Rutgers women's lacrosse drops game to Johns Hopkins

In its first week back in action, the Rutgers women’s lacrosse team dropped a game to Johns Hopkins. Although the Scarlet Knights (3-7, 3-7) came up short in their contest, they battled until the final whistle.

Rutgers lost 17-10 in its matchup with the Blue Jays (4-4, 4-4) this past Sunday. For the 7th time in 10 games, the Knights started the game with high intensity as they scored within the first 4 minutes of play.

Sophomore midfielder Ashley Campo led the offensive charge early, as she netted the first goal of the game, and then found senior attacker Hannah Hollingsworth to take the lead 2-1 3 minutes later.

Before the half concluded, Johns Hopkins cultivated a 6-1 scoring run which resulted in a 7-3 lead. Senior attacker Taralyn Naslonski was able to find the back of the net for Rutgers, but it did not stop the Blue Jays from generating another 3-0 scoring run to finish the half.

During the second half of play, the Knights tried to cut into their 6-goal deficit. Johns Hopkins had other things in mind as they notched two more goals to extend their lead to 8.

Sophomore midfielder Cassidy Spilis and Naslonski scored back-to-back goals to try and get Rutgers back into the game. Senior midfielder Julia Lytle and sophomore Lauren Ellis generated a 3-0 scoring run for the Knights with approximately 10 minutes left, but it was too little too late.

Although Rutgers was defeated in the end, there are a few takeaways from its matchup with the Blue Jays. This game produced nice performances from a couple of younger players. Freshman midfielder Ashley Moynahan had three ground balls and a caused turnover, while redshirt freshman midfielder Grace Curran scored the first goal of her career.

Spilis, who was named an Inside Lacrosse Midseason All-American alongside sophomore defender Meghan Ball, finished with 1 goal on five shots for the game. Spilis currently ranks fifth in the Big Ten in goals with 27 on the season. In addition, Ball has 33 draw controls, 23 ground balls and 15 forced turnovers which all rank within the top 10 of the Big Ten.

Right now, the Knights sit at No. 24 in the latest Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association Poll and will look to add to their regular-season win record this week.

Rutgers will cap off its regular season with two home games against No. 14 Penn State this Thursday and No. 9 Maryland this Sunday. Both games will take place at 3 p.m.

https://dailytargum.com/article/2021/04/rutgers-womens-lacrosse-drops-game-to-johns-hopkins