in men's soccer
CARY -- Going into Friday's game, Maryland's seniors didn't know whether three straight trips to the College Cup represented the biggest accomplishment or largest disappointment of their Terrapin careers.
When your goal is to win the national title, losing in the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament three consecutive times guarantees little but a summer of "what ifs?"
But after Maryland's Jason Garey thrilled 8,645 men's soccer fans at SAS Soccer Park on Friday with a dazzling performance, "what if?" provides one tantalizing possibility for the Terrapins.
Garey scored two goals in rapid succession in the second half as top-seeded Maryland (18-4-2) took a step toward erasing three years of frustration with a thorough 4-1 victory over SMU in the semifinals of the College Cup.
The Terps will face New Mexico in Sunday's championship at 2 p.m.
That's definite progress to Garey.
"As you know, the last three years, we were disappointed at this moment and packing the bus to go home," Garey said. "It feels good to stay here and play Sunday."
Maryland went to the locker room at halftime slightly peeved it was only leading the game 1-0, feeling that it dominated SMU in the first half and left a couple of goals on the pitch.
Before the Terps came back on the field, Coach Sasho Cirovski pulled Garey aside.
"I said, 'You're due, kid, you're due,' " Cirovski said. "He said, 'I know, I know.' "
Garey, who hadn't scored in the NCAA Tournament, quickly changed that.
In the 47th minute, Maryland's Robbie Rogers dribbled the ball down the left side and sent it across to the far post to A.J. Godbolt, who headed it to Garey.
The forward was unmarked, standing 10 feet from the goal. Forwards who have scored 60 goals in their NCAA career generally find the back of the net when they are unmarked from 10 yards out. This play wasn't the exception to that rule.
"That's Jason Garey," Cirovski said. "He's a lethal goal scorer."
As SMU tried to mentally regroup, Maurice Edu immediately sent Garey in on a partial breakaway. When SMU keeper Matt Wideman came out to challenge, Garey kicked it past him into the bottom-left corner of the net. After the goal, Garey made a beeline for the Terrapins' fans -- there was a sizeable contingent of enthusiastic Maryland supporters at SAS -- behind the SMU net.
His two goals in 15 seconds was an NCAA Tournament record for the quickest back-to-back goals, and it essentially doomed a shocked SMU team.
"They came so ... fast," said SMU coach Schellas Hyndman.
The Terrapins fourth marker came on a penalty kick in the 50th minute by Stephen King. Graham Zusi scored the Terps' first of the afternoon in the 44th minute.
Paulo da Silva gave the Mustangs a measure of respect by scoring in the 55th minute after his kick deflected off a Maryland defender.
As the Terrapins prepare for the Lobos, they'll be comforted by the fact their top player seems to be on his game.
Maryland's worst performance of the season came at UCLA, where the Terrapins lost 4-0 in September. The game came just after Hurricane Katrina struck the Louisiana coast. Garey, a Gonzales, La., native was more concerned about his family than anything else.
Everyone turned out to be safe and sound. An unburdened Garey had a sensational season, earning the ACC's Offensive Player of the Year award.
Now he and his teammates hope to avoid another College Cup with mixed emotions.
"It's an unbelievable feeling," Godbolt said. "We've been talking all year about giving ourselves a chance to win. We're 48 hours away from getting that chance.
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