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The No. 11-ranked and unseeded Rutgers women's lacrosse team advanced into the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.
Friday night, Rutgers took down No. 23 Saint Joseph's in the first round, 17-10, at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium at Stony Brook. The Scarlet Knights rushed out to an 8-1 first quarter lead and held serve from there.
The eight goals tied the most Rutgers scored in a single quarter this season. Rutgers went ahead 3-1, and then expanded its lead with five more goals in the frame.
"We spoke today about starting strong and finishing strong," Rutgers head coach Melissa Lehman said. "I was so proud of the way our team performed from start to finish. There was no question that when we came out, this team was on a mission."
Taralyn Naslonski tallied a game-high six points with four goals and two assists while Janey Galski netted a new career-high four goals as well. Marin Hartshorn had four assists, too, and Jenna Byrne chipped in with two goals and two assists.
Kate Carolonza also scored three times while Cassidy Spilis and Ashley Moynahan both scored twice in the victory.
St. Joe's made a charge to make it 14-10 with 12 minutes to go, but Rutgers, which made the Big Ten Tournament final, ended the game with three unanswered goals.
Rutgers led 12-6 at halftime.
Meghan Ball recorded 10 draw controls, scooped up five ground balls, and caused five turnovers. Hartshorn also caused a pair of turnovers while Sophia Cardello, who is from the area, stopped six shots.
Rutgers outshot St. Joe's, 31-24, including 22-16 on goal. It also won 18 draws compared to 13 for St. Joe's and had six more ground balls (21-15).
"We just played our game," said Naslonski. "We wanted to come out with a fire under us and do what we do best. We were able to play Rutgers lacrosse right out the gate."
Sunday afternoon, eighth-seeded and No. 7 Stony Brook defeated Rutgers, 11-7, in a competitive second-round contest. In the end, it was Stony Brook's stout defense that won out.
"One loss does not define your season," Lehman said. "I think it's important to put it all in perspective and as the head coach of this program, I could not be prouder. We made an impact on the history book in so many ways and this team believed they could achieve so much."
The Seawolves quickly jumped out to a 3-0 lead about three minutes into the game including two from Kyla Zapolski.
A timeout called by Rutgers helped calm the nerves, and the the Scarlet Knights didn't blink an eye as they came right back to tie the game at 3-3 on goals by Spilis, Hartshorn, and Ashley Campo.
A save by Cardello led to Naslonski putting Rutgers ahead, 4-3, with 2:55 to go in the opening quarter. The Scarlet Knights had multiple chances to extend its lead on free position shots, , but Stony Brook goalie Charlie Campbell made two saves. A goal by the Seawolves with 17 ticks remaining was called off, and a last second shot by Rutgers' Moynahan was blocked.
In the second quarter, Stony Brook jumped ahead 5-4 on two goals just over two minutes apart, then added two more at the 5:56 mark and with 4:20 to go, respectively, to take a 7-4 lead. Campbell made a couple more key saves during the run.
Hartshorn ended Stony Brook's scoring spree with a goal 1:24 before halftime to cut it to 7-5. Rutgers' defense then held to prevent the home team from scoring late before the break.
Less than 45 seconds apart, Naslonski and Spilis would tie the game again at 7-7 about three minutes into the third quarter. However, Stony Brook would score two minutes later to go back up 8-7.
Stony Brook's stout defense, led by Campbell, prevented Rutgers from knotting the score again. On the other end, Cardello made a save of her own. Rutgers would draw a free shot on a fastbreak, but Campbell knocked a low shot aside.
No more goals were scored in the third quarter as both goalies stepped up the plate. Stony Brook came in tops in the nation in scoring defense, yielding only 6.53 goals per game.
The Seawolves went up by three again at 10-7 with a pair of goals a little over a minute apart, and added another to make it 11-7 for their largest lead of the day with 9:26 to go.
Naslonski finished with two goals and three assists wile Spilis and Hartshorn both scored twice. Cardello made seven saves.
For Stony Brook, Campbell made 12 stops and Kailyn Hart netted three goals to lead the way.
Stony Brook will face top-seeded and No. 1-ranked North Carolina on Thursday. The Seawolves also beat Rutgers last season in the second round.
Rutgers went 16-5 on the season. The 16 victories is a new team-high all-time.
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisNalwasky.
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