Ducks Fall Short in Fight with No. 3 Maryland

Saturday, March 14

Eugene, OR

12:00 PM

University of Oregon

6-3, 0-1

Maryland

8-0, 1-0

Maryland

Oregon

03/14/26 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score

EUGENE, Ore. – Oregon fought hard in its first conference matchup of the 2026 season, but a strong fourth quarter was not enough to overcome the early attack from No. 3 Maryland on Saturday.

The Ducks (6-3, 0-1 Big Ten) put up a nearly-even stat line against the nationally ranked Terrapins (8-0, 1-0 Big Ten). Maryland outscored the Ducks after jumping ahead to an early lead, but the Ducks rallied around a complete team effort to limit the damage in the 15-7 loss.

Francesca Viteritti started and finished the day in goal for Oregon, anchoring the defense with a career-high seven saves against an onslaught of shots from the Maryland attackers.

"We were looking at some of the stats, and we were pretty even for a lot them," head coach Jessica Drummond said. "We just need to work finishing our shots and our opportunities. I'm super proud of our defense, great sides. We forced the number three team in the country to have 15 turnovers, while we only had nine. That's awesome, it's a huge step for us."

Gabby Santucci led Oregon's offensive efforts, recording her third hat trick of the season. Two scores from Lyla Hurley and a goal apiece from Lexi Jenkins and Emma Ing rounded out a strong effort against a highly-ranked team of Terrapins. Oregon finished with 26 shots to the Terrapins' 27.

How It Happened: Gabby Santucci opened scoring for the day, netting the first goal by either team on a free position opportunity early in the first quarter. Maryland responded with five unanswered scores, leaving the Ducks trailing by five after 15 minutes.

Lyla Hurley snuck past the Terrapin defense for a score early in the second quarter and Santucci scored her second, chipping away at the scoring deficit. Maryland put up four in the period and entered halftime with a 10-3 lead.

Santucci solidified a hat trick early in the second half, her third game this season with three-plus scores. Oregon's defense held Maryland to just three scores in the quarter gaining momentum as they entered the final period.

"We always talk about everybody being ready for a game like today," Drummond said. "You never know who they're going to be sending on the double or what the defense is going to look like, so we just take advantage of opportunities. Gabby did a great job of that today. Anna [Simmons] drew the double and set up Gabby for a great drive right over the top."

Lexi Jenkins capitalized on an assist from Lilly Fortin and added an Oregon score in the fourth. Hurley
added her second score of the day in quick succession as the Ducks closed the gap to 13-6.

Maryland added two more scores before Emma Ing notched a fourth-quarter score to fend off an
Impending running clock situation. The Ducks outscored the Terps 3-2 in the final 15 minutes as goalkeeper Francesca Viteritti anchored the defense, reaching a career-high seven saves on the day.

"We get an opportunity that most teams would dream of, being able to play a team like Maryland once they make the NCAA Tournament," Drummond said. "But we get to play with them every year in our conference, so that's only going to elevate our team. It's going to push us to raise our standard of play. I was really proud of some of the things we did today. There's some things to clean up too, but we showed up today and we're excited to play."

Notable: With three goals, Gabby Santucci has collected 14 this season, the third most by a Duck … The hat trick marks Santucci's third game with three-plus scores … Lyla Hurley and Lexi Jenkins each
accounted for two points … Lilly Fortin's assist marked her 12^th this year as she remains Oregon's leading
feeder … Francesca Viteritti played a full 60 minutes in the cage and faced 27 shots.

Up Next: The Ducks complete their homestand with another ranked matchup on Saturday, March 21 when they host No. 4 Northwestern at noon.