The Game: Seventh-ranked and second-seeded Johns Hopkins (12-3) makes the short trip down to Navy’s Marine Corps Stadium to take on rival Maryland (10-5) in the NCAA Quarterfinals. Faceoff is set for 12:03 pm on Saturday, May 19 and the game will air live nationally on ESPN2.

Last Time Out: Johns Hopkins jumped out to a 7-1 lead and never looked back in a 19-9 victory over Stony Brook in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Maryland built an early 6-1 lead, fell behind and then rallied late to top host Lehigh in its first round game.

A Look Ahead: The winner of this week’s quarterfinal game between Johns Hopkins and Maryland will take on the winner of the Duke-Colgate game in the NCAA Semifinals next Saturday in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The time of that game will be determined on Sunday evening (May 20).

Noting JHU in the NCAA Tournament: Johns Hopkins is making its 41st consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament. By comparison, the next five longest active streaks of qualifying for the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Tournament add up to 37 consecutive appearances (Maryland-10, Virginia-8, Notre Dame-7, Duke-6, North Carolina-6).

At Navy in the NCAAs: Johns Hopkins is 2-1 all-time in NCAA Tournament games played at Navy. The Blue Jays knocked off Notre Dame in the first round of the 1992 tournament (15-7) and Navy in the 2008 quarterfinals (10-4) before falling to Virginia (19-8) in the 2009 quarterfinals.

Series History: Johns Hopkins and Maryland are meeting for the 109th time in a series that dates to a 10-0 Johns Hopkins win in 1895. The Blue Jays lead the all-time series, 68-39-1, but Maryland picked up a 9-6 win at Homewood Field earlier this season (April 14).

JHU-Maryland in the NCAA Tournament: It’s been 14 years since Johns Hopkins and Maryland last met in the NCAA Tournament. The Terps took that meeting, 11-10, in overtime at Byrd Stadium.
Here are a few notes of interest about the JHU-Maryland series in the NCAAs: • Johns Hopkins and Maryland have met 12 times previously in the NCAAs with the Blue Jays holding a 9-3 advantage in those 12 games.
• Maryland has won two of the last three meetings (1998, 1995).
• The lower seeded team has won the last four NCAA Tournament meetings (JHU in 1987 and 1996 / Maryland in 1995 and 1998). Prior to that the higher seeded team had won five straight.
• Johns Hopkins ended Maryland’s season with a loss in the NCAAs five times in a six-year span from 1977-82.
• The teams met three times for the national championship in the 1970s with JHU winning in 1974 and 1979 and Maryland taking the crown in 1973.

These are the Facts: Johns Hopkins enters this week’s game against Maryland with an all-time record of 924-297-15 (.754). The Blue Jays own nine NCAA titles, 29 USILA titles and six ILA titles for a total of 44 national championships.

A Win For Johns Hopkins Would …
• Advance Johns Hopkins to the NCAA Semifinals for the 29th time.
• Give the Blue Jays 13 wins for the second consecutive year and the sixth time in 12 seasons under head coach Dave Pietramala.
• Give JHU 13 wins for the 13th time in school history.
• Improve Hopkins’ record to 34-9 (.791) under head coach Dave Pietramala in games played in the month of May.

Career Win Number 150: Johns Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala picked up career win number 150 with the 12-6 victory vs. Towson in the season opener. He now sports an all-time record of 161-61 (.725), including a 138-44 (.758) record at Johns Hopkins. He ranks second all-time in school history in career coaching victories as only Hall of Fame coach Bob Scott (158 wins from 1955-74) has more victories than Pietramala while patrolling the sidelines at Homewood.

Representing the Stars and Stripes: Johns Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala will serve as an assistant coach for the United States at at the 2014 Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championships in Denver Colorado. Pietramala will serve under Richie Meade, the head coach at Navy from 1995-2011.

Homeschooled: Johns Hopkins’ entire coaching staff is comprised of former Blue Jay standouts. In addition to head coach Dave Pietramala ‘90, Hopkins is led by associate head coach Bill Dwan ‘91, assistant coach/offensive coordinator Bobby Benson ‘03 and volunteer assistant coach Jamison Koesterer ‘07. Between the four of them they have eight combined national championships as either players or coaches at JHU (Pietramala 3 (1 as a player, 2 as the head coach), Dwan (2 as an assistant coach), Benson (1 as an assistant coach), Koesterer (2 as a player).

Odd, But True: Johns Hopkins has advanced to at least the NCAA Semifinals every year since the inception of the NCAA Tournament in years ending in “2”. In 1972 and 1982 the Blue Jays lost in the national championship game; in 1992 and 2002 JHU fell in the NCAA Semifinals.

Second Time Around: Johns Hopkins and Maryland will be meeting for the second time this season on Saturday in the NCAA Quarterfinals. This will be the 18th time Johns Hopkins faces a team in the NCAA Tournament that it lost to during the regular season.
In 17 previous instances the Blue Jays avenged the loss 10 times (including three times in the championship game) and were swept seven times. This week’s game against Maryland marks the sixth time the Blue Jays have faced a team that beat them during the regular season under Dave Pietramala. JHU has avenged the regular season loss four times in the previous five instances.

Working Overtime: The Blue Jays have won their last three overtime games dating back to last season and are now 19-9 all-time in overtime under head coach Dave Pietramala.

Play it and They Will Come: Johns Hopkins played in front of its second sellout crowd in three weeks at Loyola (April 28) as LU sold all 6,000 tickets available for its home game against JHU. JHU also played in front of a packed house of 8,500 on April 14 when Maryland visited Homewood Field.
Playing in front of large crowds is nothing new for the Blue Jays, who lead the nation in average attendance for all games played (6,529).

