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PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers field hockey earned its first win of the season in convincing fashion on Saturday afternoon, downing VCU 5-.0. The Scarlet Knights were led by two goals apiece from Devon Freshnock and Linde van Schaik, as well as a tally from Rachel Yaney.

"I thought this was a big win today," head coach Meredith Civico said. "Especially rebounding after yesterday's tough loss, the focus coming into today was on making those adjustments and continuing our process. I thought the team did a really good job making those adjustments, especially in the second half. We had some really quality goals today and that was really good to see."

Rutgers took the lead late in the first half. Rachel Yaney scored the first goal of the day, with the assist going to Jade Dixon.

In the second half, the Scarlet Knights took control of the game, outscoring the Rams 4-0 in the frame. In the opening ten minutes of the half, RU scored twice just three minutes apart to surge its lead. Freshnock scored her first of the day by blasting home a shot after a penalty corner, with freshman Katie Larmour inserting and van Schaik setting up the shot. van Schaik scored shortly after, putting home a rebound of a shot from freshman Nikki Santore.

The Scarlet Knights later scored twice in a 90 second span, pushing their lead to the 5-0 final mark. Freshnock again scored from the top off a well-executed corner play, with senior Sarah Regn inserting and Elyse Broderick pushing the ball to Freshnock. van Schaik then followed with a rocket from the goalkeeper's right, tallying the game's final goal.

Rutgers outshot VCU 24-8 on the day and held a 14-3 advantage in penalty corners. Three RU goalkeepers combined on the shutout, with Shevaun Hayes playing the first half, freshman Amanda Lamb making three saves in the second frame, and Katie Beilin playing the final 5:43.

The Scarlet Knights will return to the road for their next two contests. They return to action Friday at No. 5 Virginia.

Postgame Notes

van Schaik had her first career multi-goal game and set a career-high in points (five) and shots (7).
Freshnock had her first two-goal game, tying her career-high with four points.
The assists for freshmen Katie Larmour and Nikki Santore were their first collegiate points.
Dixon's assist was the first for the junior since Oct. 5, 2014.
Katie Beilin and sophomore Nikki Profita made their season debuts.
Rutgers now leads the all-time series with VCU 4-1.
The game was designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Day, with the team honoring almnus Jennifer Noon as the honorary captain.

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