No. 7 Maryland men’s lacrosse has a storied history in its rivalry with No. 13 Johns Hopkins, but Saturday’s game means more than this game usually does. 

The Terps come into their regular-season finale alone atop the Big Ten standings and have already clinched a share of the Big Ten title.  But a win against the Blue Jays would clinch the whole thing. 

Maryland trails the all-time series 51-67-1, but that’s not the case under head coach John Tillman – he is 13-9 against Johns Hopkins. 

The 120th meeting between the two programs will be a crucial one, with both teams vying for NCAA tournament contention. It will all be on the line at 2 p.m. from Homewood Field. 

“Certainly is a rivalry game, and storied tradition, but it is the next game,” Tillman said. “Like all year, when we were 1-3 or 1-2 or 2-3, the next game is the most important.”

Johns Hopkins

Johns Hopkins (7-4, 2-2 Big Ten) has lost two of its last three games coming into its matchup with the Terps. 

The Blue Jays have suffered both their Big Ten losses by one goal: last week to Ohio State and in double overtime to Rutgers. 

Johns Hopkins’ key to success this season has been its balance between offense and defense. 

During Big Ten play, the Blue Jays rank third in the conference with 9.8 goals per game and their 8.5 goals allowed per game is fourth in the conference. 

Leading the Blue Jays’ attack is junior Hunter Chauvette, whose 30 goals are second-most in the Big Ten. Chauvette has had multiple huge games this season: he scored six goals against Virginia, four goals against Michigan and three goals against Penn State.

Johns Hopkins’ offense thrives off spreading the ball around the field. It has three players who have totaled double-digit assists. Matt Collison is another offensive threat. He has 11 assists on the year, but also serves as the secondary goal scorer with 21.

On the other side of the ball, the Blue Jays’ defense has improved over the last few games. In Big Ten play, their backline has held opponents to under double-digit goals in three of the four games. The outlier was an 11-10 win over Penn State.

In nonconference play, Johns Hopkins struggled to prevent scoring from top-tier opponents, but it has rebounded against Big Ten competition. Against North Carolina, the Blue Jays allowed 17 goals – 11 in the second half alone. Virginia and Syracuse scored 13 and 12 goals, respectively, against them.  

While Maryland’s offense isn’t always up to the level of some of the best in the country, with the level of talent on the attack, the Blue Jays’ defense will have to keep the Terps from finding the rhythm they need to become a lethal goal-scoring force.

Can Maryland finish its regular season riding high?

Maryland has been playing its best lacrosse of the season through its three-game winning streak. Two of those wins came against ranked opponents. 

A win against Johns Hopkins would be the exclamation point on that stretch, carrying the momentum into the postseason. A victory would also serve a purpose other than just for momentum, as Maryland would secure the outright regular-season Big Ten title. 

It would also strengthen the case for an at-large bid, which seemed unlikely for the Terps at points in this season. 

If Maryland can beat Johns Hopkins, it would be close to a lock to be in the tournament and would need a disastrous showing in the Big Ten tournament to change that.