When Maryland field hockey earns a penalty corner, usually Bodil Keus, Nike Lorenz or Linnea Gonzales takes over the circle. But in the Big Ten semifinals on Friday, another player got the call.

In the 45th minute against Ohio State, freshman Taylor Mason took the initial pass from forward Bibi Donraadt and fired a hard shot from the top of the circle toward the goal. Goalkeeper Aaliyah Hernandez lunged to save the ball, but Mason’s shot deflected off her blocker and into the top left of the net.

Mason smiled from ear to ear, hugging her teammates amid shouts of “good job, Tay!” and “yeah, Tay!” after getting her first career goal as a Terp. Her score was Maryland’s eighth of the day as the team eased to the Big Ten championship with a 9-1 victory over the Buckeyes.

“It was really exciting because it was a goal of mine in the season to get at least one,” Mason said. “To get my first goal on such a good win, when we were all playing so well, was just the icing on the cake.”

[Read more: Taylor Mason felt like time stopped after her first assist for Maryland field hockey]

No. 1-seed Maryland went on to win the conference championship on Sunday, defeating No. 6-seed Iowa 2-1. Throughout the weekend, Mason played a bigger role for the team than she has all season.

Before this weekend, Mason saw action in nine games, averaging 17.7 minutes off the bench and notching one shot and one assist. But she was on the field for a season-high 46 minutes against the Buckeyes in the tournament semifinals, then played 18 minutes in a tight defensive matchup against the Hawkeyes in the final.

[Read more: Maryland field hockey earns No. 2-seed in NCAA tournament]

At 5-foot-10, Mason is one of the tallest players on the team. Coach Missy Meharg said Maryland took advantage of Mason’s height against Iowa, as she used her long wingspan to press players and was able to quickly run up and down the field.

Meharg said she’s also been impressed with Mason’s improvement and work ethic over the course of the season, leading to the increased playing time.

“Every single training session, she’s been getting better and better,” Meharg said.

Mason credited her teammates — as well as the guidance of 31-year coach Meharg — in helping her transition into collegiate hockey after four years at Central Bucks High School West in Pennsylvania. She tries to soak in everything they say to better prepare herself for when she does get her minutes.

WIth her time on the field increasing due to the impressive performance over the weekend, it’s likely Mason could play a bigger role for Maryland in the upcoming NCAA tournament, where the Terps enter as the No. 2 overall seed. And she’s ready to help her team win a national championship.

“For me, every practice is an opportunity to get better,” Mason said. “Let’s go out as hard as we can and take it seriously and learn a lot.”