College lacrosse: Maryland bests Johns Hopkins, claims Big Ten crown
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Senior Matt Rambo tallied seven points to become Maryland's all-time points leader and the No. 5 Maryland men's lacrosse won its third consecutive Big Ten regular season championship with a resounding 12-5 victory over No. 8 Johns Hopkins in the 115th installment of “The Rivalry.”
Rambo needed six points to break Bob Boneillo's 37-year old points record (231) and achieved the feat in improbable fashion less than 18 minutes into the game.
A boisterous crowd of 14,353 witnessed the championship and Rambo's record – the largest crowd for a Maryland regular season game since 1989.
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The Maryland offense was on fire early, jumping out to a massive 6-0 advantage in the first quarter. Connor Kelly recorded an early hat-trick while Rambo had three first quarter assists and a goal. Colin Heacock and Adam DiMillo also added goals to build one of the Terrapins' best quarters of the season.
Maryland would stretch its lead to 8-0 early in the second quarter with another goal from Kelly and Rambo's record-setting goal, his 232nd point. After a Tim Rotanz goal off a Heacock feed at the halftime buzzer, the Terps took a demanding 9-1 lead into the locker room.
Heacock, who had one of three Maryland hat-tricks in the game, and Rambo put forth Maryland's three goals in the second half as the Terrapins would cruise to the finish line and notch a 12-5 victory over the rival Blue Jays.
The 115th edition of #TheRivalry is over.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) April 30, 2017
Re-watch EVERY GOAL of #5 @TerpsMLax 12-5 win over #8 @jhumenslacrosse https://t.co/cz1kt5MJzz
Junior Dan Morris had nine saves in goal, including five in the first half to help Maryland build its commanding lead.
Saturday's win marked Maryland's third in a row against Johns Hopkins, the Terrapins longest streak in “The Rivalry” since 1964.
In clinching the Big Ten regular season championship, Maryland (10-3, 4-1) has earned the 1-seed in this coming weekend's Big Ten Tournament in Columbus, Ohio. The Terps will face Penn State on Thursday, May 4, while the other semifinal will matchup the 2-seed Ohio State and the 3-seed Johns Hopkins.