Maryland men’s soccer advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament had become a near-guarantee by 2020. At that point, the Terps had made it in 18 of their previous 24 seasons.
In the four seasons since, Maryland has advanced there just once. In 2021, it fell in the first round to Long Island. Maryland will look to avenge that defeat Thursday night, when it takes on LIU once again.
It would be unwise to count out a Sasho Cirovski-led team in November, but the risk of defeat feels a bit higher than it once did.