PISCATAWAY, N.J.  – Rutgers women's soccer fell to Penn State by a score of 2-1 on Saturday afternoon at Yurcak Field. 

The Scarlet Knights (3-4-4, 1-4-1) scored the equalizer early in the second half, but the Nittany Lions (7-4-2, 3-2-1) scored the winner with 10 minutes remaining to earn the victory.  

Penn State controlled the tempo from opening kick, outshooting RU by a margin of 11-3 in the first half. While goalkeeper Olivia Bodmer made four saves in the first half, PSU was able to score in the 32nd minute to take a 1-0 advantage heading into halftime. 

Coming out of the locker room, Rutgers fought back, controlling the early moments of the second half. The Scarlet Knights earned the equalizer under two minutes into the half, with true freshman Kennedi Cotter slamming in a cross from Ashley Baran to make it 1-1. It was Cotter's second goal of the season, tying her with Baran for second-most on the team. True freshman Julia Joseph also registered an assist on the goal, the first point of her collegiate career. 

Both teams spent the majority of the second half searching for a winner. RU and PSU both had looks, but it was Penn State who broke through in the 80th minute, slotting home a goal in transition to take the lead and ultimately win the match. 

Bodmer made another eight saves, tying her game against Princeton for the most saves this season. It also brings her to 195 career saves, just five shy of 200. 

Rutgers returns to action next weekend with a road trip to Illinois. The Scarlet Knights will take on Illinois on Thursday at 8 p.m. and Northwestern at 2 p.m. on Sunday. 
 

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