Six Over Six: The crowd of 6,000 that watched the Johns Hopkins-Loyola game on April 28 was the sixth crowd of 6,000 or more that Johns Hopkins has played in front of in 2012.

Eight of Nine: Johns Hopkins has played in front of a crowd of 5,130 or more in eight of its last 10 games.

Five of Top 10: There have been 10 crowds of 6,500 or more at a Division I men’s lacrosse game this season and Johns Hopkins has been a participant in five of the 10.

Against Number One: The 10-9 overtime victory at Loyola (April 28) was JHU’s second win of the season against a team ranked number one in the nation. Earlier this season (March 24) the Blue Jays knocked off then top-ranked Virginia, 11-10, in overtime.
The game against Loyola was also the 11th Johns Hopkins has played against a team ranked number one under head coach Dave Pietramala. The Blue Jays are now 7-4 in their 11 games against the nation’s top-ranked team under his guidance. This is the first time in school history that Johns Hopkins has defeated a top-ranked team twice on the road in the same season.

Close Calls: Eight of the 11 games Johns Hopkins has played against teams ranked number one under head coach Dave Pietramala have been decided by one goal. JHU is 6-2 in those eight one-goal games.

Streaking: In case you didn’t notice, Johns Hopkins is 20-4 in its last 24 games, 25-6 since the start of the 2011 season and 27-8 in its last 35 games.

Striking the First Blow: Johns Hopkins has scored on its first (6x) or second (6x) shot of the game a total of 12 times in 15 games this season.

Attack Oriented: Despite being forced to start five different players in three different combinations, the starting attack units the Blue Jays have trotted out have been effective and efficient. The unit has combined for 77 goals and 53 assists (8.67 points per game) through 15 games.

On the Flip Side: While the Blue Jay attack is collectively averaging 8.67 points per game, the Blue Jay defense has not been nearly as giving. In fact, the starting attack units Johns Hopkins has faced this season have totaled just 52 goals and 27 assists (5.27 points per game).

Bassett Now 25-6 in Last 31 Starts: Junior goalie Pierce Bassett picked up his 28th career victory in goal with the 19-9 win over Stony Brook in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Bassett is now 25-6 in his last 31 starts dating back to the start of the 2011 season and counts a 28-10 career record to his credit.
Through 15 games Bassett currently ranks sixth in the nation in goals against average (7.23) and 21st in save percentage (.531).
Bassett concluded his first full season as the starter for the Blue Jays last season and posted a 7.07 goals against average and a .570 save percentage. He finished fifth in the nation in GAA and 10th in save percentage. Bassett’s 7.07 goals against average is the second best by a JHU goalie since 1993 (Jesse Schwartman’s 6.68 GAA in 2005 is the best since records became available in ‘93).

Boland Returns: Senior attackman Chris Boland returned to the lineup against North Carolina after missing seven consecutive games with an injury he suffered 35 minutes into the season opener against Towson. Despite missing the second half against Towson and seven full games, he ranks third on the team in scoring with 16 goals and 13 assists for 29 points.
He enters this weeks’ game against Maryland on a roll as he totaled three goals and two assists in a 13-6 win against Army and added three goals and four assists in last week’s win over Stony Brook in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
In his last five NCAA Tournament games (dating back to the first round of the 2009 tournament), he has 12 goals and 13 assists for 25 points. He has played in seven career NCAA games, but all 25 of his points in the playoffs have come in his last five outings.
Boland pushed his career totals to 82 goals and 51 assists for 133 points with his effort against Stony Brook. He now has 12 career hat tricks, 31 career multi-point games and 20 games with four points or more.
Boland passed his older brother, Kevin ‘04, on JHU’s career scoring list with his seven-point effort against Stony Brook in the first round of the NCAA Tournament (133-129). The Bolands are the first brothers in school history to both surpass the 125 career point mark.

Stanwick in Rare Company: Freshman Wells Stanwick scored the fifth goal in JHU’s game-opening 5-0 run at top-ranked Loyola, added the final goal in a 4-1 game-opening run in the win over Army and chipped in one goal and one assist in the win over Stony Brook.
Stanwick has nine goals and 14 assists for 23 points in 12 games played this season. He missed three games early in the season with an injury, but still ranks second on the team in assists and tied for fifth in points.
Stanwick ran his streak of consecutive multi-point games to seven with one goal and two assists in the win over Albany before being held scoreless by Maryland and Navy. His run of seven straight multi-point games to open his career is the longest by a Johns Hopkins player (freshmen only – not transfers) since all-time leading scorer Terry Riordan opened his career with 18 consecutive multi-point games from 1992-93.

Palmer in Rare Company: Junior attackman Zach Palmer punched up three goals and three assists in last week’s 19-9 win over Stony Brook in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to push his season totals to 26 goals and 26 assists for 52 points. He also ran his career totals to 58 goals and 56 assists for 114 points.
Palmer is the first player at Johns Hopkins with 25 goals and 25 assists in the same season since 2007, when Paul Rabil totaled 27 goals and 26 assists. The 25-25 feat is rare at Johns Hopkins as Palmer is just the eighth Blue Jay to reach this mark since 1980 (the eight have turned the trick a combined 13 times).

Offensive Notes of Interest: Below are several notes of interest about the JHU offense:
• JHU has scored at least one goal in 55 of 60 quarters this season and two or more in 46 of the 60 quarters.
• For all the talk about JHU being a slow-down team, the Blue Jays are averaging 36.2 shots per game. That number compares favorably to JHU’s averages in 2005 (38.1) and 2007 (36.3) – the most recent years in which Johns Hopkins won the national championship.
• Johns Hopkins ranks 20th in the nation in scoring offense (10.67), 11th in extra-man offense (.434) and seventh in scoring margin (+3.53).

