UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Rutgers women's lacrosse (0-1) dropped its season opener to No. 21 Penn State (1-0), 20-11, on Sunday in University Park, Pennsylvania. With the Scarlet Knights down just two goals at halftime, the Nittany Lions used a 10-3 scoring run in the final 30 minutes for the win.
 
Sophomore Cassidy Spilis produced a game-high four goals, including three in the second half, to go along with an assist for a team-high five points. Junior captain Marin Hartshorn added two goals and an assist, while sophomore Ashley Campo and rookie Mikayla Dever collected two points apiece on a goal and an assist.
 
The Scarlet Knights caused 10 turnovers – led by four from Spilis and two from senior captain Julia Lytle – and held a 15-12 advantage in ground balls. Sophomore Alonna Gliksman and freshman Sophia Cardello split time in cage and combined for 11 saves.
 
First Half
Rutgers registered the first goal of the game, as Hartshorn found Lytle for a quick 1-0 lead during the first two minutes. Penn State responded with a 3-0 scoring run, but a goal from Campo made it 3-2 with 20 minutes to play in the half.
 
The Nittany Lions would go up by as much as four before Hartshorn stepped up with back-to-back scores. The captain drilled a free-position attempt with 13 minutes left in the period two make it 7-5. After a small PSU rally, the Scarlet Knights closed with a 2-0 scoring run off goals from Dever and senior captain Hannah Hollingsworth to make it 10-8 Penn State at halftime.
 
Second Half
Penn State scored the first three goals out of the locker room before Spilis stopped the run with a free-position score to make it 13-9 with 26 minutes left to play. Spilis followed with her third goal of the afternoon – a shot to the top right of the cage – to cut the lead to three with 24 minutes to go, but Penn State closed out the game with a 7-1 scoring run.
 
Up Next
Rutgers faces Johns Hopkins on Sunday, Feb. 21 in Baltimore.