Rutgers Women’s Lacrosse On Winning Streak After Road Win Over Lafayette

The Rutgers women’s lacrosse team has put together their first winning streak of the 2017 season after last night’s 15-10 victory over Lafayette. It was a tight affair for a good portion of contest, with the score tied at 7 at halftime, and knotted at 8 apiece with 18+ minutes left in the game. However, the offense moved into high gear and Rutgers finished the game on a 6-1 scoring run to win comfortably. They have now won 8 of their last 9 games against the eastern Pennsylvania school.

They were led by senior co-captain Amanda Turturro, who scored 4 goals and had 2 assists on the night. Freshman midfielder Samantha Budd continued a strong start to her career by scoring twice and adding one assist, as did sophomore attacker Abbey Brooks. Redshirt junior attacker Nicole Kopyta has now scored twice in every game this season, while senior midfielder Kristina Dunphey scored once and added two assists. Four other Scarlet Knights scored, including junior attacker Joanna Reilly and junior midfielder Paige Paratore, who also assisted on one goal each. Junior Goalkeeper Bianca Dente had 12 saves in the game for her second win in the net this season.

The Scarlet Knights (2-1) will head back on the road Saturday to take on Delaware, who are 1-1 on the season. The Blue Hens lost to #12 Penn by the score of 9-7 in their last game and have beaten Rutgers the past two seasons. However, head coach Laura Brand-Sias has the offense clicking at the start of this campaign, as they are averaging close to 13 goals per game so far. Balance has been key, as seven players have scored at least three goals each.

Turturro is leading the team with 7 goals, as well as in total points with 10. Behind her, five players have 7 points so far this season, including Kopyta, Dunphey, Brooks, Paratore, and junior attacker Kerri Puckhaber. Newcomer Budd has 5 points on the young season.

Coincidentally, the last time Rutgers started the season with a 3-1 record was when they last beat Delaware in 2014. Counting the strong finish to last season, when Rutgers beat a ranked Ohio State team twice, they have now won 5 of their last 7 games. After playing the Blue Hens, the following contest will be at home next Wednesday against #12 Penn. First, they will look to keep the positive momentum going this weekend against Delaware.

Also, it was announced this afternoon that Rutgers will honor the 40th anniversary of the program during their home game against #2 ranked Maryland in early April.

Brand-Sias, the longest tenured coach in program history and a former player, had this to say in the press release:

"We are so excited to honor 40 years of women's lacrosse at Rutgers,” said head coach Laura Brand-Sias. “So many women have dedicated themselves to our program over the years and we can't wait to celebrate their legacies. It's even more exciting to have a significant anniversary fall in such a transformative time at Rutgers. Our alumnae have much to look forward to."

The program will also honor their six seniors before this game. For more information about the anniversary celebration, click here.