Defensive Notes of Interest: Below are several notes of interest about the JHU defense:
• Hopkins is surrendering an average of just 28.2 shots per game.
• JHU has held the opposition scoreless in 16 of 60 quarters this season (26.7%). • The Blue Jays rank third in the nation in scoring defense (7.13), 15th in man-down defense (.714) and seventh in scoring margin (+3.53) this season.
• Johns Hopkins has held each of its 15 opponents scoreless for a stretch of at least 13:05 and 10 of the 13 have gone scoreless for 19:30 or longer.

Now That’s a Drought: The Johns Hopkins defense did not allow an even-strength goal for an amazing stretch of 116:37 from late in the win at Princeton through early in the fourth quarter of the win over UMBC.

About the Shutout: Shutouts in college lacrosse are rare, but JHU notched one with the 11-0 victory over Manhattan on March 6. Prior to that, the Blue Jays had last posted a shutout on March 26, 1988, when they knocked off Princeton, 9-0. The shutout vs. Manhattan was the 61st in JHU history with 57 of those coming prior to 1950.

Poll Position: The Blue Jays checked in at number seven in the final regular season USILA Coaches Poll and the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. The Johns Hopkins Athletic Communications Office uses the USILA Poll to represent JHU’s official ranking at the time of a game. Prior to falling out of the top 20 of the USILA Poll on April 26 and May 3, 2010 (JHU was receiving votes in both polls), the Blue Jays had been ranked in the top 20 in 367 consecutive polls dating back to the first poll in 1973.

More Poll Position: Including this week’s USILA Poll, there have been 396 weekly polls since the inception of the poll in 1973. Amazingly, JHU has been ranked in the top 20 in 394 of those 396 polls. The Blue Jays have been in the top 10 in 373 of the 396 and the top five in 295 of those 396. Johns Hopkins has been ranked number one 104 times since the poll debuted in 1973.

Home Cookin’: Johns Hopkins had its 12-game home winning streak snapped with the 9-6 loss to Maryland on April 14. The streak is the second-longest under head coach Dave Pietramala, who picked up his 75th career victory at Homewood Field with the win earlier this season against Delaware. Hopkins sports an 81-13 (.860) record in home games during his career at JHU.
JHU won a school and national-record 37 straight home games from 2001-06 under Pietramala’s guidance and the recent 12-game home winning streak is the fourth home streak of seven wins or more since he arrived.

State Rivalries: Without question the Blue Jays play one of the most difficult schedules in the nation and a big part of the schedule are the in-state rivalries the Blue Jays have. Including wins this season vs. Towson, UMBC and Loyola and losses to Maryland and Navy, JHU is 56-6 (.903) against teams from Maryland under head coachDave Pietramala.

First to 900: Johns Hopkins’ 10-6 win at Towson in the 2011 season opener not only got the season off on the right foot for the Blue Jays, but also made history. The win was the 900th all-time in school history, making Johns Hopkins the first program to record 900 all-time wins. JHU now has 924 all-time wins.

That’s 627 Games Over .500: The Blue Jays’ all-time record is now 924-297-15 (.753) … that’s 627 games over .500. To put this in perspective: JHU has played an average of just over 15 games per season under head coach Dave Pietramala. Using a 15-game season as a reference, if the Blue Jays posted a 5-10 record for 125 straight seasons, they would still be seven games over .500.

Honorable Mention: WNBA-Chicago Sky @ Washington Mystics (Saturday 7pm Verizon Center); Mixed Martial Arts: UFC on FUEL TV 3-”Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung vs. Dustin Poirier (Tuesday 8pm from Patriot Center live on FUEL TV); Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Final-Josh Barnett vs. Daniel Cormier (Saturday 10pm from San Jose live on Showtime); Bellator Fighting Championships 69 (Friday 8pm from Lake Charles, LA live on MTV2); Golf: PGA Tour HP Byron Nelson Championship (Thursday & Friday 3pm live on Golf Channel, Saturday & Sunday 3pm live on CBS. All golf from Irving, TX), LPGA Tour Sybase Match Play Championship (Thursday & Friday 6:30pm Saturday 3pm Sunday 4pm from Gladstone, NJ live on Golf Channel); Pro Lacrosse: MLL Chesapeake Bayhawks @ Hamilton Nationals (Friday 11am from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada live on ESPN3.com); Tennis: ATP Tour & WTA Tour Internazionali BNL d’Italia (Tuesday-Saturday 6am Sunday 7:30am from Rome live on Tennis Channel); Women’s College Lacrosse: NCAA Tournament-Loyola @ Maryland (Saturday 12pm Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex)

10. Infieldfest feat. Maroon 5, Wiz Khalifa, Little Big Town, The Darkness (Saturday 11am Pimlico Race Course); New Edition (Sunday 7pm 1st Mariner Arena); Black Keys/Arctic Monkeys (Friday 6:30pm Merriweather Post Pavilion), Lucinda Williams/Drive-By Truckers (Saturday 6:30pm Merriweather Post Pavilion), Lady Antebellum/Darius Rucker (Sunday 5:30pm Merriweather Post Pavilion); Styx/REO Speedwagon/Ted Nugent (Friday 7pm Jiffy Lube Live); Buckcherry/Foxy Shazam (Thursday 7:30pm Power Plant Live), Mr. Greengenes (Friday 8pm Power Plant Live); 2 Skinnee J’s/All Mighty Senators (Friday 8pm Rams Head Live); Kenny Wayne Shepherd (Tuesday 8pm Rams Head on Stage, Thursday 8pm Howard Theatre); Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros (Tuesday 7pm 9:30 Club), SOJA (Friday 7pm Saturday 8pm 9:30 Club); Fishbone (Thursday 7pm State Theatre); Less Than Jake/Ballyhoo! (Friday 8pm Rock N Roll Hotel); Chesapeake Bay Blues Festival feat. Jonny Lang, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Big Head Todd and the Monsters (Saturday & Sunday Sandy Point State Park); Justin Jones & The Driving Rain (Monday 7pm Ottobar); Night of 1000 Dylans (Friday 7:30pm Creative Alliance); Tenacious D “Rize of the Fenix” available in stores/on iTunes (Tuesday)

