Maryland men’s lacrosse jumps one spot to No. 1 in Inside Lacrosse and US Lacrosse Magazine polls

For the first time this season, Maryland men’s lacrosse has moved into the No. 1 spot in both the Inside Lacrosse media poll and the US Lacrosse Magazine poll.

The top ranking had previously only been held by ACC teams, with Duke or North Carolina occupying No. 1 since the preseason rankings were released ahead of the spring season.

The Terps earned 19 of the 21 first-place votes in the Inside Lacrosse poll and were previously at the No. 2 spot in both polls.

On Saturday, Notre Dame defeated top-ranked Duke allowing undefeated Maryland to climb to that No. 1 spot this week. The Terps are one of three Division I teams without a loss. Maryland has won eight straight while No. 7 Lehigh has had six straight victories. Marist is the third undefeated team. The Red Foxes received votes in the Inside Lacrosse poll but have played just one game and has been on pause since.

The Terps’ 8-0 record marks their best start since 2004.

Maryland leads the nation in points per game (27.5) and sits at No. 3 in scoring margin (7.12) with no game being closer than four goals. Senior attacker Jared Bernhardt is tied for fourth in the nation with 4.12 goals per game, while sophomore attacker Daniel Maltz is No. 12 in the nation with an average of 3.38 goals per game.

The Terps will debut as the No. 1 team in the nation against No. 12 Ohio State in College Park on Sunday before finishing the regular season in Baltimore against Johns Hopkins on April 24.