PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 14 Rutgers field hockey continues Big Ten Conference play this week with another road trip. The Scarlet Knights, holding a 7-5 overall record and 2-1 league mark, will play their third straight conference road game with a trip to Indiana for a game at noon on Friday.
This game marks the first single-play weekend of the year for the Scarlet Knights, who will return home after the one game. The contest will be live streamed on B1G+.
About Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights are ranked No. 13 in the RPI this week and No. 14 in the NFHCA Coaches Poll, both season bests. The Scarlet Knights have a top-10 strength of schedule and have played five top-20 RPI teams.
RU spent last weekend on the road in the state of Michigan. RU first travelled to Michigan State, taking down the Spartans, 5-0.
Sophie Kuiper led RU with two goals for her first career multi-goal game to lead the offense. The victory was RU's 10
th straight win over Michigan State. In wins this season, RU is outscoring opponents 31-6 in notching their third shutout of the season.
The trip continued in Ann Arbor against No. 12 Michigan. Despite taking a 1-0 lead on an
Olivia de Zwaan goal, the Wolverines came back with two goals in the final 15 minutes to take the win.
Goalkeeper
Emily Nicholls is third in the nation with a save percentage of 83.1%. Her 74 saves lead the Big Ten. She is the only goalkeeper in Division I to have 70 or more saves while holding a winning record.
RU has received balanced contributions across the scoresheet this season. 11 players have scored the 34 Scarlet Knight goals this season. Five players have been four and six goals.
Olivia Fraticelli and
Sophie Kuiper share the team lead with six goals,
Olivia de Zwaan has five, and
Puck Winter and
Martha Goodridge each have four.
Following the IU game, RU will return home for the next three contests. The Scarlet Knights see No. 1 Northwestern, No. 10 Iowa and No. 12 Maryland come to town next in a season-defining series.
About Indiana
Indiana enters the game at 5-5 overall and the Hoosiers are 0-2 in conference play. IU has played seven of its 10 games at home, with a 4-3 record at home. The Hoosiers defeated UC Davis in their last game, which followed a three game losing streak against No. 11 Iowa (twice) and No. 1 Northwestern. All five of IU's losses came against teams that were either ranked at the team or in this week's poll (then-No. 8 Boston College and this weeks' No. 19 Louisville). Their wins are over Maine, Drexel, Lock Haven, Saint Francis and UC Davis. They only have one win over a top-55 RPI team per this week's rankings (No. 32 Drexel).
The Hoosiers, number 34 in the RPI, are in the top-ten in the nation in four offensive categories (goals, assists, points, scoring average). 22 of the team's 37 goals (60%) have come in three games (12 – Lock Haven, 5 – UC Davis, 5 – Saint Francis).
Sophomore Mijntje Hagen was named the Co-Offensive Player of the Week in the Big Ten last week after scoring a hat trick against UC Davis, IU's first Offensive Player of the Week since 2017. Hagen leads the team with 18 points (five goals, eight assists). She shares the team-high in goals (five) with sophomore Charlotte Glasper and freshman Celia Arroyo Cabezudo. Ines Garcia Prado, a First Team All-Big Ten and First Team All-Region selection last year, has four goals and seven assists.
Two different goalkeepers have started at least four games for IU. Kai Killian, who started the last two games and first two games, has a 2.93 goals-against-average and .500 save percentage. Sadie Canelli has six starts with a 1.93 goals-against-average and 5.71 save percentage. Canelli, who made 15 starts as a freshman last season,
About the Series
Rutgers leads the all-time series against the Hoosiers, 11-4. The Scarlet Knights have won seven of the past nine meetings with IU, with the Hoosiers winning their two home games in 2022 and 2024. RU's last victory in Bloomington came in 2018.
With a Win
- First win in Bloomington since 2018
- A 3-1 start to Big Ten play
- 12-4 all-time record against IU
Milestone Tracker: Puck Winter, Defensive Saves
Puck Winter is on the top-10 all time in NCAA history in defensive saves. The reigning two-time NCAA stat leader in the statistic, Winter is Rutgers all-time leader, second in the Big Ten and 7
th in NCAA history, currently holding the NCAA lead this season.
