No. 25 Women’s Lacrosse Knocks Off No. 6 Michigan, 13-12

Thursday, April 9

Piscataway, N.J.

6 PM

Rutgers University

9-5, 3-3

Michigan

10-3, 4-1

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Michigan	3	4	2	3	12
Rutgers	5	4	3	1	13

Photo by: Dakota Moyer

No. 25 Women’s Lacrosse Knocks Off No. 6 Michigan, 13-12

Apr 09 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score Photo Gallery

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 25 Rutgers women's lacrosse (9-5, 3-2) picked up its biggest win of the season and one of its top victories in program history thanks to a 13-12 defeat of No. 6 Michigan (10-3, 4-1) on Thursday night at SHI Stadium.

The Scarlet Knights held off a late Wolverine rally to secure their 20th ranked win since 2021 and third top-six victory in the past five seasons. It snapped Michigan's seven-game winning streak and put RU in a position to clinch a spot in the Big Ten Tournament with a win Sunday over Oregon.

"I'm so proud of these girls," said head coach Melissa Lehman. "They played a complete game, trusted each other on both ends of the field and played super clean. They took it one play at a time. They played in the moment and got it done tonight."

RU dominated in center circle, out-drawing Michigan, 20-7. Senior Katie Buck secured a game-high 13 draw controls for her sixth double-digit draw control game of the season.

"I have so much belief in this team," Buck said. "Our hard work started in the fall. We just put in the hard work each day and I know what we're all capable of. Tonight it showed. We all played together and it took everyone out there to get it done."

Rutgers outshot Michigan, 36-26, as sophomores Hilary Elsner and Caroline Ling both netted hat tricks in the win. Senior Lily Dixon dished out a team-high four assists, setting the program single-season record with 42 this spring.

Michigan scored first before Rutgers responded with three consecutive goals. The run included back-to-back assists from Dixon, while an unassisted finish from rookie Kate Theofield gave the Scarlet Knights a 3-1 lead with 7:32 left in the quarter. Both teams traded offensive barbs before RU entered the first break with a 5-3 advantage.

The Wolverines carded a 4-1 scoring run to go back on top before Rutgers closed the half with a 3-0 scoring run to retake the lead. Dixon, Elsner and sophomore Delainey Sutley all scored during the run, with Ling finding Sutley with under a minute to go in the quarter to make it a 9-7 lead heading into the locker room.

UM tied the score at 9-9 with two consecutive goals after the midpoint, but the Scarlet Knights continued to fight back. Theofield found Elsner for her third of the night at the 8:20 mark, while Ling netted back-to-back goals for a 12-9 lead through three quarters.

RU's defense was stout down the stretch. Plugged into cage in the second half, graduate student Simone Koryszewski registered five saves in the final 15 minutes of play.

Michigan clawed back with three goals in the fourth quarter, including a score that made it a 13-12 game with 1:11 to play. However, junior Payton Tini secured the game's final draw control and Rutgers ran out the clock for the win.

"This is huge for our confidence," Lehman said. "We've been building and growing, and I know they have felt that throughout the whole season. This just solidifies that we can play with anyone in the country."

Up Next
Rutgers hosts Oregon on Sunday at SHI Stadium. First draw is set for 1 p.m. and will stream on Big Ten Plus. Sunday is the program's 'Scarlet Out', with fans encouraged to wear red to the game.