Totally underrated Black Keys tune? “I Got Mine.” See you at MPP Friday night…

If Maroon 5 promised to not play a song they’ve released in the last 10 years I’d be excited to see them Saturday. But if they did nothing but tunes from “Songs About Jane” I would be in…

If you haven’t seen Darius Rucker play country music, you’re going to have to trust me. He kicks a little ass…

I’m hoping Justin Jones will stop by the studio Monday. He’s quite talented…

9. Brian Regan (Friday & Saturday Warner Theatre); John Henton (Thursday-Saturday Baltimore Comedy Factory); Bobby Slayton (Thursday-Sunday DC Improv); “The Dictator” (Wednesday), “Battleship” and “Crooked Arrows” (Friday) open in theaters; “The Grey” available on Blu-Ray/DVD (Tuesday); Preakness Crab Derby (Thursday 12pm Lexington Market); Preakness Frog Hop (Wednesday 12pm Patterson Park)

Crab races? Okay I guess. MUCH more kickass? PIG races.

And as far as the frog hop goes, I think you already know which frog I’ll be pulling for…

Maybe I’m not the person to say this.

I probably won’t make it out to the Preakness Crab Derby. I doubt the Preakness Frog Hop is part of my week. I didn’t get to the Preakness Hot Air Balloon Festival. I’m going to miss my first Black-Eyed Susan Stakes in years. I don’t intend to get to Power Plant Live to see Buckcherry or Mr. Greengenes or Foxy Shazam.

Hell, I’m even thinking about going to Annapolis Saturday to check out Maryland-Johns Hopkins and Loyola-Denver in the NCAA Tournament at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. I don’t know if my girlfriend will go for it, but I’ve been leaning in that direction.

If you’re not aware, I made it down to Louisville again this year for the Kentucky Derby. (And how could you possibly NOT be aware when you were checking out pictures like the one below from the Kentucky Derby Museum at Churchill Downs on my Facebook page during the trip?)

You fear that the rest of my column is going to be about how the Preakness isn’t nearly as good as the Kentucky Derby. Don’t. Everyone on the face of the planet knows that Preakness week isn’t Derby week. Despite how much breath you think I waste every afternoon during “The Reality Check” on AM1570 WNST.net, I don’t intend to waste more space here.

I don’t think Preakness week should be like Derby week. I think Preakness week should be the crowning moment of the entire calendar annually in Charm City.

At least…I wish it would be.

Drew Forrester and I used to try to figure out a way to correctly define the relationship between Preakness and the city of Baltimore when we would chat on “The Morning Reaction.” We would throw out terms like “the single biggest annual sporting event in the city” or “the most significant event the city hosts” or “the most important date on the sporting calendar every year” but never settled on one in particular. The truth is that based on attendance, Preakness is annually the single biggest event of any kind in the city. Economically, the Maryland Jockey Club has stated in the last two years that the event has an economic impact of $40-$60 million annually for the city and state.

Baltimore Orioles Opening Day has a significant economic impact for the area. Baltimore Ravens playoff games have significant economic impact for the area. The same can be said for the occasional NCAA lacrosse Final Four events. None have the impact of Preakness.

I wrote a similar column to this last year. Some of you were going to point that out. I’ll keep you from having to do just that by linking to it here. I hope you take a look if for no reason than to re-read the words of Newark Star-Ledger columnist Jerry Izenberg, who in 2010 described the relationship between Preakness and Baltimore so well the words should be engraved at Old Hilltop.

A year ago I was angry about how insignificant I felt Preakness had become in Baltimore. I’m not angry this year. I’m wishful. I wish it mattered more. I wish I was preparing to go out to Pimlico every afternoon this week to broadcast live. I wish my friends from around the country were calling me to let me know when they were getting in. I wish I had someone to blame for any of it.

I could blame the job the Maryland Jockey Club has done running the event and both Pimlico and Laurel Park. I could blame the city and state for not offering the level of support necessary to make the event the best it could possibly be. I could blame the sport of horse racing which has failed greatly to fully adapt to 2012 and in many ways still lives in 1942. I could blame us as Baltimoreans for spending too much time worrying about Washington’s pro hockey team and not enough time worrying about our own greatest event. I could blame area media for not treating the event with a level of reverence befitting an event that still annually involves the possibility of a Triple Crown winner.

(For years, the only conversation related to Preakness in Baltimore surrounded the concern that the race might leave the state for Florida. With that dialogue all but useless, area media members have been able only to fall back on “can (insert Derby winner name here) win the Triple Crown?”)

I’m going to talk to jockeys and trainers and horse analysts this week on my show. I’ll ask Kent Desormeaux (he’ll be riding Tiger Walk Saturday) about what it would mean to deliver a Preakness title to a Maryland group (Sagamore Farm). I’ll ask O’Neill about how the limited schedule for the Derby champ could keep his champ fresh for the second jewel. I’ll ask Mike Smith if a better ride aboard Bodemeister would mean the Bob Baffert horse would be coming to Baltimore with a chance to make history.

I’ll talk about horse racing like it mattered here. I’ll talk about the importance of the event to the city.

