With 17 goals, 51 shots and 37 ground balls, Loyola Maryland put on the kind of display in Saturday's 17-7 thumping of Patriot League rival Navy that the program has been known for in recent years. It also reminded coach Charley Toomey that what he was witnessing in practice was not a figment of his imagination.
"I know we're capable of it," he said Tuesday afternoon. "Finally, something that happens in practice translated on game day. That's what we need to have more of. We need to have more of those game-day opportunities because we certainly see them in practices or I wouldn't be preaching it. I'm glad the guys had some success and can believe in it, and hopefully, we'll start to see it more often."
The victory helped the Greyhounds improve to 6-5 overall, 4-2 in the conference, and No. 19 in the latest Cascade/Maverik media poll. They still have a chance to claim the Patriot League regular-season championship and the top seed and home-field advantage in the conference tournament.
But Toomey was just happy to see the players turn potential into performance.
"I'm glad we played well," he said. "Was it critical? I don't know how critical it was in terms of the end result and getting to the tournament. I don't know if it means that we're in or we're not in yet. There's still a lot of lacrosse on the table. But as I continue to say in the locker room, we just have to continue to keep getting better. I thought Saturday was a day when we came out and played fast and played 50 minutes of lacrosse. I won't say we played a full 60, but that was as complete of a game that we've played all year, and that's what I was most proud of."
Loyola will attempt to repeat that showing against No. 3 Maryland on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Byrd Stadium in College Park. The Terps (9-1) boast Division I's most stifling defense, but Toomey said the players are always happy to play games rather than spend time in practice.
"In some ways, the players like it, but it probably drives the coaches crazy," he said of participating in a midweek contests. "The players get to come in and watch a little film and go out and play. Coming off of a game like Saturday, in some ways, you want to get right back out there and play again and see if we can't keep the momentum on both sides of the ball. The thing they probably love is what drives coaches crazy because we want them to be as prepared for every opponent as they possibly can be, and this is a game where you just kind of go out and do what you do. I'm sure Maryland's not going to make a lot of changes for Loyola, and quite honestly, there aren't a lot of changes that Loyola can make for Maryland."