They wanted more and they wanted it more.

No. 20 Johns Hopkins dominated No. 12 Penn State in every way Saturday — especially during a lopsided third quarter in which the Blue Jays held the Nittany Lions without a shot — in a 13-6 victory at Homewood Field. It was the Blue Jays’ first win over a ranked opponent since 2019 and the most notable win so far in the Peter Milliman era.

Connor DeSimone scored four goals, Joey Epstein added two goals and two assists. Long pole Conner Delaney — a former Division III All-American basketball point guard and Centennial Conference Player of the Year playing lacrosse due to the cancellation of the basketball season — sparked Johns Hopkins’ transition game and finished with two assists.

Penn State, which appeared to take a step forward last week against Ohio State, took two steps back Saturday. The Nittany Lions scored the first two goals of the game but fell apart after that, committing 20 turnovers and idling badly in the third quarter. The Blue Jays won six of seven faceoffs, outshot Penn State 18-0 and scored seven unanswered goals while sustaining possession for nearly the entirety of the frame.

Both Big Ten teams are reinventing themselves this spring. In Penn State’s case, any hopes that its attack would hum as usual without Grant Ament have not been realized so far. For Johns Hopkins, it’s a new coaching staff and a system implemented by legendary player but still developing offensive coordinator John Grant Jr.

The Blue Jays won with persistence. It was no more evident than midway through the third quarter. Leading 9-3, they attempted several shots and earned numerous shot clock resets before Garrett Degnon deposited a catch-and-shoot laser from 8 yards out to break the Nittany Lions defense, which had dropped into a zone.

After a timeout, Matt Narewski (12-for-21) won a faceoff to the defensive half of the field and tossed the ball out of a double-team to Delaney, who found Alexander Mabbett at the point for another goal just 10 seconds later to put Johns Hopkins up 11-3. The Blue Jays never looked back.

SHARKS NO MINNOWS

The complicated history of the LIU men’s lacrosse program includes three NCAA Division II championships as C.W. Post, two rebrands and a merger of athletic programs formerly residing on separate Long Island and Brooklyn campuses.

Perhaps it was fitting then, that the biggest win of the Sharks’ Division I history so far came Saturday against a one-time Division III dynasty. Richie LaCalandra and Sean Boll scored four goals each and goalie Will Mark made 24 saves, as LIU Post defeated Hobart 14-12 in Brookville, N.Y.

The Sharks scored five unanswered goals in the first quarter and led 14-9 midway through the fourth quarter.

The Statesmen, who had won five of six games dating back to last season, made it interesting late. They converted three man-up opportunities but still fell short despite a 22-for-30 performance by faceoff specialist Adam Shea.

LIU elevated its program to Division I in fall of 2019. The Sharks were 1-6 last season before the pandemic hit. They’ve now won three straight since losing their season opener at Sacred Heart.

NOTABLE

• No. 2 Maryland exploded for eight goals in the fourth quarter, including a six-goal run spanning less than eight minutes, to pull away from No. 5 Rutgers 19-12. Jared Bernhardt scored six goals to lead the Terps. Check back to uslaxmagazine.com for more from College Park, as Patrick Stevens reports.

• Liam Limoges scored four goals and added three assists, as Vermont upset No. 16 Albany 14-12. It was the Catamounts’ third straight victory in the series, but their first-ever road win against their America East rival.

• Dalton Young scored seven goals, all in the first half, as No. 19 Richmond cruised to a 23-6 victory at VMI. Jacob Griffin won 22 of 26 faceoffs (85 percent) for the Spiders.

• Mark Bieda and Tye Kurtz scored four goals apiece to lead Delaware to a 19-12 victory at Drexel, the Blue Hens’ fifth straight win since a season-opening loss at Mount St. Mary’s.

• Dwayne Mattushik scored with 2.7 seconds left in regulation and Andrew Duswalt tallied the game-winning goal in double overtime to give Monmouth a thrilling 7-6 win at Siena. The Hawks are 2-0.

• A game-ending seven-goal flurry fell just short, as Robert Morris held on to defeat Air Force 14-13 in snowy Colorado Springs. Jimmy Perkins led the way with four goals and two assists.

• Aidan Olmstead (two goals, five assists) and Evan James (four goals, two assists) combined for 13 points as No. 14 Loyola defeated Lafayette 16-6.

NIKE/US LACROSSE TOP 20

No. 2 Maryland 19, No. 5 Rutgers 12
No. 20 Johns Hopkins 13, No. 12 Penn State 6
No. 14 Loyola 16, Lafayette 6
Vermont 14, No. 16 Albany 12
No. 19 Richmond 23, VMI 6

Colgate at No. 7 Army, PPD

OTHER SCORES

Delaware 18, Drexel 12
Cleveland State 8, Bellarmine 1
LIU 14, Hobart 12
Manhattan 10, Canisius 7
Merrimack 11, Wagner 5
Monmouth 7, Siena 6 (2OT)
Providence 12, Marquette 8
Robert Morris 14, Air Force 13
Saint Joseph’s 13, Sacred Heart 9
UMass Lowell 12, Hartford 10

Mount St. Mary’s at Bryant, PPD
UMass at Utah, PPD
Hofstra at Towson, PPD
UMBC at Binghamton, PPD
Quinnipiac at Marist, PPD