The Johns Hopkins–Maryland lacrosse rivalry is an intercollegiate

rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...

between the

Johns Hopkins Blue Jays The Johns Hopkins Blue Jays are the 24 intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Johns Hopkins University, located in Baltimore, Maryland. They compete in the NCAA Division III, except for their lacrosse teams, which compete in Division I. T ...

, which represent

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

, and the

Maryland Terrapins The Maryland Terrapins, commonly referred to as the Terps, consist of 19 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Maryland, College Park in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divis ...

, which represent the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

. The most prominent event has been the men's lacrosse series, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest rivalries in the sport.Johns Hopkins vs. Maryland lacrosse among best rivalries in college sports
''Johns Hopkins Gazette'', Johns Hopkins University, retrieved May 4, 2018.
''Baltimore Sun'', Tribune Media, retrieved May 4, 2018. More than 115 contests in the series have been played since the schools first met in 1895. The competition is intensified by each program's status as a traditional lacrosse powerhouse. As such, the game has often held national championship implications, and twice the teams played to represent the United States in the Olympics. The All-Time Record is 69-67-1 (MD Lead). The schools currently meet only in lacrosse, as all other Johns Hopkins athletics fall under

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

and all Maryland athletics are Division I. From the late 19th into the 20th century, however, their football teams also competed regularly.Maryland vs Johns Hopkins Series History , College Football Database
''College Football Database'', retrieved June 6, 2018. More recently, the schools have played in

women's lacrosse Women's lacrosse (or girls' lacrosse), sometimes shortened to lax, is a sport with twelve players on the field at a time (including the goalkeeper). Originally played by indigenous peoples of the Americas, the modern women's game was introduce ...

NCAA alignment

In 1973, the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

instituted a three-tier classification system, which created Division I, Division II, and

. The third tier, Division III, is the one in which no

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United ...

s are awarded to student-athletes. Johns Hopkins, as a perennial lacrosse power, chose to continue competition in Division I in that sport, while all of its other athletic teams were relegated to Division III. In 2004, the NCAA upheld the decision to allow Division III schools to "play up", and grant scholarships, in a sport at the Division I level (usually

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

). Since Maryland competes strictly at the Division I level, the two schools currently meet only in men's and women's lacrosse.

Men's lacrosse

Background

Both schools call the rivalry the greatest and most historic in men's lacrosse.The Rivalry
''Johns Hopkins Magazine'', Johns Hopkins University, retrieved March 25, 2009.
, University of Maryland, April 10, 2008. ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...

'' ranked it among the best all-time

college rivalries Pairs of schools, colleges and universities, especially when they are close to each other either geographically or in their areas of specialization, often establish a university or college rivalry with each other over the years. This rivalry can ...

,Princeton still sucks: why lax rivalries will never die
''

The Johns Hopkins News-Letter ''The Johns Hopkins News-Letter'' is the independent student newspaper of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. Published since 1896, it is one of the nation's oldest continuously published, weekly, student-run college newsp ...

'', March 5, 2004. and before the teams' 100th meeting, called it "the equivalent of Michigan–Ohio State in football." A 2003 Harris Interactive poll found that Marylanders considered it the state's fourth biggest rivalry after the Cowboys–Redskins, Ravens–Redskins, and Duke–Maryland. The Hopkins–Maryland all-time record differs based upon whether games played before Maryland had a varsity team are counted.Rivalry Day: Johns Hopkins and Maryland is the granddaddy of them all in lacrosse
, ''

Inside Lacrosse Inside Lacrosse is a lacrosse media entity and ESPN affiliate. It includes many parts including a news website, an 11 times annual magazine, online video streaming, internet forums and an ESPN television show. The company is currently headquarter ...

'', April 9, 2008. Johns Hopkins recognizes those games and records the series as 71–43–1 in its own favor. Maryland, however, recognizes only games played since the formation of their varsity team in 1924, which puts the all-time record at 64–43–1, also in favor of Hopkins. The rivalry, which is the oldest in the sport, is fueled by history, competitiveness, and cultural implication. Both schools are located in the state of

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, a historical hotbed for lacrosse, and have traditionally been two of the sport's powerhouses. Many of the opposing players have had past associations in grade school,

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, or youth club sports. Hopkins' former coach and former player Dave Pietramala said, "Everybody knew each other; we had all played together at some point or another. It was a fierce, intense game and there was no love lost on the field." Additionally, Johns Hopkins is a private university, while Maryland is a public institution. Former Terrapins coach Dick Edell said:

"To get the juices flowing before the game, e'd tell the Marylandkids that it was the
blue-collar A blue-collar worker is a working class person who performs manual labor. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involving manufacturing, warehousing, mining, excavation, electricity generation and powe ...
guys against the future executives—that this was their only chance to get them before they got into the real world. Plus, you have all the kids who came from the same high school, or worked the camps together, so there was that closeness that you have to live with for the other 364 days, no matter who wins."