I wish I wouldn’t be the only one.

Carry on.

-G

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Senior Joe Cummings scored with six seconds left in the fourth to send the Maryland men’s lacrosse team to the NCAA tournament quarterfinals with a 10-9 victory at No. 7 seed Lehigh Sunday night in front of 2,278 at Banko Field at Ulrich Sports Complex.

The Terps (10-5) advance to the quarterfinals and will play No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins game on Sat., May 19 at noon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis. The Mountain Hawks finish their season with a 14-3 record.

Maryland got off to a quick start with redshirt sophomore Mike Chanenchuk finding senior Drew Snider in the left alley and Snider ripped a shot into the upper right corner with just 1:27 elapsed.

A goal by Lehigh’s David DiMaria was waived off at the 10:52 mark, but a pushing call on freshman Goran Murray put the Mountain Hawks up a man and Kyle Stiefel scored off of a feed from DiMaria to tie the game at 1-1 with 10:37 to go in the first.

That’s when junior Owen Blye took over the game, figuring into the Terps’ next five goals.

The first of those came on the extra-man opportunity following a tripping call on DiMaria. Blye found Cummings on the crease for the easy score with 9:12 to go to make it 2-1 for the Terps.

Blye scored his first goal of the game as the clock wound down in the first quarter, coming around the left side of the cage and scoring from the left wing with just 0:06 left on the clock.

The extra-man unit struck again for the first tally in the second as Blye found junior Billy Gribbin on the right wing and Gribbin ripped a shot past Lehigh goalie Matthew Poillon at the 9:11 mark to up the Terrapin lead to 4-1.

Blye was in the giving mood again less than two minutes later finding freshman Jay Carlson on the crease for his first score since April 6. But, the play wouldn’t have been made without Cummings moving the ball to Blye after slipping on the turf behind the cage.

The 5-0 Terrapin run was finished with Blye hitting senior Michael Shakespeare in the left alley and Shakespeare let a laser fly on the step-down shot to make it a 6-1 game with 5:52 to play.

But the Mountain Hawks would not go quietly into the half as DiMaria took advantage of a defensive switch that had him isolated with a short-stick and he scored unassisted from just above left goal line extended.

That goal snapped a scoreless stretch of 21:28 for Lehigh, but the Mountain Hawks turned that into the start of a 3-0 run to close out the second quarter as Stiefel scored twice before the quarter was out to make it a 6-4 game going into halftime.

Lehigh continued its run in the third, holding Maryland scoreless and putting up four of its own to take an 8-6 lead into the final 15:00.

The difference in the third was Poillon, who made six of his saves in the quarter to allow Lehigh to build its lead.

Snider ended a scoring skid of 22:26 for the Terps by finishing a feed inside from Chanenchuk with a high bouncer that just got under the crossbar to cut the lead to 8-7 with 13:26 to play in the fourth.

The Mountain Hawks didn’t let the Terps build any momentum as Dante Fantoni scored his first of the game to up the lead back to two at 9-7 just 32 seconds later.

Maryland continued to fight and Snider was a big reason why, scoring his third goal of the game on an unassisted goal dodging from the left wing to cut the deficit to one at the 8:03 mark.

The comeback was complete with 6:42 to go in the fourth when Chanenchuk scored unassisted from the right alley with a blistering shot inside the far pipe. That goal pulled the Terps even at 9-9, which was the first time the game was tied since the 13:07 mark of the third when it was 6-6.

Freshman Charlie Raffa, who won 10-of-14 faceoffs for the game, won the ensuing faceoff when a pile up resulted in a conference by the officials, who ended up ruling Terrapin ball on a hold by the Mountain Hawks.

That possession saw junior John Haus lose his defender and get a good look at the goal from close in on the left wing, but Poillon came up with his 15th save of the game.

Lehigh had the ball with a chance to retake the lead with 4:49 to play, but sophomore Michael Ehrhardt caused his third turnover of the game to give Maryland the ball back with 4:40 to play.

The Terrapins never gave Lehigh another possession.

Shots by Blye and Kevin Cooper early in the possession were too high, but Blye’s second attempt was Poillon’s 16th save of the game. However, Poillon couldn’t control the rebound and Snider came away with the biggest groundball of the game with just 1:26 remaining.

That set the stage for Cummmings’ heroics, as he patiently waited as the clock ticked down to under 20 seconds left before making his move, dodging around the right side of the cage and slipping the game-winner past Poillon with just six seconds left.

Raffa finished with a game-high five groundballs, while sophomore goalie Niko Amato was credited with six saves.

Game Notes:
• With today’s 10-9 win, Maryland is now 4-1 all-time vs. Lehigh.
• Maryland is now 14-3 all-time in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
• With two points on two goals, senior Joe Cummings now has 30 multi-point and 22 multi-goal games for his career.
• With two points on two goals, Cummings moves past Bud Beardmore (1960-62) for sole possession of 34th on the all-time points list at Maryland with 109.
• With three points on three goals, senior Drew Snider now has four hat tricks, 15 multi-point and 10 multi-goal games for his career.
• With five points on one goal and four assists, junior Owen Blye now has 20 multi-point and 11 multi-assist games for his career.
• With three points on one goal and two assists, redshirt sophomore Mike Chanenchuk now has four multi-point and one multi-assist games for his Maryland career.

COLLEGE PARK, MD. - The Maryland men’s lacrosse team will hit the road for its opening round game of the 2012 NCAA Tournament. The Terps will travel to Bethlehem, Pa., to take on No. 7 seed Lehigh. Faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at the sold-out Ulrich Sports Complex, as the Terps (9-5) battle the Mountain Hawks (14-2) for the first time since 1928.

