Prior to his final game as a Maryland Terrapin, senior Eddie Hacopian made it clear that his goal for today was to hit his 10th home run of the year.

The perfect opportunity for the captain presented itself in the bottom of the seventh inning. Down by two with two runners on base, the captain crushed a 2-1 pitch, which sailed over the right-center wall. The three-run shot put Maryland ahead by two, sending both the Maryland faithful in attendance and the Dirty Terps dugout into a frenzy.

In a back-and-forth affair consisting of seven lead changes between the Terps and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Hacopian’s homer played a crucial role in Maryland’s 13-11 win in its final game of the season. 

“That’s a home run that’ll stick with him for the rest of his life,” head coach Matt Swope said. “It’s been a rough year for him. I know it’s killing him inside to be the captain and to be the leader of this team and not end up the way he wanted it to. So [we were] just happy for positive vibes.”

But the game was far from over. As it has all weekend, Rutgers immediately responded in the next frame.

This time, it was the Scarlet Knights’ home run leader, Ty Doucette, who hit a two-run homer to even the game at nine apiece. Two batters later, with a runner on second, sophomore Peyton Bonds hit a double that was inches away from leaving the ballpark — but it was good enough to drive in another Scarlet Knight run.

Facing adversity, the Dirty Terps refused to quit.

They started the bottom of the eighth with two singles and a walk to load the bases for the younger Hacopian, Chris. The sophomore barely had the opportunity to settle in the box before he was pelted on the upper back, bringing in the lead runner and tying the game at 10 each.

Eddie Hacopian once again found himself in a position to do damage. However, the senior never had a chance to swing his bat either, drawing a four-pitch walk and bringing in the go-ahead run in rather anticlimactic fashion.

Still with no outs, it seemed like Rutgers was on the verge of a meltdown. However, reliever Jordan Falco managed to find the zone, striking out the next two Maryland batters.

With another bases loaded opportunity slipping away from the Terps, the senior Jacob Orr was next at-bat. Falco lost the zone just as quickly as he found it, as Orr drew a walk of his own, bringing in a very welcomed insurance run.

One pitching change later, and it was Paul Jones II’s turn to bat with the bases loaded. Even with a new pitcher in Hunter Hoxie, Jones drew the inning’s fourth walk, extending Maryland’s lead to three without a single hit while the bases were loaded.

That brought out sophomore Andrew Koshy to try to close the game for Maryland. As to be expected, the Scarlet Knights weren’t done either. A leadoff solo shot from Yomar Carerras put Rutgers back within striking distance. 

But after fighting back time after time, that was all that Rutgers had left in the tank. Koshy retired the next three batters, allowing Maryland to escape with one final win on the year.

“For the seniors, it’s good to have them go out with a win,” Swope said. “It’s nice to see them have some success and some good memories on their way out.”

Wearing the prestigious number three jersey, Eddie Hacopian was one of 10 Terps celebrated during the pre-game Senior Day ceremony, but he was far from the only one to make an impact.

Down 4-1 in the bottom of the second inning, it seemed like the season finale was heading in the same direction as the previous two games. But Elijah Lambros had different ideas. For his final time as a Terp, Lambros launched his own three-run shot, which tied the game at four.

The Lambros homer would put an end to the scoring until the bottom of the sixth inning, when fellow senior Alex Calarco stepped into the batter’s box looking to do damage in his final time as well.

It was a successful mission for Calarco. As he has done so often this season, the senior crushed a solo shot over the left field wall, putting the Terps up by one run.

However, the lead from Calarco’s homer was short-lived. Once again, Rutgers responded the very next frame. This time, it was sophomore outfield Peyton Bonds who played hero for the Scarlet Knights. The nephew of Barry Bonds proved that power runs in the family, as he crushed a three-run shot that gave the Scarlet Knights the lead that preceded the upcoming Hacopian go-ahead homer.

It wasn’t the same story for all the senior Terps who celebrated, though. Omar Melendez struggled mightily in the second inning. The senior starting pitcher allowed four consecutive hits, including a string of three-straight doubles to open his second frame of work, immediately surrendering another early Terp lead.

Then, it went from bad to worse for Melendez. He fired a low pitch that the catcher Calarco couldn’t corral, allowing the runner at third to scamper home for a third Scarlet Knight run. Melendez got the next batter to fly out, giving up a fourth run in the process and prompting Swope to pull the plug on his Senior Day start after an inning and a third.

“Regardless of the situation, whether it’s Senior Day, I will never punt a game,” Swope said on Melendez’s short start. “I’m a competitive coach and going out on a high note is important to me and we’ll always try to win the game.”

It was a game that saw 14 different pitchers take the mound — six for Maryland and a whopping eight different pitchers for Rutgers. With Rutgers having already clinched a spot in the Big Ten tournament and with only seeding to play for, the Scarlet Knights opted for a bullpen day in order to conserve their starting pitcher’s arms ahead of their trip to Omaha.

Meanwhile, the Dirty Terps will be watching from home for a second straight season following a disappointing 27-29 campaign in 2025. Now heading into year three at the helm of the Terps baseball program, Swope’s attention now turns to turning things around for next year.

“Nobody cares more about this place than I do,” Swope said. “I’m not running from anything. I’m doing every possible thing I can for this program.”