PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers women's lacrosse (3-1) faces No. 4 Yale (4-0) on Saturday in New Haven, Connecticut. First draw from Reese Stadium is slated for 3:30 p.m., with the game streamed on ESPN+.
 
The Scarlet Knights enter the weekend on a three-game winning streak, defeating Le Moyne, 19-2, last Saturday at SHI Stadium in their last time out. This weekend's matchup with the No. 4 Bulldogs begins a stretch of three ranked opponents in RU's next four games, as the program is also set to host No. 16 Stony Brook (March 5) and No. 13 Princeton (March 12) during that span.
 

Opening Draw

Coldiron Excels in Cage for Women's Lacrosse
By Bradly Derechailo
 
Graduate student Lexie Coldiron has always tried to challenge herself.
 
As a starting goalie in the Big Ten Conference with aspirations on attending medical school, no one will question her resolve to succeed.
 
"My philosophy has always just to hit the ground running," Coldiron said. "There's always something ahead that I am focusing on. I've always approached this process with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, and it's worked out for me thus far which I am extremely grateful for."
 
Coldiron enjoyed a standout undergraduate career at Lafayette, where she was a two-time all-conference selection for the Leopards from 2021-24. The Pylesville, Maryland, native, appeared in 49 career games during her time in Easton, where she tallied 484 saves in more than 2,700 minutes between the pipes. Coldiron muscled 25 career games with 10 or more stops, including a career-high 18 saves last season against Columbia.
 
After graduating last May with her bachelor's in biology, Coldiron wanted to use her final year of eligibility while simultaneously pursuing a master's degree. Rutgers women's lacrosse offered the best of both worlds - the chance to compete in one of the premier collegiate lacrosse conferences while earning a graduate degree along the way.
 
After a conversation with head coach Melissa Lehman, Coldiron was sold on the opportunity to pursue her aspirations both on the field and in the classroom with the Scarlet Knights.
 
"I always wanted to play at the Big Ten level, so having that opportunity to do that at Rutgers solidified that dream of mine, and I could not have asked for a better opportunity."


 
The success Coldiron achieved at Lafayette has already been translated into wins in Piscataway. Coldiron has helped RU to a 3-1 record, averaging a .578 save percentage – good for third in the conference and fourth nationally. Coldiron's 37 saves and 9.25 saves-per-game average rank third in the Big Ten, as the netminder has tallied double digit stops in three of her first four starts.
 
Coldiron is quick to point to the rest of her teammates as the reason for her early-season success. Coldiron played club lacrosse with fellow graduate student Lauren Messinese back in Maryland, who she credits for helping her get settled at Rutgers.
 
"A lot of that success comes from my teammates and the culture we have produced this year," Coldiron said. "We're a young team with a number of freshmen competing, and the mix of younger and older players has made us so close to one another this season."
 
Lehman is thrilled to have Coldiron in Piscataway. The sixth-year head coach said Coldiron has been an immediate mentor to her younger teammates and has also helped to fill the void left by standout netminder Sophia Cardello, who graduated last spring fourth all time in saves at Rutgers with 564.
 
"We're so excited to have Lexie a part of our team," Lehman said. "She has already come up big for us, which gives a lot of confidence to the rest of our program. She has a lot of experience, and I think that experience will carry her and this team throughout the season."


 
Rutgers' next challenge is this Saturday at No. 4 Yale (3:30 p.m., ESPN+). The Bulldogs enter the weekend undefeated and represent the first of nine ranked opponents the Scarlet Knights are set to face during the regular season.
 
Saturday symbolizes just what Coldiron signed up for when she joined the program this past June.
 
"Everyone is excited for this opportunity," Coldiron said. "We've talked about this game since right after our win last weekend against Le Moyne. We've been building to prove to ourselves that we're capable of accomplishing a lot of our goals and to show what Rutgers lacrosse means to us, and our game against Yale will be our way to try and prove that."
 