• The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU, as well as streamed on ESPN3.com. Fans can also watch the game on their wireless device with the WatchESPN app. Joe Beninati will provide the play-by-play, while the analysis will come from Ryan Boyle.

• The Terps, who received an at-large bid, are making their 35th NCAA Tournament appearance, the second most of any school in NCAA history, while Lehigh, which earned the Patriot League’s automatic bid, is making its first appearance in the NCAA tournament.

• The winner of the Maryland/Lehigh game will take on the winner of the No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins (11-3)/Stony Brook (7-9) game on Saturday, May 19 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md. The Blue Jays and Seawolves play in Baltimore on Sunday, May 13 at 3 p.m.

• Maryland enters the tournament with a 9-5 record after finishing the regular season with a 13-11 loss at Colgate, which also earned an at-large bid into the field. The Terps are led by senior attackman Joe Cummings, who has 27 goals and 14 assists for 41 points. Junior midfielder John Haus is the team leader with 16 assists on the season. Maryland’s defense is led the co-ACC Defensive Player of the Year Jesse Bernhardt, who is tops on the squad with 53 groundballs and 29 caused turnovers. Sophomore goalie Niko Amato comes into the postseason with a 7.40 goals-against average and a .551 save percentage.

• Lehigh is 14-2 after defeating Colgate, 16-14, in the Patriot League title game. The Mountain Hawk offense is led by junior attackman Nicky Galasso, who has 44 points on 22 goals and 22 assists. Fellow junior attackman Dante Fantoni also has 22 goals on the season to go along with 19 assists. Lehigh boasts the nation’s No. 2 scoring defense. Freshman Matthew Poillon has started all 16 games in goal for the Mountain Hawks and ranks second in the nation with a 6.55 goals-against average and fourth in the country with a .595 save percentage.

The Count Down
10 … Since 2002 Maryland has won 90 of the 99 games in which the Terps have scored 10 or more goals for a .909 winning percentage.
9 … Maryland is 108-24 in games since 2002 when it allows nine goals or less, for an .818 winning percentage.
8 … Including preseason scrimmgaes, Maryland has played eight games this spring vs. teams in the NCAA tournament field.
7 … Joe Cummings leads all current Terps with seven goals in NCAA tournament play.
6 … Maryland and Lehigh are two of six teams in the NCAA tournament with a faceoff win percentage below .500.
5 … This will be the fifth all-time meeting between Maryland and Lehigh, but the first since 1928 when the two teams were nicknamed the Old Liners and Engineers, respectively.
4 … Niko Amato has a .642 save percentage in four career NCAA tournament games.
3 … This is the third time since 1997 that the Terps have been unseeded in the NCAA tournament.
2 … Two current Terps - Kevin Cooper and Drew Snider - have recorded a hat trick in an NCAA tournament game.
1 … Only one unseeded team (Maryland) advanced past the first round in the 2011 NCAA tournament.

Coaching Match-Up
• John Tillman is in his fifth season as a head coach, and second with the Terps, with a 42-29 career record for a 59.2 winning percentage. Tillman is 22-10 (.688) as Maryland’s head coach. He had a 20-19 record in three seasons as the head coach at Harvard.

• Lehigh’s Kevin Cassese is in his fifth season as a head coach, all at Lehigh, and has a 39-38 (.505) record.

• This will be Tillman’s first game as a head coach vs. the Mountain Hawks.

Tillman in the NCAA Tournament
• The meeting with Lehigh will be John Tillman’s fifth NCAA tournament game as a head coach.

• Maryland’s run to the 2011 NCAA title game gave Tillman his first four NCAA tournament games as a head coach. He has a 3-1 record after the Terps defeated No. 8 seed UNC in the first round on May 15, No. 1 seed Syracuse on May 22 and No. 5 seed Duke on May 28 before losing to No. 7 seed Virginia.

• As an assistant coach, Tillman helped guide Navy to four consecutive NCAA tournaments from 2004-07, including a run to the 2004 championship game.

Series History vs. Lehigh
• The series history between Maryland and Lehigh is more like ancient history, but the Terrapins lead the series 3-1.

• The series dates back to 1924 – the very first varsity season of men’s lacrosse at Maryland. Lehigh is one of just four teams to win the first game of a series with Maryland, winning 3-0 in 1924.

• The two teams played in 1925 and 1926 with Maryland winning both games, 5-3 and 7-3, respectively. The last time the two schools met was 1928 and Maryland took that one by a final of 15-2.

• The last time these two programs met neither school had the nickname it currently has. Until the early 1930′s Maryland’s athletic teams were the Old Liners, while Lehigh changes its nickname from the Engineers to the Mountain Hawks in 1995.

Maryland’s 35th Time in the NCAA Tournament
All-Time NCAA Tournament Results

• Maryland is making its 35th overall NCAA Tournament appearance in 2012. The Terps have played in the second-most tournaments since the event began in 1971. Only Hopkins has played in more, making its 41st appearance this season. Virginia is also making its 35th NCAA appearance.

• The Terps have captured two NCAA championships, 1973 and 1975.

Maryland’s Record in the NCAA Tournament
• The Terps have won the fourth-most Division I NCAA Tournament games, compiling a 45-32 overall record in 77 games. Only Johns Hopkins (66-31), Syracuse (59-20) and Virginia (47-29) have won more Division I tournament games.

• Maryland is seventh by percentage (.584) among all teams ever to play in the tournament. Only Syracuse (59-20, .747), Princeton (30-13, .698), Johns Hopkins (66-31, .680), Virginia (47-29, .618), Duke (22-14, .611) and Cornell (30-21, .588) are ahead of the Terps.

