It was clear from the start of the No. 2 Maryland men’s lacrosse team’s 12-10 win over then-No. 8 Notre Dame that the style of play wouldn’t resemble the teams’ previous two meetings.

In each of their matchups in 2016 and 2017, the Fighting Irish held the Terps to four goals.

But Saturday’s contest in College Park was different. The Terps, who have made a habit of scoring early this season, converted twice in the opening three minutes. They reached four goals by the end of the first quarter and eight by halftime.

Midfielder Connor Kelly became Maryland’s first player since 1979 to record 10 points, and five other players scored for the undefeated Terps.

“We have a group of guys who are unselfish and we have a number of guys who have good skill sets,” John Tillman said. “They’re willing to set picks and cut and do some thankless things.”

[Read more: Connor Kelly’s historic day helps Maryland lacrosse defeat Notre Dame, 12-10]

Kelly had a historic day against a Fighting Irish unit that came into College Park allowing just seven goals per game. He finished with three scores and seven assists, using his emerging role as a distributor to keep Notre Dame under pressure.

After the Fighting Irish built momentum in the second quarter with back-to-back strikes to cut their deficit to one, Kelly fed the ball to midfielder Adam DiMillo, who found the back of the net. Maryland ended the half with two unanswered goals, expanding its edge to 8-5.

“You really get the opportunity to kind of work off guys that are drawing a lot of attention,” DiMillo said. “[It’s about] being able to capitalize on some plays that sometimes you won’t get if you don’t have guys like that.”

[Read more: A robust alumni network helps Maryland men’s lacrosse players pursue their dreams]

Kelly credited the scout team, which mimicked the Fighting Irish defense, for the offense’s success. Tillman said everyone on the attack knows their place on the team, helping Maryland to its best output against Notre Dame in recent memory.

“When you’ve got a guy like Connor and other people kind of have to think and look at him — Jared is the same way — it opens things up for other guys,” Tillman said. “Our guys have a good sense of their role and play to their roles.”