No. 19 Maryland Holds Off Northwestern, 2-1 – Northwestern Athletics

EVANSTON, Ill. (September 27, 2024) – Northwestern (5-4, 0-3 B1G) came within inches of erasing an early two-goal deficit as it dropped a narrow 2-1 decision to No. 19 Maryland (5-1-3, 3-0 B1G) this evening before a crowd of 1,544 fans at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.
 
How It Happened
Maryland pounced for a pair of goals over a 4:28 span in the early stages of the first half.  Leon Koehl put the visitors on the board, 1-0, in the 12^th minute when he slotted home from the penalty spot following a Wildcat foul inside the 18-yard box.  Colin Griffith added a second in the 17^th minute, rifling his attempt from 10 yards out home at the near post to double the gap, 2-0.
 
Rafael Ponce de León came up with a vital stop in the 25^th minute, going to the ground to deflect Sadam Masereka’s attempt away to keep the ‘Cats within two at halftime.
 
Northwestern immediately came out on the front foot in the second half.  Jayvin Van Deventer took aim at goal just 25 seconds after the restart, stinging the hands of Maryland goalkeeper Laurin Mack with a left-footed blast.
 
With under half an hour to go, the ‘Cats found their opener through a set piece opportunity.  A Collin McCamy free kick was headed down by Luke Shreiner before ultimately falling to Christopher Thaggard.  Thaggard made the most of his chance, ripping his attempt past a sprawling Mack to cut the deficit in half, 2-1, in the 64^th minute.  Ponce de León ensured the margin stayed at one in the 79^th minute, turning away William Kulvik’s look at his near post.
 

64′ | GOAL! Thaggard pulls one back to get Northwestern within one!

Maryland 2, ‘Cats 1 pic.twitter.com/3ekOEtgy1Q

— Northwestern Men’s Soccer (@NUMensSoccer) September 28, 2024

 
As time continued to tick away, Northwestern ramped up its pressure in search of an equalizer.  After Paul Son saw his shot deflected, the ‘Cats were awarded a corner kick in the 89^th minute.  McCamy’s delivery deflected off multiple bodies ahead of Thaddaeus Dewing sending his attempt from the edge of the six-yard box narrowly wide of the near post, as Maryland went on to escape with a 2-1 victory.
 
Looking At The Numbers
– Thaggard tallied his fourth career goal in the second half.
             – Thaggard is the ninth different Wildcat to score this season.
– McCamy was credited with his second assist of 2024 on the goal, while Shreiner picked up the first helper of his career.
– Northwestern closed the night with a 13-5 advantage in shots.
            – The ‘Cats have now outshot their opponent in six matches this season.
– Ponce de León added a pair of saves in goal.
 
Up Next
Northwestern is back on the road next week when it visits East Lansing, Mich. on Tuesday, October 1 to take on Michigan State in a 7 p.m. (CT) kickoff that will be televised live on Big Ten Network.