Maryland baseball’s pitching struggled throughout the 2025 season and continued downhill until its conclusion. Starting in 2026, the bullpen is already looking more hopeful.

Terps’ ace Lance Williams and Cristofer Cespedes debuted as a duo on the mound and allowed just three runs in Maryland’s 5-3 win over the University of North Carolina-Wilmington. Williams first start as a Terp also went down as his best collegiate performance. 

The East Carolina transfer got started quickly, striking out a pair of Seahawks batters in his first inning as a Terp.

Williams was named to the Big Ten Player to Watch list in the preseason. He held batters to a .245 average in his 25 appearances with the Pirates last season. 

The sophomore played through the fifth inning and finished with six strikeouts—a new career high. He allowed just one run in his showing.

Cespedes came in to relieve Williams and was just as stellar. He went the final four innings, striking out five batters and allowing a pair of runs.

The Seahawks started Connor Marshburn on the opposing mound. The junior is the Seahawks’ only returning pitcher and a candidate for the CAA pitcher of the year. 

The North Carolina native allowed six hits in his five-inning showing, but just a pair of Terps’ runs. 

First-game jitters were present for both teams’ pitchers on the mound as multiple pitch-clock violations awarded batters leads in their counts. 

Before seeing the rubber, Maryland was on offense first. The Dirty Terps tipped off the batting lineup with David Mendez, one of 20 new players on the 2026 roster.

The Terps were retired in order, but Maryland fans got their first look at Ty Kaunas in the batter’s box. Kaunas, another Big Ten Player to Watch list member, grounded out in his first college showing.

After two innings, Maryland got comfortable and took advantage of the Seahawks’ rocky start. 

Maryland advanced around the bases in the third as Seahawks catcher Ryker Galaska struggled to control the ball. The pitch got by the senior three times in the inning, allowing Jackson Sirois to walk home on one of them. 

Drama at the plate became a theme for the Seahawks that the Terps took advantage of. Brayden Martin passed through home plate on a wild pitch that the catcher couldn’t control. 

Maryland didn’t have to rely on just wild pitches as hitting opened up. Jordan Crosland got on base, and Ryan Costello rocketed a double down the right field line to send him home. Kaunas also got on base for the first time in his collegiate career with a hit.

Coach Matt Swope said not to expect his team to hit 100 home runs this year. Rylen Stockton got the Terps at least started toward that number, sending the ball nearly 400 feet and over the left field fence. 

Maryland posted 10 hits in the win, with four players registering multiple at the plate.

The Cardiac Terps had to make the ending interesting, allowing another run and leaving the final out up to UNCW’s best hitter, Trevor Lucas, at the plate. Maryland turned a play in the infield to close out the win.

The pitching battle is set to continue in a doubleheader on Saturday. The Terps have lined up their starters for the weekend pitching battle, but it’s unclear who the Seahawks will turn to next.