year.

But the Pirates weren't done, capitalizing twice on a Terp defense seemingly lulled to sleep by their teammates' constant possession on attack.

"We had complete control of the game, but maybe we did relax," Pensky said. "When you're [an attacking] team like this, you can lose discipline defensively."

Though the Terps head back to College Park with some remaining execution problems to sort out, their drive is no longer under the same scrutiny it was after Sunday's unaesthetic win.

"Bottom line is we're getting out of here with a win," Pensky said, "and that feels good."

cwalsh@umdbk.com