Game Notes

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -Rutgers enters this weekend looking for its first conference win, and will attempt to do so in a nationally televised matchup against Ohio State on Friday. The game in Columbus will be televised on Big Ten Network at 3:30 p.m. Dean Linke will do play-by-play, while Kara Lentz will be the color analyst. The Scarlet Knights will then travel to Oxford, Ohio, for a Sunday matchup against Miami at noon.

Last weekend, RU lost a back-and-forth battle at Michigan State in double overtime, falling 5-4. Rachel Yaney scored two goals, and the Scarlet Knights held leads at 3-2 and 4-3. However, a hat trick by MSU's Sophie Macadre and a goal in the final ten seconds of OT2 was Rutgers' undoing. The team had a season-high 14 penalty corners in the game.

The squad then picked up a 2-1 victory on Sunday against Ohio University to close the weekend. Yaney scored her third goal of the weekend, and Jade Dixon also tallied in the victory.

Rutgers is led offensively by Nicole Imbriaco. The senior is having a breakout season, leading the team with 11 goals and 25 points. She has already set new career-highs in goals, assists (three) and points this year. She has scored in eight different games and has her first three two-goal games of her career. She is second in the conference in both goals per game (1.00) and points per game (2.27).

With three goals last weekend, Rachel Yaney now has a career-high six goals on the season. She has six goals and two assist for 14 points this season. Team captain Alyssa Bull has four goals and a team-high five assists for 13 points, while Katie Champion has four goals and four assists for 12 points. Eight players for Rutgers have scored multiple goals this season. Fourteen total players have recorded at least one point on the year.

Shevaun Hayes has started every game in goal this season. She has tied her career-high twice in the last four games with 13 saves against both Northwestern and Michigan State. On the year, she has a 3.11 goals-against-average and a .667 save percentage, with two shutouts.

Ohio State enters the game with a record of 6-4, and a 2-1 mark in conference. The Buckeyes lost their last game last weekend, 5-2 to No. 8 Maryland. The trio of Maddy Humphrey, Peanut Johnson and Emma Royce pace the Buckeyes offensively. Humphrey leads the team with seven goals and 17 points, Johnson has six goals and 15 points, and Royce has a team-high four assists to go with 10 points. In goal, Liz Tamburro has a 2.11 goals-against-average and .747 save percentage.

RU has faced Ohio State five times, and Ohio State leads the series 3-2. Last season, the Scarlet Knights defeated Ohio State 3-2, earning the program's first Big Ten victory. Rutgers got goals from Sofia Walia, Alyssa Bull, and Katie Champion in the 2014 game in Piscataway, N.J.

Miami (Ohio) enters the weekend with a 7-6 overall record, and a 2-0 MAC mark. Bea Dechant leads the squad with six goals and 16 points, followed by Mariona Heras (four goals, 14 points) and Paula Portugal (six goals, 12 points). Alysa Xavier is having a strong season in net, with a 1.37 goals-against-average, .783 save percentage and five shutouts.

Rutgers has played Miami (Ohio) twice in its history, splitting the two contests. The RedHawks won 3-0 in the last matchup in 2011, with the Scarlet Knights winning the first game, a 1-0 victory in 1984.