PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 3 Rutgers field hockey celebrated its seniors on Friday in the first game of a two-part Senior Weekend. After the pregame ceremony, RU went to work and defeated Michigan State, 3-0.

With the victory, RU improved to 14-3 overall and finished Big Ten Conference play with a 6-2 record. The six Big Ten wins marked the most ever league wins since joining the conference in 2014-15. The 14 wins on the season marked the most in a season under head coach Meredith Civico, who is in her 10^th season as RU head coach, and tied for the second most ever in a single season in program history.

Prior to the game, RU recognized a class of five "Super Seniors" who returned to RU for an additional year of eligibility to make one last impact on the program: Gianna Mancini, Kassidy Shetler, Kerrie Burns, Gianna Glatz and Katie Larmour.

Follow the senior ceremonies, it was a sophomore that starred for RU. Bridy Molyneaux scored all three goals in the game, Rutgers' first hat trick since 2017.

Rutgers outshot MSU 14-6 on the day, and led 5-2 in corners. Guillermina Causarano and Katie Larmour each recorded assists on the day. Gianna Glatz and Sophia Howard split time in the cage to record the shutout, RU's seventh shutout of the season. Howard entered in the fourth quarter and recorded a career-best four saves as Michigan State pressed for a goal.

Molyneaux first put RU in front just nine minutes into the contest. Iris Langejans carried the ball down the right side, and sent a pass across the circle. Guillermina Causarano deflected it to the back post, where Molyneaux finished it.

That 1-0 margin would hold up into halftime. Then in the third quarter, Molyneaux scored two goals just 46 seconds apart. The first of the two she took a pass from Katie Larmour and blasted a high hard shot for the marker. Then off the restart, she banged in a rebound for a 3-0 advantage that held up for the final margin. The trio of goals gave her four on the season, tying her previous career-high set as a freshman last year.



"It was awesome," Molyneaux exclaimed. "It was really cool to get that opportunity and to score some goals and help my team. Now we're looking for a win on Sunday to end the regular season strong and keep it rolling heading toward the Big Ten Tournament."

Next up this weekend is Senior Day, part two. Rutgers will host Lafayette at 2 p.m. on Sunday, and prior to that game will recognize a class of six seniors: Noelle Bessette, Olivia Drea, Tayla Parkes, Milena Redlingshoefer, Abby Regn and Liz Romano.

Following the Lafayette contest is the Big Ten Tournament, which will be held starting Thursday in Piscataway. The full bracket for that event will be determined following the conclusion of the conference slate on Sunday afternoon. The victory guaranteed that RU will be either the No. 2 or No. 3 seed for the Big Ten Tournament. If Penn State defeats Michigan in a Friday night contest, RU will be the No. 2 seed.

"Senior Day is always a very emotional game," head coach Meredith Civico explained. "We were able to find a way to execute and get it done. Bridy coming in and scoring three goals was huge, I'm really happy for her. It was just a really great team win, everyone contributing and playing hard for each other."