Faceoff specialist Charlie Raffa takes a hit during the Terps’ 15-12 loss to Johns Hopkins at Byrd Stadium on April 25, 2015.

With less than 10 minutes remaining in the first half of the Terrapins men’s lacrosse team’s Saturday night game against Johns Hopkins, faceoff specialist Charlie Raffa sprinted toward the sideline for a ground ball.

Attackman Wells Stanwick had just scored an unassisted goal to cut the Terps’ lead to 5-4, and Raffa looked to gain possession and swing the momentum in a game that would determine the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament.

The senior beat midfielder Derrick Kihembo to the ball, and Raffa fell to his knees as he zipped a pass to a teammate. But as Raffa released the ball, Blue Jays faceoff specialist Hunter Moreland stopped in his tracks and smashed him to the ground.

Raffa has battled injury troubles throughout the season, but he rose to his feet and stayed in the game after the officials charged Moreland with a one-minute cross-checking penalty. The Blue Jays’ physical style appeared to take a toll on Raffa, who left the game in the fourth quarter as the Blue Jays put together a six-goal run that propelled them to a 15-12 win at Byrd Stadium.

“Charlie Raffa is a heck of a faceoff guy. And I’m sure he’s still banged up,” Johns Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala said. “But as a leader of their team, he played. He played when it mattered.”

Raffa has endured numerous hits this season. Before Saturday night, he hadn’t played since sustaining a brutal collision with a Penn State player April 4.

Without him in the lineup, the Terps grinded out three consecutive one-goal victories, relying on clutch shooting and late defensive stands to top Loyola, Rutgers and Ohio State.

In Raffa’s return to the starting lineup, the effects of Moreland’s hit didn’t slow him for most of the game. He won 12 of the first 16 faceoffs he took, but after Johns Hopkins attackman Ryan Brown scored with 6:38 left in the third to tie the contest at nine, Raffa went 0-for-4.

The Blue Jays won the first faceoff of the fourth quarter, and Brown tied the game at 10 with a rocket from the left wing. Raffa then lost the ensuing faceoff, and Brown scored from nearly the same spot in transition.

“Those goals are critical, because they’re momentum goals,” coach John Tillman said. “Faceoff goals you love to get.”

From there, Raffa didn’t see the field again, as Tillman turned to faceoff specialist Jon Garino and midfielder Andrew Walsh the rest of the way.

Moreland went 5-for-6 against the Terps backups. In turn, Brown scored two more of his game-high eight goals in the last 12 minutes, and the Blue Jays cruised to an upset win over their biggest rival.

“They did a better job at the X, and the wings too,” Tillman said. “Your coordination of the wings. I think we really got to go back and look and make sure we’re organized.”

Raffa battled through a knee injury last season but still played in 15 of the team’s 17 games. This season, he’s played in eight of 13 games. Even before Raffa suffered the injury against Penn State, Tillman would often rest him against weaker opponents in an effort to save him for later in the season.

With the postseason approaching, Tillman might have to turn to other options if Raffa’s injury problems persist.

In the fourth quarter, Raffa looked on as the Terps’ struggles at the X contributed to Johns Hopkins’ 6-0 run. And he remained on the sideline to watch the Blue Jays charge the field in celebration of clinching the top seed in the conference tournament.

“The nice part about tonight was we were able to get a big lead,” Pietramala said. “And keep it.”