PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Opening the season as the hosts of the 'Battle on the Banks' Tournament, No. 8 Rutgers field hockey had a hard-fought effort, but fell to No. 18 Duke 2-1, following penalty strokes at the conclusion of eighty minutes of field hockey.
Rachel Houston scored the lone goal of the contest for RU, while goalkeeper
Sophia Howard had a career-best 10 saves.
After the game was delayed 45 minutes by lighting at the outset, a new-look Scarlet Knight squad battled through a lengthy contest on a hot day in front of 538 spectators. The game was tied for the first 22 minutes before the two on-field goals of the day came in just a 40-second span of game action.
Duke struck first, after their initial shot was blocked, Brynn Crouse followed up with the tally for a 1-0 lead. But the Blue Devils would hold that lead for under a minute.
After the following restart, RU pushed forward. The initial play on goal was cleared aside, but
Rachel Houston was trailing the play and alerted gathered the ball and fired it home while the Duke goalkeeper was out of position for the equalizer.
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The teams would press each other for sixty more minutes of action, including two 10-minute periods of 7-on-7 overtime action. Following 80 minutes of the contest, Duke had a 19-14 advantage in shots (11-7 in shots on goal) and a 9-6 marker in corners.
Action shifted to penalty strokes, which was tied at 2-2 after three attempts aside. However, Duke came through with two more markers to take the win.
Postgame Notes
Next Up
The 'Battle on the Banks Tournament' continues Saturday with a neutral site contest at 2 p.m. between Duke and No. 16 St. Joseph's. RU will then play the Hawks on Sunday at 4 p.m. to finish off the weekend. Â
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Gallery: (8-26-2022) Field Hockey Season Opener
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