Postscript from UMBC at Maryland
Travis Reed sat out Maryland’s 15-6 rout of UMBC Friday night and is not expected to play Sunday when St. Joseph’s visits Byrd Stadium.
But the No. 8 Terps could really use Reed when No. 9 North Carolina pays a visit next Saturday.
Sophomore Owen Blye, who started in Reed’s place with seniors Grant Catalino and Ryan Young, wasn’t a liability against the Retrievers, but he shot 0-for-3 and put just one shot on net.
But it sounded like Maryland was in no hurry to rush Reed back after he suffered a shoulder injury in the team’s 8-4 win against Towson a week ago.
“He’s got a little bit of a unique injury,” coach John Tillman said. “To be honest with you, I couldn’t even tell you the name of it. And they say it’s a little more common to car accidents and things like that. So it’s not a broken collarbone, it’s not a separated shoulder. It’s something a little bit different. With range of motion being so important, we were like, ‘Listen, let’s make sure we’re careful with it.’”
Reed is not the most mobile guy on the field, but his accuracy and shot velocity force defenses to pay attention to him. Catalino acknowledged that Reed’s absence was felt.
“Travis plays a big role in our offense, but our team plays in a system, and when one guy goes down, another picks it up,” he said. “So we just moved Owen Blye in there, and the engine runs. Obviously, we miss Travis, but Owen did a great job today.”
Other notes:
*Maryland can enjoy Friday night’s win – but not for long with the Hawks (0-5) visiting on Sunday. Tillman said the staff would take it easy with the players, organizing a light walkthrough and film session on Saturday without making them practice rigorously.
This is the second time in three weeks that the team will play two games in a span of three days. Maryland lost, 9-8, in overtime to Duke on March 5 before beating Bellarmine, 12-8, two days later. Catalino said he has no problems with the quick turnaround, saying, “It’s great practice for the ACC tournament and the Final Four, places that we hope to be in the championship at. Playing games like this will help us get ready for those.”
*Catalino became the 12th player in the program’s 86-year history to score 100 goals in a career. Catalino, who is tied with Bill Pettit for 10th in career goals with 103, shared the credit with his teammates. “Playing for a prestigious school like Maryland, to be able to put up goals like that, it’s a great honor,” he said. “But it’s a tribute to my team and the last four years I’ve been here, I obviously wouldn’t have been able to do it without them.” Tillman called Catalino “the ultimate professional.” “Last week, we had a day off, and he’s shooting with other guys, working on the little things, working on both hands,” Tillman marveled. “He studies film, he’s hard on himself. He knows where everybody else should be – along with himself – in the offense. He’s a terrific captain and a leader on that end, and nothing he does surprises me.”
*One bright spot for UMBC was the play of sophomore Scott Jones, who was moved to attack from midfield. Jones scored three goals in a catch-and-shoot role that he is more familiar with after playing box lacrosse in his native country of Canada. “It was a tough role,” Jones said of playing midfield. “I’m more of an inside guy. I’m not really a quick guy, so I’m not a big dodger.” Coach Don Zimmerman said Jones will stay at attack for the time being. “That’s his position, and I think that was a good move for us,” Zimmerman said. “He’s a good off-ball guy.”
*Jones said the players aren’t happy with the team’s four-game losing skid, but he also said that there’s still plenty of season left. “The Hopkins game, I don’t think we played well at all,” he said. “This game, we ended on a pretty good note. We’ve just got to build off of that. We can’t keep our heads down. We’re only halfway through the season, and we’ve got to finish strong here.”
