Women’s Lacrosse Hosts No. 22 USC Thursday Night

Thursday, April 10

8 PM

Rutgers University

USC

Photo by: Dakota Moyer

Women’s Lacrosse Hosts No. 22 USC Thursday Night

Apr 09 | Women's Lacrosse

Live Stats Watch on Big Ten Network

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers women's lacrosse (8-6, 2-3) hosts No. 22 USC (8-5, 1-4) on Thursday night at SHI Stadium. First draw is set for an 8 p.m. primetime broadcast on Big Ten Network, with Jason Knapp and Taylor Cummings on the call.

Including Sunday's matchup with No. 3 Northwestern, the Scarlet Knights close their regular season with four consecutive ranked opponents. RU's final three Big Ten Conference games will also broadcast on Big Ten Network ahead of the postseason.

Thursday will be the first ever meeting between the two programs.

Last Time Out

RU lost to No. 3 Northwestern, 15-6, on Sunday at SHI Stadium. Prior to the game, the program recognized its 2025 senior class - Makenna Boutin, Lexie Coldiron, Emalie Clothier, Alexa Corbin, Victoria Goldrick, Madison Karpe, Kelsey Klein, Lauren Messinese, Tori Shenk and Michelle Warren
Coldiron put forth another standout game, finishing with 13 saves on 37 shots faced. Sophomore Payton Tini tallied her second hat trick of the season with three goals, while junior Lily Dixon dished out two assists along with four draw controls and a caused turnover. Seniors Alexa Corbin and Michelle Warren and junior Kayleigh Coughlin also added scores.
With her two assists, Dixon is now just eight assists away from setting the program's all-time single-season mark.

Building a Resume

Ranked No. 32 in the latest RPI, Rutgers closes its regular season with three top 30 RPI foes (No. 11 Maryland, No. 22 Michigan and No. 26 USC).
The Scarlet Knights own three wins over Top 50 RPI opponents (No. 24 Stony Brook, No. 34 Delaware and No. 42 Ohio State).
By the end of the regular season, RU will have faced X teams ranked in the latest IWLCA Coaches Poll – No. 3 Northwestern, No. 5 Johns Hopkins, No. 6 Princeton, No. 8 Yale, No. 9 Maryland, No. 17 Michigan, No. 19 Stony Brook, No. 22 USC and No. 24 Army.

What to Know

Thursday marks the return of Cassidy Spilis, who is in her first year on staff with the Trojans. A three-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Conference Player of the Year at Rutgers from 2020-24, Spilis finished as the program's all-time leader in career points (281), goals (266) and draw controls (313).
Graduate student goalkeeper Lexie Coldiron has shined in her first season 'On the Banks', leading the nation in saves with 148 and topping the Big Ten in saves per game (10.57). Coldiron earned national and conference defensive player of the week accolades last week and has also been named a IlWomen Midseason All-American and has been added to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List.
Coldiron has registered double digit saves eight times this season, including 13 against Northwestern and 12 at Penn State in recent action. Coldiron stopped a career-high 21 shots against then-No. 12 Princeton on March 12 in Piscataway.
Junior Katie Buck is sixth in the conference and 31st nationally with 6.43 draw controls per game. Her 90 draw controls rank fifth in the Big Ten, as she needs just 10 draw controls to become the 11th player in program history to hit 100 for her career.
Junior Lily Dixon enters Thursday's matchup with 32 assists this season, needing eight helpers to pass Steph Kelly (39) for the single season record at Rutgers. Dixon leads the team with 48 points on 32 assists and 16 goals this season, recently becoming the 28th player in program history to hit 100 career points.
Senior Madison Karpe is four ground balls away from 100 for her career. Classmate Emalie Clothier earned her 70th career appearance over the weekend, while Karpe has started 69 consecutive games dating back to her freshman season in 2022.
Rookies have had an immediate impact for the Scarlet Knights this season. Delainey Sutley was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week earlier this season and is second on the team with 17 goals. Hilary Elsner (15 goals) and Caroline Ling (11 goals) have also contributed meaningful scoring. Charlee Thomas has started all 14 games on defense, while Bianca Chiarella is second on the team with 12 caused turnovers. Freshman Sienna Cassella has appeared in 12 games, including two starts in the midfield.

About USC

The Trojans lost to then-No. 7 Maryland, 16-8, last Saturday in Carson, California, in their last time out. USC has played five consecutive ranked foes ahead of Thursday matchup in Piscataway, which includes a 9-8 win over then-No. 19 Ohio State on March 23 in Columbus.
Isabelle Vitale leads the Big Ten and is 11th nationally with 37 assists, averaging 2.85 helpers per game. Vitale is also third in the conference and 18th in the NCAA with 62 points this season. Maddie Dora leads the team with 50 goals, currently seventh nationally.
This will be the first ever meeting between Rutgers and USC.

Up Next

Rutgers hosts No. 9 Maryland on Wednesday, April 16 at SHI Stadium for its regular season home finale. First draw is set for a 6 p.m. national broadcast on Big Ten Network.