Maryland field hockey 2026 season preview

No. 13 Maryland field hockey has had plenty of incredible seasons throughout its illustrious history.

Last year, the Terps entered the season ranked fourth in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Poll, but they only managed 10 wins, the second-fewest in the Missy Meharg era. In postseason play, the Terps dropped a must-win game to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals and failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for only the fourth time since Meharg became head coach in 1988.

Now, with the disappointing campaign behind them, the Terps have shifted their sights to 2026 in an effort to reassume their position at the top of the Big Ten.

While the Terps retained most of their top players during the offseason, they still lost plenty of talent, as 12 of the 26 players from last season exited the program. Arguably the two biggest losses are on defense, as both Ericka Morris-Adams and Fleur Knopert graduated. The pair headlined a defense that conceded just 19 goals last season, fourth-fewest in the NCAA.

Morris-Adams was a four-year Terp who played in 83 games and started 64 during her time in College Park. She was a captain for last year's team.

Knopert, on the other hand, spent just two seasons at Maryland after transferring from Ball State, but she produced a pair of strong campaigns and made a seamless transition from forward to defender last offseason. She logged 901 minutes in 2025, third-most on the squad.

In the midfield, the biggest missing piece is Annemijn Klijnhout. In her two years with the Terps, Klijnhout started all 38 games she played and accumulated 12 points. Additionally, she received All-Big Ten First Team honors in 2025.

In the forward department, the Terps lost Ella Gaitan to conference foe Penn State. Gaitan was one of the Terps' top offensive threats a year ago, scoring five goals and adding an assist. For an offense that finished last season at the bottom of the Big Ten in goalscoring, her presence will be missed.

Despite the many absences, the Terps still bring back a lot of contributors, and goalkeeper Alyssa Klebasko is at the top of that list. The senior brings a veteran presence, having started 53 games in her career. In 2025, she finished second in the conference with 1.07 goals allowed and tied a career-high with six shutouts.

The defense is anchored by another senior in Josie Hollamon. The only upperclassman of the unit, Hollamon has started every game for the Terps through the first three years of her career and has racked up the accolades. She's a two-time all-Big Ten first team selection and was named a second-team All-American by the NFHCA in 2025. She can also produce on the offensive side, as she's totaled 14 goals and 11 assists for her career. A captain for last year's group, Hollamon is expected to continue in a similar leadership position this year, especially with an underclassmen-heavy squad.

A trio of international stars make up the midfield. Junior Ella Fehr — a native of Berlin, Germany — returns for her second year in College Park after transferring from VCU. She started all 18 games last year and is set for an even larger role this year.

Sophomore Feliz Kuhne is also set for an expanded role in her second season with the Terps. A native of the Netherlands, Kuhne played in the Hoofdklasse, the Netherlands' top division of professional field hockey, prior to her arrival in the United States.

The Australian Maia Adamson rounds out the group. She started all 18 games as a freshman last year and was named to the Big Ten's All-Freshman team. In Maryland's lone postseason game, she registered the tying goal in what was ultimately a 2-1 defeat.

Up front, Maci Bradford and Jordyn Hollamon lead the charge. Bradford, another experienced senior, topped the Terps in both assists and points last season, earning her all-Big Ten second team honors. Her cousin, Jordyn Hollamon, was just as impressive, winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year with a team-high seven goals. She also attempted a team-high 54 shots, more than double the next-highest total.

To fill out the remaining roster spots, Meharg utilized the transfer portal and tapped into the high school ranks.

From the portal, the 39th-year head coach grabbed senior midfielder Rachael Whitehead and junior midfielder Francisca Eschoyez. Whitehead – a three-year starter at Delaware – was selected to the All-MPSF Team last season and has tallied 24 career points.

Eschoyez is arguably Meharg's best get of the offseason. In 2025, the Italian led Quinnipiac in every major offensive category and took home Big East Offensive Player of the Year, All-Big East and NFHCA third team All-American honors. She comes to Maryland with 55 career points and should boost an offense that struggled mightily last year.

On the high school side, Meharg struck gold once again — she landed a top-three domestic recruiting class, according to Max Field Hockey, for the second straight year. This year's class is headlined by a pair of Max Field Hockey top-10 prospects in Ella Beach and Aida Ierubino.

Beach, a native of Northbrook, Illinois, was a three-time All-State selection and a 2025 All-American in high school. She comes from a family full of Terps, as her mother played field hockey and her father played soccer for Maryland.

Ierubino, from Doylestown, Pennsylvania, was a two-time first team All-American and a four-time first team All-State selection prior to her arrival in College Park. In addition, she was part of this year's USA U18 Women's National Team.

To complete the roster, Meharg added Babs van Hest, a junior forward from the Netherlands. Similar to Kuhne, van Hest played in the Hoofdklasse before joining the Terps.

The path to success will not be easy this autumn, as the Terps face seven tournament teams from a year ago – including both national finalists.

Maryland kicks off the season by hosting the Conference Cup, featuring Drexel, James Madison and Temple. The Terps will play Drexel on Aug. 28 and Temple two days later.

The first big test comes the following weekend, as the Terps travel to Massachusetts for the B1G/ACC Challenge. Maryland will once again face Boston College and Duke – both of whom toppled the Terps last year.

The rest of the non-conference schedule is littered with quality opponents. At home, the Terps will play St. Joseph's on Sept. 13 and Wake Forest on Sept. 20. On the road, Maryland will match up with Princeton — 2025's national runner-up — on Sept. 29.

Big Ten play will yet again be a grind. Six of the conference's nine teams finished .500 or better in 2025.

After a non-conference matchup with Delaware kicks off October, the Terps will travel to Ann Arbor to face off with Michigan. Upon returning to College Park, the Terps will host a pair of games against Michigan State and Ohio State on Oct. 16 and 18, respectively. In the latter contest, the Terps will hope to avenge their postseason loss to the Buckeyes from a year ago.

Then, it's back on the road for arguably the toughest opponent this season: Northwestern. Maryland will face the two-time reigning national champions on Oct. 22 in Evanston.

The regular season concludes with one more important showdown, as the Terps welcome Iowa on Oct. 30 for Senior Day.

It's been a while since the Terps took home some hardware — they haven't won a Big Ten Tournament title since 2018, and they haven't been crowned national champions since 2011. It won't get any easier this season, but the Terps are confident that a mix of veteran leadership and exciting young talent will put them back in contention. After all, as long as Meharg is still head coach, a title run is always in the cards.