Will Snider’s heroics powered Maryland men’s lacrosse past Johns Hopkins

For the past two years, junior midfielder Will Snider’s contributions to Maryland men’s lacrosse had been outside of the limelight.

Snider, whose brother Drew played at Maryland from 2008-12, was on the scout team before breaking into the Terps’ offensive rotation this year. This means that he was mainly responsible for imitating the opponent’s tendencies in the week leading up to the game, simulating an offensive player to make sure the defense was prepared come gameday.

On Saturday at Johns Hopkins, in the sport’s biggest rivalry, Snider’s efforts were front and center. With 2:37 remaining in the fourth quarter and Maryland trailing 7-6, the Seattle native caught a pass from Connor Kelly on the left side of the field, and fired a right handed shot to the top left corner of the goal to tie the game.

Then with 50 seconds gone in the third overtime period, Snider caught a pass in almost the same spot from Logan Wisnauskas. The Blue Jays’ defense was late getting to Snider, giving him enough time to get off the game-winning shot, a screamer that pierced the top right corner of the net.

“You dream about moments like this,” Snider said. “Hopkins-Maryland is something you grow up watching. So it was really an awesome experience.”

It was easily the biggest moment so far in his career, and one he’s been working up to this season. Snider, who said he received about 50 text messages after the game, broke into the second midfield line against Penn on Feb. 21. He scored his first career goal against then-No. 6 Villanova on Mar. 17, and moved into the starting lineup in Big Ten play. Since then, he’s switched between attack and midfield depending on where Kelly is on the field.

Although Snider has only five goals this season, four of them have come in key moments. Before scoring the tying and winning goals Saturday, he tied the game against then-No. 15 Penn State in the third quarter and gave Maryland its first lead of the game in the same period.

“He’s a pretty dynamic shooter, pretty nice dodger,” senior midfielder Tim Rotanz said. “To have him break out of his shell and score the last two goals, especially in a game like this, is huge, especially for his confidence going forward.”

Snider’s development could add another layer to Maryland’s scoring depth going forward. The Terps have five players with 15 goals or more, but after that, no one else has more than six. As it warms up, Maryland’s second-line players will need to step up and continue to produce.

In other news

Here’s more on Saturday’s epic clash.

With the win, John Tillman’s squad joined Cathy Reese’s as Big Ten champions. Here’s each team’s path to a Big Ten Tournament title.

On Saturday, Jermaine Carter found out he was joining DJ Moore on the Carolina Panthers. However, JC Jackson went undrafted, but he and some of his other teammates have joined teams as undrafted free agents.

In Friday’s Capital Classic, Maryland basketball commit Aaron Wiggins put on a show.

Maryland baseball had a good weekend, taking two out of three from Michigan State.

Softball did not and was swept by Ohio State.

Maryland women’s tennis went 1-1 in the Big Ten Tournament, falling in the quarterfinals to top-seeded Northwestern.