BALTIMORE – For the past three seasons, the scene had been the same.

The Terrapin men’s lacrosse team would walk off the field sullen and defeated, while Johns Hopkins celebrated victory just yards away.

But at Saturday’s second annual Day of Rivals — in what some have dubbed lacrosse’s greatest rivalry — it was the No. 4 Terps who raised their sticks triumphantly as they stormed onto the field at M&T Bank Stadium in front of 20,911 spectators, enveloping goalkeeper Brian Phipps.

For Phipps, it was a moment of validation in a productive career that, before Saturday’s 10-9 win, had lacked a win against the No. 16 Blue Jays. As he reflected on the game’s personal significance, Phipps beamed.

“Looking back on it, it feels really good to beat Hopkins,” Phipps said. “It’s my first time, but growing up as a Maryland fan, you always root against Hopkins, and it feels really good to win.”

After the game, players could be heard, in Phipps’ words, “hooting and hollering” from all over the stadium. In a series historically dominated by Johns Hopkins (5-6) — the Blue Jays lead the all-time series 65-40-1 — the moment was one to be savored.

“It’s a great rivalry. It’s two teams that strive for championship-caliber lacrosse,” Johns Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala said. “When you play against a team that’s local, sure, it’s a rivalry. But rivalries really become big when there are close games and when you’re playing for something meaningful.”

Phipps clearly remembers the pain that comes with losing to the Blue Jays. In his freshman season, Johns Hopkins rode a three-game losing streak into College Park trying to turn its season around.

A tight game went into overtime with the score tied at seven. In the extra period, four-time All-America midfielder Paul Rabil beat his defender off an isolation dodge from the midfield and fired a shot past Phipps. In celebration, Rabil took his helmet off as ecstatic teammates tackled him to the Byrd Stadium grass.

This time around, Phipps, who recorded eight saves, made sure he left with the win.

“It’s never fun to lose, especially to Hopkins in overtime like that. Right now, I mean, it feels really, really good right now,” he said. “We work hard, and I think we deserve this right now. It’s fun to win so hopefully we keep it going.”

The Terps (8-2) had last beat Johns Hopkins in 2006, and two of the last three losses came by one-goal margins. But in the 106th meeting between the two storied squads, Johns Hopkins came up short, with defender Sam DeVore unable to put a shot on goal in the final seconds.

“The last couple years have been disappointing — you can’t say anything else if we lose,” long pole Brian Farrell said. “That close one-goal game last year [a 10-9 loss], and then sophomore year we just got blown out [a 15-4 loss]. So getting this one under our belt feels unbelievable.”

For coach Dave Cottle, the win marks only the second time during his nine-year tenure in which he has bested his in-state rival. He is in his final year under contract, and many have criticized his lack of success against Johns Hopkins. However, when a reporter asked Cottle whether Saturday’s victory had lifted “a monkey off [his] back,” he replied simply: “Nah.”

“I’m more happy for our seniors than I am for me, I can tell you that,” Cottle said. “We kept fighting, and that’s what I’m the proudest about. It’s very easy to be a coach of a group of kids that work this hard.”

engelke@umdbk.com