No. 16 women’s lacrosse eliminated by No. 20 Rutgers in NCAA first round

When it mattered most, Rutgers had an answer for just about everything. 

In the first round of the NCAA women’s lacrosse tournament, the No. 20-ranked Scarlet Knights (11–8 overall, 4–4 Big Ten) upended their Garden State rivals Friday 12–11, outpacing No. 16 Princeton (11–7, 5–2 Ivy League) in nearly every facet of the game and closing the curtains on the 2026 Tigers season. 

Rutgers — who had not beaten the Tigers since 2013 and had lost the last four matchups by an average of nearly seven goals — took an early lead and held off a late Tiger rally to secure their win in College Park, M.D. 

“In this game, we ran out of time,” Head Coach Jenn Cook told The Daily Princetonian. “I think we were a little off today in some areas, but they showed so much heart in that game, and so I’m just unbelievably proud of the group.”

Scarlet Knights attacker Hilary Elsner tied her career high with four goals, while fellow attacker and honorable mention All-American Caroline Ling had a hat trick, an improvement from the first game between the two teams earlier this year, where she had finished with just one goal. 

With the win, Rutgers advances to the second round to play No. 3 Maryland (16–3, 6–2), a fellow Big Ten foe.

“I’ve just been so proud of this team with their focus this week,” Rutgers Head Coach Melissa Lehman said in the Rutgers press release. “What they did today on that field, I just could not be more impressed.”

Junior attacker Meg Morrisroe led the Tigers with four goals and three assists. However, the Tigers lacked enough production from other key players. Senior midfielder Maggie Molnar, who was the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player, finished with zero goals on five shots.

Senior attacker and captain Jami MacDonald, an honorable mention All-American, was held scoreless in the first half and finished with two goals. Perhaps the defining factor in the game was draw control. The Scarlet Knights dominated at midfield and held a 14-to-five advantage after three quarters before the Tigers cut the bleeding in the final period, allowing them to mount a comeback. 

“I think we were just a little step behind on the draw, if I’m being honest,” Cook said. “We weren’t as good on ground balls as well … We made that adjustment on the draw, and we got better with ground balls. I just think it was a little too late.”

In goal, Rutgers goaltender Stella Quilty earned the starting spot late in the season and finished with nine saves on Friday. On the other end of the field, senior goaltender Amelia Hughes capped off her illustrious career with ten saves — including one late in the game, with 45 seconds left — to give the Tigers a chance, but a turnover by junior midfielder Colette Quinn gave the ball back to Rutgers. 

“Credit to Rutgers — really tough Big Ten opponent. They played incredibly well. They executed in their moment,” Cook said. 

The opening period proved to be a tale of two halves. Princeton’s first goal of the tournament came courtesy of junior midfielder Ella Sloan. The last time both sides met in February, the Tigers jumped out to an 8–1 lead. This time, it was a completely different story. 

The Scarlet Knights rattled off three straight goals against the Tigers’ man-to-man defense. However, the Orange and Black quickly responded with back-to-back goals to make it 3–3 at the end of the first quarter. 

In the second, it was all Rutgers, who found success shooting low on Hughes. After Princeton briefly took the lead, a goal by Elsner kicked off a 5–0 run for the Scarlet Knights to give her side an 8–4 halftime lead. 

Despite outshooting the Scarlet Knights in the second quarter and having three free-position shots, the Tigers were unable to get past Quilty, and were playing lacrosse that was uncharacteristic for them. 

Rutgers took the largest lead of the game when the score went up 10–5 with 8:39 to go in the third quarter. It took the five-goal deficit for the Princeton offense to finally flip a switch.

Senior attacker Haven Dora — the Ivy League record holder in assists — found Morrisroe to make it 10–6 on the man-up opportunity. Minutes later, the two connected again to cut the deficit to three. With 3:16 in the third quarter, Molnar hit the crossbar in the transition attack, completely shifting the momentum back in the Scarlet Knights’ favor. 

“[MacDonald] and [Dora’s] records will go down and stand for a really long time. They’ve just had incredible careers,” Cook said. 

34 seconds into the final period, Ling scored on a Tiger defense that switched from man to zone to make it 11–7. Once again, the Tigers refused to wave the white flag. With 7:31 to go, the Orange and Black tallied three goals in 82 seconds to cut the deficit to one. The three-goal run saw MacDonald finally get on the scoreboard.

“I thought they did a great job against [MacDonald],” Cook said. “[MacDonald’s] a great player, but I think they face-guarded [Dora] for a little bit of it, and I don’t know if that threw off our offensive rhythm a little bit, and then they got out of that.”

After a timeout by Rutgers, sophomore midfielder Maggie Bacigalupo, who became the primary draw specialist in the final quarter, won the draw, only for the Tigers to turn it over. On the other end, Elsner made it 12–10.

After a second MacDonald goal, Rutgers came up big at midfield, winning the final draw of the game with just over two minutes remaining. They shaved off much of the clock and had a point-blank opportunity, only to be denied by Hughes. 

The ball was sent forward, only for a turnover caused by Rutgers captain and attacker Lily Dixon to end the season for Cook’s squad.

“You just saw our Jersey Grit and our fight at the end,” Lehman said. “It wasn’t pretty, and we lost the ball late … but then we got the ball back, were gritty enough to come up with it and seal the win.”

With the Tigers’ season coming to an end, the Class of 2026 officially closes its chapter. After a disappointing first year for the class in 2023, the class won three NCAA tournament games — one in 2024 and two in 2025 — an outright Ivy League title in 2025, and the Ivy League tournament championships in 2026. 

“It’s been an amazing journey with the senior class,” Cook said. “All of them at the end of their [first] year were like, ‘We’re bringing Princeton back to the tradition it has always had.’ And this class has done that in everything they do.”

“I always talk about leaving a legacy, and this group has definitely left a lasting legacy and brought the tradition of Princeton lacrosse back,” Cook continued.

Highlighted by MacDonald, Hughes, and Dora, seven of the nine seniors were regular starters for Cook, who now enters an offseason tasked with keeping up the program’s recent success despite major losses.

Cook ended by saying that it’s on the returners to “carry on that legacy.”

Hayk Yengibaryan is a senior Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’ He is from Glendale, Calif. He can be reached at hy5161[at]princeton.edu.

Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.