Early years

The two teams first played in 1895 and met six more times through 1923. In those early matches, Johns Hopkins scored a combined sixty points to Maryland's three. In 1924, Maryland fielded its first varsity-level lacrosse team, which defeated Hopkins, 4–2, but the

United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association is an association of member institutions and organizations with college lacrosse programs at all levels of competition, including the three NCAA divisions and non-NCAA schools, at both the varsi ...

(USILA) awarded the Blue Jays the co-national championship (along with Syracuse). Since that season, the teams have met annually with the exception of a two-year hiatus due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Johns Hopkins won three straight national titles from 1926 to 1928, where each season culminated with a victory over Maryland.A Look Back At The Maryland/Hopkins Series History
, Atlantic Coast Conference, April 14, 2004. In 1928, Maryland had a perfect 9–0 record until Johns Hopkins defeated the Terps in the season finale, 6–3. At season's end, a

single-elimination tournament A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

was held to determine which team would represent the United States in a trial lacrosse competition during the Summer Olympics. Maryland defeated

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

and

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and w ...

to advance to the final game, where they were again bested by Johns Hopkins. The following season, the Terrapins embarked upon a three-year run in which they lost only four games, and they defeated the Blue Jays each season including a shutout, 6–0, in 1930. In 1932, however, Hopkins defeated Maryland twice during the regular season and once more in a postseason game to decide participation in the Olympics. Between 1930 and 1934, the Blue Jays won three national championships and lost only two games, both of which were to the Terrapins. Maryland captured national titles in 1936, 1937, and 1939. That year, however, Hopkins managed to break a four-game losing streak against them. The Terrapins won the 1940 title by beating the undefeated Blue Jays, 7–6, in the series' first game decided by one goal. Maryland finished the season with a perfect 10–0 record. The following year, Hopkins finished 12–0 and captured the national championship after a convincing victory over Maryland, 10–3. Johns Hopkins secured four more national titles from 1947 to 1950, and defeated Maryland each year, three times by a

margin Margin may refer to: Physical or graphical edges *Margin (typography), the white space that surrounds the content of a page *Continental margin, the zone of the ocean floor that separates the thin oceanic crust from thick continental crust *Leaf ...

of at least six goals. Several days before the game in 1947, Hopkins supporters stole " Testudo", a 300-pound bronze statue of a

diamondback terrapin The diamondback terrapin or simply terrapin (''Malaclemys terrapin'') is a species of turtle native to the brackish coastal tidal marshes of the Northeastern and southern United States, and in Bermuda. It belongs to the monotypic genus ''Mal ...

, from the Maryland campus. Approximately 200 Terrapins fans drove to Baltimore to retrieve it, and a riot erupted before the city police intervened. The Hopkins dean ordered the students to return the statue, which they did after painting a blue 'H' on its back.

Maryland dominance

In the 1950s, the two teams won a combined six

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

, with Maryland dominating the first part of the decade and Johns Hopkins the latter. Between 1951 and 1956, Maryland posted a 5–0–1 record against Hopkins, with three games won by at least six points. The Terps won consecutive national titles in 1955 and 1956, while posting a combined record of 21–0. In 1957, the Blue Jays snapped the Terrapins' 31-game winning streak with an upset win, 15–10. Two years later, both teams shared the national title with

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

. Between 1955 and 1959, Maryland compiled a 48–3 record, with all three losses at the hands of Johns Hopkins. 1955 Maryland Hopkins lacrosse game

In 1960, Navy became the first team other than Hopkins to defeat Maryland since 1954. That same year marked the start of Navy's eight-year national championship streak that lasted through 1967. That season, Navy beat Maryland 10–8, before traveling to

Homewood Field Homewood Field is the athletics stadium of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. History It was built in 1906 and has an official capacity of 8,500 people. The name is taken, as is that of the entire campus, from the name of the ...

. There, Johns Hopkins upset Navy, 9–6, for the first time in their last ten meetings. The Blue Jays and Terrapins met for the season finale where Hopkins needed a victory to win the national title outright. Maryland acted as a spoiler, however, and beat Johns Hopkins, 9–5, to take a share of the championship. Hopkins went on to win or share the next four national titles.

