WEST POINT, N.Y. – In the 88^th meeting between Rutgers men's lacrosse and Army, the Scarlet Knights traveled to face a 12^th ranked Black Knights squad. Ultimately, the second most played rivalry in school history went in the favor of No. 12 Army, with a 9-3 final score. RU falls to 2-2 overall, with Army improving to 2-0.

Matthew Paolatto was a standout for RU. He won 12-of-15 faceoffs, while matching up primarily against Army's Will Colletti, who was an All-American last season.

Cardin Stoller made 16 saves for RU. The Scarlet Knights have held their opponents under 10 goals in each of the first four games of the season. That marked the first time doing so for RU in a four-game stretch since 2018.

Rutgers got strong play from its goalkeeper Cardin Stoller early (five first quarter saves) and faceoff man Matthew Paolatto (who won the first seven faceoffs). However, Army scored the first five goals of the game. Rutgers first goal came late in the second quarter, where Colin Kurdyla converted a feed in front from Shane Murphy. After the first half, the home team led 6-1.

In the second half, Army found the first goal off a 6-on-4 man-up opportunity. The Black Knights outscored the visitors 2-0 in the third stanza for an 8-1 lead after three quarters.

Rutgers second goal of the day came from Blake Borges, who snuck in a tally at the 5:40 mark of the fourth quarter. Just 12 seconds later, RU scored again, winning the resulting faceoff and Dante Kulas ripped in a shot for another RU tally. However, the late push was not enough, with the home team finishing off the victory. 

Rutgers is now 1-1 against ranked opponents this season. RU opened the season with a win at then-No. 20 Lehigh.

Rutgers returns home next weekend. The Scarlet Knights will host Loyola on Saturday, February 22 at 12 p.m.