Box Score

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Five players scored multiple goals to help Rutgers women's lacrosse defeat Ohio State, 15-5, on Friday night at High Point Solutions Stadium. The win is the Scarlet Knights first in Big Ten Conference play, as RU has now won four of its past five games.

"It was a great performance by us," said head coach Laura Brand-Sias. "I thought in the first half we did a lot of nice things, but we didn't land as many shots as we'd like. In the second half, we shot 10-for-16, which was a lot better. Our opportunities were there throughout the game, we just did a better job capitalizing on them in the second half."

Senior Kristina Dunphey and freshman Samantha Budd each recorded a hat trick in the victory, with Budd's the first of her career. Three other Scarlet Knights -- Paige Paratore, Macy Scott and Amanda Turturro -- had two goals apiece as Rutgers (6-4, 1-1 Big Ten) outshot the Buckeyes, 36-21.

Junior Bianca Dente recorded nine saves in the win, the second straight game she has collected eight or more stops between the pipes. The Scarlet Knights forced 17 OSU turnovers and allowed just five goals for the second time in their last three games.

Ohio State (6-6, 0-2 Big Ten) scored the first goal of the contest before Rutgers responded with five straight scores. Turturro capped the run with back-to-back conversions, including one off an assist from sophomore Abbey Brooks to make it 5-1 at the 11:04 mark. The Buckeyes added back-to-back goals of their own for a 5-3 score at halftime.

It was all RU in the second stanza, as it outscored OSU 10-2 in the final 30 minutes. Budd quickly contributed her second goal of the contest on an unassisted strike three minutes into the half, part of a 3-1 scoring run out of the locker room for the Scarlet Knights. Her goal gave Rutgers an 8-4 advantage with 22:32 left to play.

Molly Wood scored Ohio State's final goal of the night to make it 8-5, but RU ended the contest with seven-straight scores to put the game out of reach. Budd's third goal of the evening made it 12-5, while Dunphey, Scott and junior Sydney Quinn all scored down the stretch to help RU secure the win.

Rutgers continues its four-game home stretch when it hosts Niagara next Tuesday at High Point Solutions Stadium. Opening draw is slated for 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES
• Tonight's victory over Ohio State was the third straight for Rutgers against the Buckeyes. The Scarlet Knights defeated OSU twice last season, including an 11-10 overtime win in the first round of the 2016 Big Ten Tournament.
• RU's 15 goals tonight were the most against a conference opponent since April 30, 2016, when it dropped 16 against Michigan in Piscataway.
• Rutgers forced more turnovers (17) then it had (10) for the first time this season.
• This was Budd's first-career hat trick and the most she has scored in a single game. Budd has now produced multiple goals in three games this season, the most for a rookie this year.
• Kopyta has scored in all but one game this season. Rutgers is 6-3 when she finds the back of the net.
• Dunphey has scored in each of her past four games for a total of 10.

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