Advent of the NCAA tournament

In 1971, the NCAA replaced the USILA as the awarding authority for the men's lacrosse championship with the introduction of a tournament. Since then, the Blue Jays and Terrapins have appeared in the finals a combined 27 times and have met each other in the finals three times. In 1972, Maryland beat Johns Hopkins in the regular season, 13–12, to earn the number-one seed. The two teams met again in the semifinals, where Hopkins eliminated Maryland, 9–6, and advanced to the finals before losing to

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

by one goal. The following two years, Hopkins and Maryland met in the finals. In 1973, Maryland routed Hopkins during the regular season, 17–4. That year's Terrapins, led by future Hall of Fame inductee and four-time All-American

Frank Urso Frank Urso (born 1954) is a former American lacrosse player and current high school lacrosse coach, best known for his collegiate career at the University of Maryland from 1973 to 1976. During those four years, Maryland won two national champion ...

, are considered one of the all-time best college lacrosse teams and averaged almost 18 goals a game. When the teams met in the championship game, however, the Blue Jays employed a possession game to offset Maryland's offensive firepower, and the first shot on goal did not take place until 8:38. At halftime, Johns Hopkins had taken a 5–2 lead. Time expired with the score tied, 9–9, which forced the game into

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

. Urso scored for the Terrapins to take a 10–9 lead and Maryland goalie Bill O'Donnell made several impressive saves to secure the win.Sudden death overtime had not yet been implemented in NCAA play. The following year, Maryland was again named the top-seed, despite having lost to second-seed Johns Hopkins during the regular season. In the championship game, Hopkins quickly took the lead, led by Hall of Fame attackman Jack Thomas and entered halftime with a 10–4 advantage. In the second half, Maryland outscored them 8–7, but the effort fell short. In 1975, Maryland defeated Hopkins, 19–11, before winning the national title, and won again the following year, 21–13, on their way to finish as national championship runners-up after an overtime loss to

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach a ...

in the final. In 1977, the Blue Jays edged the Terrapins, 21–20, in the regular season and began a run in the series. Hopkins eliminated Maryland in the tournament semifinals in both

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...

and 1978, before beating them in the 1979 championship game at home in

College Park, Maryland College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and is approximately four miles (6.4 km) from the northeast border of Washington, D.C. The population was 34,740 at the 2020 United States Census. It is best known ...

. During that game, the Blue Jays were able to limit the Terrapins' second all-time leading scorer and 1979 attackman of the year Bob Boneillo. During the 1970s, Maryland participated in six NCAA title games, including four in a row from 1973 to 1976. During that span, the Terps won two national titles and lost four.NCAA Men's Lacrosse Records: Championships Records
(PDF), National Collegiate Athletic Association, February 2009.

Hopkins dominance

During the 1980s, Johns Hopkins dominated the series, winning 12 of 13 games, including nine by an average

of 5.6 points. During this period Hopkins, led by head coach Henry Ciccarone, won three national titles. By 1987, Maryland's fourth-year head coach Dick Edell had helped revitalize the Terrapins as a national power. Maryland posted an 11–0 record during the regular season, where the win over Hopkins, 11–7, was the only game decided by less than six goals. In the NCAA tournament, Maryland defeated Penn in the quarterfinals, 12–8, and advanced to again meet Hopkins in the semifinals. Despite having recorded its first three-loss season in over a decade, and having edged

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

in the quarterfinals, the Blue Jays upset the Terrapins, 13–8. Hopkins, led by goalkeeper

Quint Kessenich Quint Elroy Kessenich ( ; born November 22, 1967) is an American sportscaster for ABC and ESPN television covering lacrosse, basketball, football, hockey, wrestling and horse racing since 1993. He is a former All-American lacrosse goalkeeper. ...

, advanced to win the national title against then undefeated

in the final.

Relative parity

In 1995, Johns Hopkins narrowly retained an undefeated regular season by winning four one-goal games, which included an edging of Maryland, 16–15. Hopkins entered the

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

as the number-one seed, and again met Maryland in the semifinals. Edell helped guide the Terps to an early lead, and they ended the half with an advantage, 10–4, with the final result a rout, 16–8. The performance of Maryland goalie

Brian Dougherty Brian "Doc" Dougherty (born December 10, 1973) is a retired Hall of Fame American lacrosse goaltender. He attended The Episcopal Academy before attending University of Maryland. He is currently the head coach at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. ...

earned him the title of the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, despite the Terps' loss in the final against Syracuse. The following season, Maryland earned a number-two seeding after defeating Hopkins, 12–9. The teams met again in the tournament quarterfinals, where, playing at home, Hopkins gained a 7–0 lead against heavily favored Maryland. The Terrapins rallied, but the Blue Jays held them off to preserve victory, 9–7. In 1998 at Homewood Field, Hopkins upset first-ranked Maryland, 10–6 during the regular season. This time when they met in the tournament quarterfinals, Maryland had the homefield advantage at

Byrd Stadium SECU Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium on the campus of the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. It is the home of Maryland Terrapins football and men's lacrosse teams, which compete in the Big Ten Conference. The facility was ...