- Michelle Cargen, Holy Cross (1987-90): 58
- Susan Crafts, Virginia (1982-85): 38
- Amy Gielle, William & Mary (1993-96): 34
- Beth Senic, Ohio State (1985-88): 31
- Angie King, Quinnipiac (2013-16): 31
- Chantal Lacroix, Holy Cross (1990-93): 30
T-7. Puck Winter, Rutgers: 29
T-7. Wendy Barker, Holy Cross (1985-88): 29
T-7. Monica McCorry, Bucknell (1998-01): 29
In-Season Accolades
Puck Winter: Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 29) | NFHCA National Defensive Player of the Week
- Two defensive saves vs. Ohio State, two goals vs. Columbia
Martha Goodridge: Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Sept. 29)
- Game-winning goal in OT vs. Ohio State, goal and assist vs. Columbia
Puck Winter: Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 15)
- Had defensive save vs. Princeton, game-winning goal against No. 16 UConn
Emily Nicholls: Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Sept. 15)
- Six saves at No. 16 UConn, 11 saves against No. 11 Princeton
Emily Nicholls: Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 2)
- Allowed zero goals, made 11 saves in wins over Wagner and Vermont
Preseason Accolades
Rutgers field hockey had three players named to the preseason Big Ten Players to Watch List.
Anna Cogdell,
Paulina Niklaus and
Puck Winter were all recognized by the league office. The trio all earned all-conference recognition to close out last season as well.
Additionally, six student athletes from Rutgers were recognized by USA Field Hockey in the selections for the 2025 Senior Nexus Championship.
Olivia Fraticelli,
Dani Gindville,
Maddie Kidd and
Emily Nicholls were selected to compete, while
Natalie Arnold and
Maddie Olshemski were named as alternates.
Nicholls and Fraticelli were selected as well by USA Field Hockey for the U-21 Junior Women's National Team Selection Camp.
Recent History
Rutgers finished last season at 8-9 overall. The team was No. 14 in the RPI, the highest RPI for a team that did not make the NCAA Tournament. RU played eight of its 17 games against NCAA Tournament teams and 10 games against teams in the top-20 of the RPI, including six games against top-10 RPI teams. Seven of the nine losses were to NCAA Tournament teams.
Entering this season, RU has won 55 of their past 86 games over the past four seasons. During the year, RU defeated four ranked teams: No. 3 Ohio State, No. 7 Iowa, No. 7 Ohio State, and No. 17 Penn State. The team was ranked in the top-20 for numerous weeks in both the NFHCA Coaches Poll and the RPI rankings.
Since 2018, field hockey is 88-51, a winning percentage of 63%, with over half of those wins coming against ranked teams. Rutgers has 18 ranked wins in the past six seasons and 43 ranked wins since 2018, which includes 16 top-10 wins since 2021. In 2018, RU went to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 32 years, then made two additional NCAA Tournaments over the next five years. The team set the program record for wins in 2021 (19) and in 2023 had the second most wins in program history (16). RU was the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament in 2021 after winning the Big Ten Tournament on home turf.
International Knights
Rutgers field hockey alumn Katie Larmour was recently honored with her first ever selection to the senior national team for her country. Larmour earned six caps with Team Ireland this summer, playing against Team USA in an exhibition match in Charlotte, then competing for Team Ireland in early August in the EuroHockey Championships.
Alumn Iris Langejans also recently begun a professional career back home in the Netherlands, signing with HDM Dames 1 to play at the highest level of Dutch professional field hockey.
Civico Emphasizes Team Culture
Since her first day as head coach, the foundation of Rutgers Field Hockey has been the culture, about intentionally creating a family atmosphere that allows student-athletes to thrive as students, as athletes and as people. By attracting and recruiting the very best players and staff over her fourteen years as head coach, and giving them an environment in which they flourish,
Meredith Civico has built the program into one of the top in the Big Ten – and the nation. The core tenant for the program has been the establishment of a strong, positive culture where progression is expected, differences are celebrated and family is everything. The feeling of togetherness in the locker room and when competing is what makes this team special and unique.
"Culture is something you have to work at every single day; it doesn't just happen," Civico explained. "We have this acronym: RUTGERS that stands for our core values: Relentless, United, Tenacious, Gritty, Excellence, Respect, Strength. These aren't just words on a wall – they're how we live. We're not just coaching a sport; we're coaching people. Sports are played by people, and people are the most important."
