It had been 16 straight losing attempts against Maryland before Penn State took the field Sunday afternoon at Panzer Stadium.

Unranked in the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20 but a team with the freshmen firepower and veteran leadership to make a jump, certainly warrants extra consideration now. Olivia Dirks’ five goals lead the charge as Penn State (2-0) topped Maryland 15-13.

Kristin O’Neill, Sophia Triandafils, Lauren Craft and Maria Auth all scored twice.

Taylor Suplee made 14 saves, and although Maryland won 23 of 29 draws, the Nittany Lions were able to control possession. Maryland turned the ball over 16 times, and Penn State took care of the ball on 21 of 22 clears.

The story here begins in the second half, as Penn State entered halftime with an 8-4 lead when Dirks assisted Craft with 35 seconds left before the break.

Maryland (0-1) came out firing, as Brindi Griffin, Shaylan Ahearn and Hannah Leubecker all converted free position attempts, cutting the deficit to 8-7. After Triandafils scored for Penn State, Griffin and Libby May (four goals) each scored, tying the score at 9.

It was more back and forth from there. Penn State scored two straight, then Maryland scored two straight. Penn State scored, then Maryland scored. The sides continued to trade tallies until Dirks scored with 2:09 remaining, putting Penn State ahead 14-13.

Dirks then iced the game with 44 seconds remaining.

Maryland is now 3-4 dating back to last season. Penn State, meanwhile, is looking like it might be on the rise.

OHIO STATE UPSETS NO. 9 MICHIGAN

What a day for underdogs in the Big Ten.

Liza Hernandez scored a game-high six goals and controlled a game-high 10 draws, and Jillian Rizzo made 12 saves as unranked Ohio State outplayed No. 9 Michigan in a 15-12 win in Columbus. Lindsay Epstein notched a hat trick. Ohio State (1-1) held a 22-7 advantage on draws.

Ohio State 15, No. 9 U 12#GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/G0CkX5ngw3

— Ohio State Women’s LAX (@OhioStateWLAX) February 21, 2021

Michigan (0-1) scored five of the final seven goals of the second half but still trailed the Buckeyes 9-7 at the break. Molly Garrett’s fourth goal of the game cut the Ohio State lead to 11-10, but Ashley Turner immediately responded on a feed from Jamie Lasda, putting the Buckeyes back up to two goals.

That tally started a 3-0 run, with goals by Hernandez and Jamie Level giving their side a 14-10 lead. The Buckeyes held firm from there.

Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20

No. 7 Stony Brook 20, Boston U. 10
Penn State 15, No. 8 Maryland 13
Ohio State 15, No. 9 Michigan 12
No. 15 Duke 12, No. 20 Virginia Tech 8

No. 1 North Carolina vs. High Point, 4 p.m.

No. 2 Notre Dame at Marquette, PPD

Other Scores

Arizona State 23, San Diego State 10
Central Michigan 11, Marquette 10
Robert Morris 9, Liberty 8
Rutgers 13, Johns Hopkins 10
UC Davis 20, Oregon 9
Vanderbilt 11, Colorado 10 (OT)

Kent State at Bucknell, PPD
Presbyterian at Butler, PPD
Youngstown State at St. Bonaventure, PPD