• The Terps have captured two titles. Only seven other schools have ever won the NCAA Championship: Syracuse (10), Johns Hopkins (9), Princeton (6), North Carolina (4), Virginia (5), Cornell (3) and Duke (1).

Maryland Unseeded in the NCAA Tournament
• This season marks the sixth time that Maryland has been unseeded since the tournament began in 1972. The Terps were previously unseeded in 1993, 1994, 1997, 2009 and 2011.

• In those first two unseeded-years Maryland lost its first round game to the No. 8-seeded team, which were Army and Duke, respectively.

• The Terrapins were much more successful in 1997, advancing to the NCAA championship game. Maryland defeated No. 7-seed Georgetown in the first round before knocking off No. 2 Virginia in the quarters. In the 1997 Final Four Maryland upset No. 3 Syracuse, but couldn’t topple No. 1-seed Princeton in the finals.

• The 2009 Terps were the lone unseeded team to win a first round game, knocking off previously unbeaten Notre Dame, 7-3. The Terps lost to eventual national champion Syracuse in the quarterfinals.

• Last season saw the Terps head into the tournament unseeded, but Maryland advanced to the NCAA title game, knocking off No. 8 seed North Carolina in the first round, No. 1 seed Syracuse in the quarterfinals and No. 5 seed Duke in the semifinals. The Terrapins’ run ended with a 9-7 loss to No. 7 seed Virginia in the championship game.

The Terps vs. the No. 7 Seed
• This marks the 10th time that Maryland has faced the No. 7 seed in the NCAA tournament. Maryland is 6-3 all-time when playing the No. 7 seed.

• The Terps previously played the No. 7 seed in 1975, 1979, 1996, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2001. En route to its second NCAA title, the 1975 Terps toppled No. 7 Washington & Lee, 15-5, in the semifinals. The 1979 Maryland team opened the tournament vs. No. 7 Syracuse and beat the Orangemen 16-13. After losing in the 1996 quarters to No. 7 Johns Hopkins, an unseeded Terrapin squad took down No. 7 Georgetown, 14-10, in the first round. Maryland dropped a quarterfinal game to No. 7 Princeton in overtime in 2004, but had some measure of closure in 2005 when the Terps beat No. 7 Georgetown in overtime in the quarterfinals. Maryland was the No. 2 seed in 2006 and again matched up with No. 7 Princeton. This time it was the Terps heading to the Final Four as they defeated the Tigers 11-6. Maryland was the lone unseeded team to advance past the first round in 2009, topping previously unbeaten Notre Dame, 7-3, in South Bend, Ind. Last season, the Terps were also unseeded when they played No. 7 seed Virginia in the NCAA title game, but were unable to overcome the Cavaliers, who pulled out a 9-7 victory in Baltimore.

The Terps On ESPNU
• Maryland has had 42 games on ESPNU since 2006. Maryland is 23-19 (.548) all-time in games broadcast on ESPNU.

• The Terps will have at least four games (at UNC, vs. Virginia, at Johns Hopkis, at ACC tournament) Maryland will play on ESPNU in 2012.

Cummings Named Male Athlete of the Year at the Inaugural Terp Awards
• Senior Joe Cummings took home the top honor at the inaugural Terp Awards celebration on Tuesday, May 8, being selected as the 2012 Male Athlete of the Year. The Towson, Md., native was also recognized by the ACC for his community service efforts.

• Junior Owen Blye was the recipient of the men’s lacrosse Academic Achievement Award, which is presented to the junior or senior from each team with the highest cumulative GPA.

• Senior Jake Bernhardt may have been sidelined from the field this season due to injury, but that didn’t stop him from contributing in the community and he was honored with the men’s lacrosse Community Service Award.

Bernhardt, Murray Earn Annual ACC Awards
• Junior long pole Jesse Bernhardt and freshman defender Goran Murray were among the five student-athletes recognized as recipients of the annual ACC men’s lacrosse individual awards, the conference announced Tuesday.

• Bernhardt, a native of Longwood, Fla., shares the inaugural ACC Defensive Player of the Year award with Duke’s CJ Costabile. Bernhardt, who is also a 2012 Tewaaraton Trophy nominee, leads the Terps with 22 caused turnovers and leads the conference with 2.0 caused turnovers per game. He is also averaging 3.3 groundballs per game and is the captain of a Maryland defense that currently ranks seventh in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 7.45 goals per game.

• Murray, a native of Merion Station, Pa., becomes the seventh Terp to be named the ACC Freshman of the Year. He is the first since 2007 when Brian Phipps earned the honor and the first Maryland defender since Michael Howley won the honor. Murray was a long-pole midfielder coming into preseason practice, but was converted to close defense and has become Maryland’s shutdown defender. Murray has started all 11 games for the Terps and became the first freshman close defender to start a season opener since 2008. He currently ranks sixth in the conference with 1.1 caused turnovers per game.

• Virginia senior Steele Stanwick earned ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors, while Duke’s John Danowski was named the ACC Coach of the Year.

League-Best Four Terps Named To All-ACC Team
• Maryland placed a league-high four players on the 2012 All-ACC Men’s Lacrosse Team, which was announced today by the Atlantic Coast Conference. Senior attackman Joe Cummings and sophomore goalie Niko Amato made the team for the second-straight season, while junior long pole Jesse Bernhardt and junior midfielder John Haus are first-time selections.

• All four ACC men’s programs are represented on the annual All-ACC team, which was determined by a vote of the four head coaches. Maryland’s four honorees were the most by any school. Duke and Virginia each had three selections, while North Carolina had one player make the team.

