BALTIMORE — Niko Amato made 13 saves to anchor a suffocating defense, and unseeded Maryland beat fifth-seeded Duke 9-4 on Saturday to reach the NCAA men’s lacrosse title game.
Amato, a redshirt freshman, made seven saves in the first half to help the Terps to a 5-2 lead. He got great support from his defenders — Max Schmidt, Brett Schmidt and Ryder Bohlander — who held Duke scoreless for stretches of more than 18 minutes and 22 minutes .
“Our long poles are big, physical and strong. They pushed out on Duke, got sticks on their hand and let me see the type of shots I’m comfortable with stopping,” Amato said.
Grant Catalino scored three goals for Maryland (13-4), which advanced to the final for the first time since 1998. The Terps will face the Virginia Cavaliers on Monday.
Midfielder Joe Cummings had two goals and an assist for the Terrapins, who are seeking to capture their first national championship since 1975. Maryland has lost in the final five times since winning its last title.
Curtis Holmes fired in a goal after winning a faceoff to highlight a second quarter that saw Maryland outscore Duke 3-1.
Dan Wigrizer made nine saves for Duke (14-6), which was denied in its bid to repeat as national champion.