While Coldiron has an entire final season to look forward to, the veteran also has a plan in place for life after lacrosse. Coldiron is set to graduate in May with her master's in biomedical sciences from Rutgers School of Graduate Studies. She is already in the process of applying to medical schools and is interested in one day working in the surgical side of medicine.
 
"I'm currently applying to medical schools and hoping I can get in this round," Coldiron said. "If that doesn't work out initially, I'll be able to take a gap year to help improve my resume. But my focus is definitely getting in during this round. I've done a lot of shadowing hours and have tried to check a lot of those boxes that they are looking for."
 
With plenty of opportunities ahead of her, Coldiron is extremely happy with how things have turned out thus far here at Rutgers.
 
"For my final year, I wanted a program that could fit what I wanted both academically for my master's program as well as athletically," Coldiron said. "After speaking with Melissa and the rest of the coaching staff, that's exactly what I have gotten here. The entire team welcomed me with open arms, and I think that's what has helped me excel in being comfortable and confident."
 

Last Time Out

• Rutgers defeated Le Moyne, 19-2, last Saturday at SHI Stadium. Never trailing against the Dolphins, the Scarlet Knights outshot the visitors, 40-6, scooped up 25 ground balls to Le Moyne's 9 and forced their opponent into 22 turnovers to earn the out-of-conference win in Piscataway.
• RU's 17-goal margin of victory was its largest since February 8, 2019, when it defeated then-LIU Brooklyn, 20-3. Its two goals allowed were its fewest allowed in a win since March 23, 2005, when it let up one in an 18-1 victory against Bucknell.
• RU featured 10 different goal scorers, which included hat tricks from senior Victoria Goldrick and rookie Delainey Sutley. Goldrick finished with a game-high six points on three goals and three assists, while junior Lily Dixon contributed four points on three helpers and a goal.
• Graduate student goalkeeper Lexie Coldiron posted her third win of the season, while junior Katie Buck muscled nine draw controls to help Rutgers to a 14-9 advantage in center circle.

What to Know

• Rutgers is set to face nine ranked opponents in its last 13 games of the regular season. The challenging slate includes No. 3 Northwestern, No. 4 Yale, No. 7 Michigan, No. 9 Maryland, No. 10 Johns Hopkins, No. 13 Princeton, No. 16 Stony Brook, No. 20 Ohio State and No. 22 USC. Army also moved into the Top 25 at No. 25 this week.
• Junior Katie Buck continues to shine on the draw for Rutgers, ranking 10th nationally with 9.25 draw controls per game. Her 37 draw controls lead the Big Ten through the first month of the season.
• Junior Lily Dixon is 25 points away from becoming the 28th player in school history to hit 100 career points. Dixon has posted 14 points on eight assists and eight goals this season.
• Senior Victoria Goldrick tallied her first career hat trick last weekend against Le Moyne. The captain is seventh in the Big Ten this season with 15 points.
• Rookie Delainey Sutley continues to impress in her first collegiate season, scoring a career-high five points in last weekend's win over the Dolphins. Sutley has muscled seven goals this season and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week last Tuesday.

About Yale

• The Bulldogs enter the weekend No. 4 in the latest IWLCA Coaches Poll with an unblemished 4-0 record. Yale defeated Central Connecticut State, 21-0, on Tuesday in its last time out.
• Yale is 10th nationally in points per game, averaging 24.5 in its first four games of the season. Jenna Collignon is second in the IVY League with 14 goals on the season.
• Rutgers trails the all-time series with the Bulldogs, 6-10. The Scarlet Knights lost to Yale, 14-8, last season in Piscataway.
• The schools first met on April 28, 1990 – an 11-5 win for Yale. RU's last victory over the Bulldogs came on March 15, 2005 courtesy of a 10-7 win in New Haven.

Up Next

• Rutgers hosts No. 16 Stony Brook on Wednesday at SHI Stadium. First draw is set for 6 p.m. with the game streamed on Big Ten Plus.