STONY BROOK, N.Y. – No. 11 Rutgers women's lacrosse's historic season ended after an 11-7 loss to No. 7 Stony Brook on Sunday at LaValle Stadium. Tied 7-7 in the third quarter, the Seawolves outscored the Scarlet Knights, 4-0, in the final 27 minutes of the game to advance to the Elite Eight against No. 1 North Carolina
 
The loss ended the best season for RU in program history. Rutgers registered a program-best 16 victories, tied a program record for ranked victories in a season with six, advanced to the Big Ten Tournament Final and produced its second consecutive NCAA Tournament opening-round victory on Friday night when it defeated No. 23 Saint Joseph's.
 
Graduate student Taralyn Naslonski produced a team-high five points on three assists and two goals to finish with 90 points on the season and a program-record 266 for her career. Senior Marin Hartshorn tallied three points on two goals and an assist, while junior Cassidy Spilis netted two goals. Junior Meghan Ball collected nine draw controls, three caused turnovers and three ground balls. Sophomore Sophia Cardello saved seven goals on 27 shots.
 
"One loss does not define your season," said Big Ten Coach of the Year Melissa Lehman. "I think it's important to put it all in perspective and as the head coach of this program, I could not be prouder. We made an impact on the history book in so many ways and this team believed they could achieve so much."
 
Stony Brook jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, as back-to-back goals from Kyla Zapolski forced Rutgers to call a timeout with 11:52 left in the first quarter. The Scarlet Knights settled down and responded with a 4-0 scoring run to close the quarter. Four different student-athletes netted goals during the stretch, with a pass from Hartshorn to junior Ashley Campo tying the game at 3-3 with 6:42 to go before the first break. Naslonski followed with a highlight spin and finish as RU entered the second quarter with a 4-3 lead.
 
The Seawolves held RU to just one goal in the second quarter – a goal from Hartshorn with 1:30 left – and scored four times to take a 7-5 lead into halftime.
 
Rutgers fought out of the locker room with back-to-back goals from Naslonski and Spilis. Spilis' second goal of the afternoon tied the game at 7-7 with 12 minutes to play in the third quarter. SBU added a goal a minute late, as both defenses held strong for a 8-7 score at the end of the third in favor of the host.
 
Stony Brook closed out the win with three consecutive goals in the fourth quarter and held Rutgers scoreless in the final 15 minutes of play.
 
The Season in Perspective

• Second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
• Second consecutive NCAA Tournament victory.
• 16 wins – a program record.
• Six wins over ranked foes – tying a program record.
• Big Ten Tournament finalists.
• Win over No. 4 Northwestern – its first win over the Wildcats in program history.
• Four USA Lacrosse Magazine All-Americans
• Four IWLCA All-Region picks
• Five All-Big Ten selections
• Big Ten Coach of the Year (Melissa Lehman)
• Big Ten Midfielder of the Year (Cassidy Spilis)