Honorable Mention: Boxing-ShoBox Yudel Jhonson vs. Willie Nelson (Friday 11pm from Las Vegas live on Showtime); Mixed Martial Arts: Bellator Fighting Championships 68 (Friday 8pm from Atlantic City live on MTV2); Roller Derby: Charm City Roller Girls (Saturday 5:30pm Du Burns Arena); Soccer: MLS-DC United @ Houston Dynamo (Saturday 4:30pm from Houston live on NBC Sports Network); Pro Lacrosse: MLL Rochester Rattlers @ Chesapeake Bayhawks (Saturday 7pm from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium live on ESPN3.com); Tennis: ATP Tour/WTA Tour Mutua Madrid Open (Tuesday-Friday 7am Saturday 5am Sunday 9:30am from Madrid live on Tennis Channel); Preseason WNBA: Connecticut Sun @ Washington Mystics (Monday 7pm Verizon Center)

10. Red Hot Chili Peppers (Thursday 7:30pm Verizon Center); Avett Brothers (Friday 8pm Patriot Center); Go-Go’s (Tuesday 7pm Rams Head Live), Andrew Bird (Wednesday 7pm Rams Head Live); Eve 6 (Saturday 7pm Recher Theatre), Lit (Sunday 5:30pm Recher  Theatre); Fear Factory (Saturday 7pm Sonar); ALO (Saturday 8pm 8×10 Club); Mike Doughty (Wednesday 8pm Rams Head on Stage), Dar Williams (Saturday 6pm & 9pm Rams Head on Stage), Kenny Wayne Shepherd (Monday 8pm Rams Head on Stage); M83 (Saturday 7pm & 11pm 9:30 Club), Cranberries (Monday 7pm 9:30 Club); The Maine (Saturday 7pm Fillmore Silver Spring); Esperanza Spalding (Saturday 8pm Howard Theatre); Carolina Chocolate Drops (Thursday 7:30pm Birchmere), Chris Isaak (Monday 7:30pm Birchmere); The Gourds (Wednesday 8:30pm State Theatre); Feist (Wednesday 8pm Strathmore); M3 Rock Festival feat. Night Ranger, Kix, Ratt, Queensryche, Skid Row, Warrant, Quiet Riot, LA Guns, Great White (Friday & Saturday Merriweather Post Pavilion), Rob Zombie/Megadeth (Sunday 3pm Merriweather Post Pavilion); DC101 Chili Cook-Off feat. Incubus, Cake, AWOLNation, Angels & Airwaves, Airborne Toxic Event, Neon Trees (Saturday 11am RFK Stadium); Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (Thursday 7pm Friday & Saturday 8pm Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts); Glenn Frey (Monday 8pm Warner Theatre); Silversun Pickups “Neck of the Woods” available in stores/on iTunes (Tuesday)

One of the highlights of my life was getting a MySpace message from the Eve6 drummer. Seriously.

Mike Doughty is super talented.

I’m not really a Rob Zombie type of guy. I’m such a Rob Zombie type of guy though.

I know a guy who worked as a telemarketer his senior year at Perry Hall High School and sang “Short Skirt Long Jacket” by Cake into multiple answering machines. That guy was me.

9. Brad Sherwood/Colin Mochrie (Friday 8pm Modell Performing Arts Center at The Lyric); Christopher Titus (Friday & Saturday Baltimore Comedy Factory); Colin Quinn (Tuesday & Wednesday DC Improv); “Dark Shadows” in theaters (Friday); Baltimore Tattoo Arts Convention (Friday-Sunday Baltimore Convention Center); Preakness Celebration Balloon Festival (Thursday-Saturday Turf Valley); Foodie Experience feat. Andrew Zimmern (Saturday 3pm France-Merrick Performing Arts Center at the Hippodrome)

Colin Quinn is pretty funny. That said, Colin Quinn was never really all that good on Weekend Update…

Hey! Kat Von D has tattoos! Why don’t a post a picture of her here and just move on already…

TIGERS TO HOST PENN STATE IN NCAA TOURNAMENT

Towson to Host NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history 

TOWSON, Md. – The Colonial Athletic Association Champion Towson University women’s lacrosse team will host Penn State University in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The game will be played on Saturday, May 12 at 3 p.m. in Johnny Unitas Stadium.

The Tigers (16-3), who will be playing in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time since 2005, will be hosting an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in program history.

“Obviously this is super exciting for us and the program,” said Towson coach Sonia LaMonica. “To have a chance to play at home where we have had success this season is great for the team.”

Towson will face a familiar opponent in the first round as the Nittany Lions (11-6) are coached by Missy Doherty. Doherty coached the Tigers for seven seasons before heading to Penn State prior to the start of the 2011 season. She had a 79-46 record in Towson and won three CAA Championships and made four NCAA Tournament appearances with the Tigers.

The Tigers, who earned the eighth seed for the Tournament, won their program record 10th straight game on Saturday night with a 15-5 victory over Monmouth in the NCAA Play-In game.  Sophomore attacker Andi Raymond is one of seven Tigers to have scored at least 15 goals this season. Raymond has 66 points this season on 33 goals and 33 assists. Fellow sophomore attacker Ashleigh Rohrback has contributed 26 goals and 22 assists. Senior goalkeeper Mary Teeters leads the team with an 8.13 goals against average and a .513 save percentage.

 “Penn State is a good team that had some quality wins this season,” said Coach LaMonica. “The chance to get to face Missy (Doherty) will add a special aspect to this game for us.”

Penn State earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after falling to Johns Hopkins, 13-12 in the first round of the American Lacrosse Conference Tournament. Mackenzie Cyr and Maggie McCormick lead the Nittany Lions with 55 points each this season. Cyr has 33 goals and 22 assists while McCormick has contributed 28 goals and 27 assists. Dana Cahill had a 9.93 goals against average and a .491 save percentage.