. The Terps led 10–6 in the fourth quarter before the Blue Jays rallied to force overtime. Maryland, however, won the ensuing

faceoff A face-off is the method used to begin and restart play after goals in some sports using sticks, primarily ice hockey, bandy, floorball, broomball, rinkball, and lacrosse. During a face-off, two teams line up in opposition to each other, and ...

and scored after several shots on goal, never allowing Hopkins to gain possession of the ball. The Terps eventually advanced to the final, where they were defeated by

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

Recent years

From 2001 to 2003, each match-up was decided by one goal. Maryland won coach Dick Edell's final, and Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala's first, game of the series in 2001. The Blue Jays won the following two seasons, with both games decided in overtime. In 2004, the teams played their 100th anniversary game and both sides wore special " throwback" jerseys. Hopkins scored five times before the first

television timeout A television timeout (alternately TV timeout or media timeout) is a break in a televised live event for the purpose of television broadcasting. This allows commercial broadcasters to take an advertising break, or issue their required hourly statio ...

, then took an 8–1 first period lead on the way to a victory, 14–10. Hopkins extended their streak to four wins in 2005, before Maryland's new head coach

Dave Cottle Dave Cottle is a retired American lacrosse coach. He was a consultant for Marquette University, when they added men's and women's varsity lacrosse on December 16, 2010. He was previously the head coach for the Maryland Terrapins men's lacrosse te ...

took away his first victory in 2006. In 2009, the teams played in the inaugural Day of Rivals double-header, where Hopkins preserved victory, 10–9, when a final-second Maryland shot on the crease was deflected. The two met for the event again in 2010, with Maryland coming out on top, 10–9, due in part to a perfect four-for-four extra-man offense. The rivalry became a conference matchup in the 2014–15 academic year when both schools joined the new men's lacrosse league formed by Maryland's new all-sports home, the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

, with Johns Hopkins as an associate member. The first Big Ten game between the two was an upset for Johns Hopkins 15-12 with a rematch in NCAA semi-finals May 22, 2015 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia which went to Maryland 12-11. Starting in 2015, the regular season winner of the game has been awarded "The Rivalry Trophy". It is a crab-shaped trophy, crafted by Sandtown Millworks, made using reclaimed wood from Baltimore. It weighs 25 pounds and measures 32 inches wide and 22 inches tall. The 2020 game scheduled for April 25, 2020 at Baltimore, MD was canceled by the NCAA due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. Maryland was 5-1 after their last game against Albany on March 7, 2020, while Hopkins was 2-4 after their OT win again Mt. St. Mary's on March 10, 2020. In April 2020, athletic director Jennifer S. Baker announced Hopkins and head coach Dave Pietramala mutually agreed to part ways as the university looked to “move the program in a different direction," after Pietramala had coached the Jays for 20 years and set a career record of 207-93.”

Rival Accomplishments

The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.

Results

Women's lacrosse

The Johns Hopkins and Maryland women's lacrosse teams first played in 1979 in

Arnold, Maryland Arnold, a census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States, located just outside of the state's capital, Annapolis. It is located 18.78 miles south of Baltimore, and 29.97 miles east of Washington, D.C. The population ...

, a game which the Lady Terps won handily, 17–1. They did not meet again until after the Johns Hopkins women's team was promoted from Division III to Division I in 1999. The following year, the teams met and played each season through 2009, but did not play again until 2015. As of the last meeting between the teams in 2019, the Maryland women held a perfect record against Hopkins, having won all 19 meetings by a combined margin of 298–153. Hopkins and Maryland became conference rivals in women's lacrosse in the 2016–17 school year when Hopkins joined the Big Ten for that sport. The first Big Ten game between the two was accordingly played in 2017.

Rival Accomplishments

The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs. *9 of Johns Hopkins's NCAA tournament appearances and all 5 Final Four appearances occurred at the NCAA Division III level

Results

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johns Hopkins-Maryland rivalry College lacrosse rivalries in the United States Big Ten Conference rivalries

Maryland Terrapins men's lacrosse Maryland Terrapins women's lacrosse Maryland Terrapins rivalries 1892 establishments in Maryland Johns Hopkins Blue Jays men's lacrosse