Georgetown's Ehrmann questionable for Saturday vs. Maryland
No. 9 Georgetown’s outlook to end a two-year absence from the NCAA Tournament got a little cloudier with the news that senior long-stick midfielder Barney Ehrmann is dealing with a back injury.
Ehrmann, a Baltimore native and Gilman graduate who led the Hoyas with 61 groundballs and caused 22 turnovers last season, is suffering from what coach Dave Urick described as a "soft tissue" injury that prevented him from participating in a scrimmage with Virginia two weeks ago.
Urick compared Ehrmann’s situation to that of former defenseman Reyn Garnett, who was bothered by a bulging disc in his back. Because of the injury, Garnett would practice on a limited basis on Wednesdays and Thursdays, rest on Fridays, and play on weekends.
"That worked out for Reyn," Urick recalled. "It wasn’t ideal for us preparation-wise, and it wasn’t ideal for him competitively, but it got him through the year. That could very well be the case with Barney. That remains to be seen. It’s still a little early to tell. It’s not the same injury, so it will be handled differently."
Ehrmann’s absence could be significant because the 6-foot-6, 230-pound defender – when teamed with senior defensemen Eric Bicknese and Chris Nixon and sophomore Dan Hostetler (River Hill) – makes Georgetown one of the toughest defenses in the country.
Ehrmann played a huge role in last year’s 13-10 victory over Maryland – which happens to be the Hoyas’ opponent this Saturday – as he shut out then-junior attackman Will Yeatman for the first time in 18 games.
Asked how Ehrmann’s potential absence would affect what Georgetown could do defensively against the Terps, Urick said, "We’re going to have to take a good, hard, long look at how we match up. We haven’t really decided on that yet. We’re still trying to gather information to prepare for them. Athletically, there are guys down there that can hopefully step up."
