“Instead of looking at that whole thing as a burden – like what we haven’t done, we look at what we have going for us,” Maryland coach John Tillman said. “The tradition that we have, the alumni that we have, a state that loves lacrosse so much, we look at it as a source of strength.”

It was a game full of inspired plays. From two calling-card hits by sophomore long-stick midfielder Jesse Bernhardt (three ground balls), to a spin move and length-of-the-field dash by senior midfielder Dan Burns (three ground balls), it was clear that Maryland was motivated against its ACC rival.

“When players step up and make those physical hits, those are huge for a team, especially with the crowd behind us. That just magnifies it even more,” Catalino said. “When you hear that roar after a big hit, that’s a heartbreaker for the other team.”

Duke (14-6) never got into rhythm on offense as Max Schmidt, Brett Schmidt, and Ryder Bohlander limited Blue Devils attackmen to a combined three goals and three assists. Senior long-stick midfielder Brian Farrell (two caused turnovers), whose father Mike starred for the last Maryland team to win an NCAA title, was a force as well.

“It was tough to match their emotion,” Duke midfielder David Lawson (one goal) said. “They dominated us physically. They hit us to the ground a lot in the first half. Ultimately, they kind of beat us up and there wasn’t too much we could do about it.”

It was a departure from their two meetings earlier this year, both in Durham, decided by a total of three goals, as the teams split.

“I think we knew coming into this game, it wasn’t going to be about Xs and Os,” Catalino said. “It was going to be about playing disciplined and winning the ground ball battle and faceoff battle.”

Maryland fought hard for possession, forcing turnovers five of the 17 times Duke attempted to clear. Duke was hindered by injuries to midfielders C.J. Costabile (broken hand), who played but was unable to faceoff, and Jake Tripucka.

“It made us a little thinner at midfield and we weren’t [as] athletic,” Duke coach John Danowski said. “It changes us a little bit, how we play.”

After Lawson scored the opening goal 54 seconds into the game, Maryland notched the next three to take the lead for good. After Catalino tied it, midfielders Kevin Cooper and Drew Snider scored unassisted goals for a 3-1 lead.

When Duke attack Josh Offit (Landon) scored early in the second period to cut the lead in half, Holmes retaliated immediately, scooping the ensuing faceoff and scoring just five seconds later to make it 4-2.

With Maryland clinging to a tenuous 5-3 lead late in the third period and the Terps trying to kill a penalty, Burns made a spectacular play. Hemmed in by two Duke defenders, deep in his own end of the field, Burns made a spin move and raced upfield, feeding Catalino who faked a pass and scored an uplifting goal for a 6-3 lead.

“Maryland was too physical, too strong, and too athletic today,” Danowski said.

Maryland will play a different Virginia team than it throttled 12-7 on Apr. 2. During that time, the Cavaliers were in the midst of losing four of five games, but have since undergone a successful chemistry experiment with the subtraction of All-American midfielders Shamel Bratton and Rhamel Bratton.

The Terps can expect more of the partisan support that lifted them Saturday night.

“It makes us play harder and work harder, because we can make so many people happy. It would be so great for the people in state to have a championship,” Tillman said. “We run out behind that flag. Not many teams do that. So we do play for more than ourselves.”

Notes: This is the first All-ACC final since 1986, when North Carolina defeated Virginia, 10-9 in overtime.

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