COLLEGE PARK - They danced with joy, high-fived one another and leaped into the snow that had been cleared to the side of Ludwig Field.
Another University of Maryland team is bound for a final four.
The Terrapins men's soccer players guaranteed themselves that honor yesterday, dominating 19th-ranked Connecticut, 3-0, to earn their first final four appearance since 1998 and only the school's second in 23 years.
Maryland (20-5), top-ranked by Soccer America magazine and the highest remaining seed in the tournament at No. 2, will face UCLA - which routed Penn State, 7-1, last night - at 5 p.m. Friday in the NCAA College Cup semifinals in Dallas.
"It was a winter wonderland today on a field of dreams," Terps coach Sasho Cirovski said. "That was a special atmosphere."
An overflow crowd of 3,460 fans watched Maryland overwhelm Connecticut (17-6) with its second-half resolve.
With the sun and the wind at their backs after a scoreless first period, the Terps applied constant pressure down the stretch and received two goals from Domenic Mediate, who has been responsible for the game-winner in five of the team's past six games.
"I'm excited to go home," said Mediate, a resident of Southlake, Texas. "I've been waiting for this all week."
The first breakthrough came at the 59:13 mark when Mediate took a long crossing ball from defender Seth Stammler, gathered it in and slanted his shot from the right back to the far post to beat the Huskies' freshman goalkeeper, Adam Schuerman.
Maryland's second goal was a gift, an own goal at 81:54. Under pressure from Mediate, Connecticut back Marcus Svensson tried to clear the ball, but it deflected off his foot and slid in, with Schuerman in no position to stop it.
The speedy Mediate scored his 13th goal at 88:31, beating two defenders and trickling the ball home on a ricochet of his own shot.
The surprisingly lopsided win avenged a 2-0 defeat Maryland suffered Oct. 12 in the rain at Connecticut.
"They're a very determined group," Huskies coach Ray Reid said of the Terrapins, who seemed to adjust better to a field mushy on top but still frozen underneath. "I don't think we had a particularly good day, but Maryland played with a lot of heart and that had something to do with it."
An inability to cash in early hurt Connecticut. Maryland keeper Noah Palmer made three nifty saves in the first quarter of the game, and that seemed to frustrate the Huskies.
"At halftime, I felt very confident at 0-0," Cirovski said. "And in the second half we played about as good as any team possibly can against a quality team like Connecticut."
"The first goal in these games is huge," Reid said. "We didn't get it and they did. Obviously, we exposed ourselves trying to get it back."
Schuerman said: "All in all, they finished and we didn't."
Added Stammler: "We did a good job of containing their forwards and midfielders, who are very dangerous. We forced them to make big plays."
The Huskies' three leading scorers - Damani Ralph, Cesar Cuellar and Leandro de Oliveira - combined for only five shots on goal.
Maryland has won four straight games by shutout. Throw out a 4-3, overtime shootout win over Clemson in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament and the Terps have permitted just five goals in 10 games.
The NCAA appearance this year is the 21st for the Terrapins, who shared the 1968 national title with Michigan State. They have finished second twice and third three times.
Connecticut 0 0 - 0
Maryland 0 3 - 3
Goals: M-Mediate 2, Own Goal. Assists: M-Stammler. Saves: M-Palmer 7; C-Schuerman 7. Half: 0-0.
Next for Terps
NCAA semifinal: Against UCLA, which routed Penn State, 7-1, last night
Site:Gerald J. Ford Stadium, Dallas
When:Friday, 5 p.m.
TV: ESPN2