Coach Sasho Cirovski reacts after forward Jake Pace dumps Gatorade on him during post-match celebrations after the Terps captured their second consecutive ACC championship by defeating Virginia, 1-0, on Nov. 17, 2013 at Maryland SoccerPlex.

With the Terrapins men’s soccer team in the College Cup this weekend, The Diamondback broke down the four teams in Chester, Pa., for college soccer’s final weekend.

No. 5-seed Terps (16-3-5)

After starting 1-2-1 for their first losing record since 2010, the Terps return to the College Cup for the second straight year. Forward Patrick Mullins, the defending MAC Hermann Trophy winner and a finalist for the award this year, spearheads the attack with team-highs in goals (16), assists (8) and points (40), while goalkeeper Zach Steffen anchors the backline. The freshman netminder is the only Terp to have played every minute this season.

The four defenders in front of Steffen haven’t enjoyed such stability. The Terps lost three defensive contributors from last season’s team, and coach Sasho Cirovski was forced to shuffle his lineup for most of the season. He finally settled on redshirt junior Jereme Raley at right back, freshmen Chris Odoi-Atsem and Suli Dainkeh as the center backs and sophomore Mikey Ambrose at left back.

The early season defensive woes, including allowing three goals in the final 13 minutes to Virginia Commonwealth, are long gone. The Terps have conceded two goals in six postseason matches and shut out No. 8-seed Virginia in the ACC championship match.

Tsubasa Endoh leads the midfield with 11 points, fourth on the team. The sophomore has started 23 of 24 matches after making only five starts last season. Midfielder Michael Sauers’ three postseason goals are also a team high.

Despite losing three defensive contributors and two of the top four attackers to graduation and various eligibility issues, the Terps are back at college soccer’s pinnacle.

Last season, the Terps broke a three-year drought by reaching the College Cup. Now, in Mullins’ final season, the Terps look to capture their first NCAA Championship in five years.

—Phillip Suitts

No. 8-seed Virginia (13-5-5)

After a 3-2 loss to Wake Forest on Sept. 13, Virginia sat at 1-3. The Cavaliers have tasted defeat only twice since that game. They lost to North Carolina, 1-0, on Nov. 1 and lost to the Terps, 1-0, in the ACC Championship on Nov. 17.

Virginia has looked good so far in the NCAA tournament. They defeated St. John’s, Marquette and Connecticut during their run to the College Cup and have yet to trail in any tournament game.

The Cavaliers are led on offense by midfielder Eric Bird and forward Darius Madison. Bird leads the team with seven goals. Midfielder Jordan Allen also has made an impact for the Cavaliers, starting all 23 games and netting three goals, including the game-winner against Connecticut in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals.

Overall, Virginia ranks No. 15 in scoring offense with 1.91 goals per game. On the defensive end, the Cavaliers have used two goalkeepers. Jeff Gal, a sophomore transfer from Creighton, started the first 15 games of the season. On Nov. 8, Senior Night, against Boston College, Virginia chose to start redshirt junior Calle Brown, who has a record of 5-1-1 and has only allowed 0.77 goals per game in eight starts.

—Kyle Stackpole

No. 3-seed Notre Dame (15-1-6)

Notre Dame would love one more chance to play Virginia this season, and that is possible if they defeat New Mexico in the semifinals and Virginia takes down the Terps. Virginia gave the Fighting Irish its lone regulation loss during the regular season and toppled them in penalty kicks to eliminate them in the ACC tournament semifinals.

This will be Notre Dame’s first College Cup appearance in program history, and they enter as the highest seed remaining.

Forward Harrison Shipp will lead the offense tonight just as he has done all season. The ACC Offensive Player of the Year leads the Fighting Irish in points, goals and assists, and he’s also a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy.

Notre Dame welcomed back its entire defense from last season, and that experience may very well be the difference in the game. The Fighting Irish boast a 28-2-6 record in games that backline has started.

The key for Notre Dame will be to net the first goal and make the Lobos start to press, opening up opportunities for more scoring.

The Notre Dame offense has been tough to stop during the NCAA tournament, scoring 10 goals against its three opponents. New Mexico, for its part , has yet to surrender a goal in the tournament.

The Fighting Irish have been held scoreless just one time this season, in a draw against UCLA, which entered the tournament as the nation’s top seed. Something will have to give Friday night at PPL Park.

—Ryan Baillargeon

No. 7-seed New Mexico (14-5-2)

New Mexico enters the College Cup following an upset of No. 2-seed Washington on Saturday. The last time they made it this far, the Lobos fell to the Terps in the national championship game, and they haven’t won a title in team history.

Prior to postseason play, New Mexico finished its strong season ranked No. 11 in the RPI after capturing the Conference USA title. The Lobos are a potential championship contender largely because of a stingy and experienced defense made up entirely of upperclassmen, including defenders Matthew Gibbons, Riley McGovern, Nick Miele and Kyle Venter along with goalkeeper Michael Lisch. Venter was a semifinalist for this year’s prestigious MAC Hermann Trophy.

So far the squad has allowed only 18 goals through 21 matches, including 11 shutouts. Three of those shutouts have come in tournament games. The New Mexico attack is headed by forwards Niko Hansen and James Rogers, who have produced 14 of the team’s 35 goals this season.

New Mexico will have their hands full with Notre Dame, which has lost only one game. However, the Lobos have proven capable of shutting down even the most prolific offenses and will need to rely on that ability once again if they want to keep their title hopes alive.

—Jacob Walker