Box Score

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Six different players combined for nine goals Saturday at No. 9/9 Penn State, but a strong opening half from the Nittany Lions proved too much for Rutgers women's lacrosse to overcome in a 16-9 defeat to open Big Ten Conference play. Rutgers closed the game on a 6-1 run to cut into the PSU lead, but ran out of time down the stretch at Penn State Lacrosse Field.

Senior attacker Kim Kolodny (Farmingdale, N.Y.) led Rutgers with three goals and two assists, her second five-point game of the season. Also registering multi-point days were senior attacker Halley Barnes (Garnet Valley, Pa.) with a goal and an assist, junior Amanda Turturro (Farmingdale, N.Y.) with a goal and an assist, sophomore Paige Paratore (West Deptford, N.J.) with a goal and assist, and rookie Abbey Brooks (Moorestown, N.J.) with two goals and a helper.

Juniors Kristina Dunphey (Hillsborough, N.J.) scored one goal Saturday.

RU (3-8, 0-1) made a push with 17:26 left on the game clock, spearheaded by Kolodny. Over the next 17:26 minutes of action, the Scarlet Knights rattled off five more goals while holding Penn State to one. Goals from Paratore, Barnes, and Kolodny were sandwiched between the start of the run before Brooks scored twice in 22 seconds late to end the game at 16-9.

Across the board, the Scarlet Knights rallied in the second half. RU outshot Penn State (9-2, 1-0), 14-10, and out-gained the Nittany Lions on the draw (7-6), and in ground balls (7-4).

Penn State opened the game on an 8-0 scoring run in the first 15 minutes of competition. Madison Cyr and Steph Lazo scored twice during the run. Lazo finished as one of three Nittany Lions with hat tricks and added four assists in the win.

Rutgers plays its final nonconference game of the season on Tuesday, April 5 at Lehigh. Opening draw is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Game Notes

• Freshman Regina Sharp (Suffern, N.Y.) and Paratore led Rutgers with three caused turnovers apiece. Both set new career highs.
• Barnes is now four points away from 100 for her RU career (74g, 22a).
• Kolodny's hat trick and two assists give her 94 points in her Rutgers career (74g, 20a), making her six shy of the century mark.

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