PISCATAWAY, N.J. – RV Rutgers women's lacrosse (4-6, 0-4) hosts No. 2 Northwestern (11-1, 3-0) for a primetime Thursday night matchup in Piscataway. First draw from SHI Stadium is set for 7 p.m., with Dean Litke and Rachael DeCecco handling the national broadcast on Big Ten Network.

Thursday night's matchup will be a blackout, with the Scarlet Knights wearing their black uniforms for the first time this season. All fans attending are encouraged to wear black. Admission and parking for all home games are free. Fans planning to park must register their vehicles with the University through this link. Visitors only need to register their vehicle once for the entire season. Parking for 2023 home games is in the Scarlet Lot outside the West entrance of SHI Stadium.

Thursday will be a rematch of the 2022 Big Ten Tournament semifinals, when Rutgers downed then-No. 4 Northwestern, 13-5, to advance to the program's first Big Ten Women's Lacrosse final. The win was the program's biggest in its then-46-year history, as it defeated Northwestern for the first time in 17 chances and delivered its first-ever win over a top-5 ranked opponent.
 

Last Time Out

• RU lost a heartbreaker to RV Johns Hopkins, 12-11, on Saturday in Baltimore in its last time out. With Rutgers leading the majority of the game and up 11-6 to begin the fourth quarter, the Blue Jays rallied with a 6-0 scoring run in the final 15 minutes, including the eventual game-winner from Georgie Gorelick with just under five minutes to play, to earn the Big Ten Conference win at Homewood Field.
• Senior Cassidy Spilis netted four goals, graduate student Marin Hartshorn added four points on two goals and two assists, while senior Janey Galski added her first hat trick of the season in the loss.

What to Know

• The Scarlet Knights' matchup against the No. 2 Wildcats will be the first of three home games scheduled in April against top-six opponents, as No. 6 Stony Brook (4/12) and No. 4 James Madison (4/23) are set to visit Piscataway this month. In total, Rutgers has already faced eight programs that have appeared in this year's IWLCA Poll.
• With 172 career goals, senior midfielder Cassidy Spilis needs just two to pass Heather Jones (1991-94) for the second-most goals in program history. Spilis leads the team with 27 goals this season and is fifth in the Big Ten with 2.70 goals scored per game. Spilis is 16 goals away from passing current volunteer assistant coach Taralyn Naslonski (2018-22) for the most in school history.
• Senior defender Meghan Ball leads the country with 4.00 caused turnovers per game. The two-time IWLCA National Defensive Player of the Week and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week also leads the Big Ten ground balls per game (3.50) and is second in draw controls per game (6.30).
• Ball caused a team-high three turnovers last Saturday against the Blue Jays - the 23rd time in her career she has caused three or more turnovers in a game. Ball has caused three or more turnovers seven times this spring.
• Graduate student Marin Hartshorn has provided a spark on offense for Rutgers over the past month, producing 26 points on 15 goals and 11 assists across RU's past six games.
• Spilis also needs just one ground ball for 100 for her career and two draw controls for 200 for her career. Senior Jenna Byrne needs one point for 100 for her career. Classmate Jessica Beneducci needs six ground balls for 100.

Statistical Leaders

• Meghan Ball
  • CTs-Per-Game: 4.00 (First B1G, First NCAA)
  • GBs-Per-Game: 3.50 (First B1G, Ninth NCAA)
  • DCs-Per-Game: 6.30 (Second B1G, 19th NCAA)
• Cassidy Spilis
  • Goals: 27 (Eighth B1G)
  • Goals-Per-Game: 2.70 (Fifth B1G)
• Marin Hartshorn
  • Assists: 15 (Fifth B1G)
  • Assists-Per-Game: 1.50 (Fourth B1G)
• Jenna Byrne
  • Assists: 13 (Sixth B1G)
  • Assists-Per-Game: 1.40 (Fifth B1G)
• Sophia Cardello
  • Saves-Per-Game: 9.20 (First B1G, 22nd NCAA)
  • Save Percentage: .479 (Fourth B1G, 24th NCAA)
  • Saves: 92 (Third B1G, 34th NCAA)
  • GAA: 10.46 (Fifth B1G, 33rd NCAA)

Scouting Northwestern and Series History

• The Wildcats enter Thursday with a 10-game winning streak and No. 2 ranking in the latest IWLCA Coaches Poll. A Final Four participant a year ago, Northwestern downed then-No. 19 Penn State, 19-9, last Thursday in its last time out and own a perfect 3-0 mark in Big Ten Conference action.
• Izzy Scane leads the country with 60 goals this season, while Erin Coykendell is seventh in the nation with 30 helpers. The duo has helped NU own the top-rated offense in the country, as the Wildcats average more than 18 goals per game.
• Northwestern leads the all-time series with Rutgers, 16-1.

Up Next

• Rutgers hosts No. 6 Stony Brook on Wednesday, April 12 at SHI Stadium. The game is set for a 7:30 p.m. ET start on Big Ten Network.