Rutgers women's soccer fights off Lehigh, rain to earn 2nd win of season
The Rutgers women's soccer team defeated Lehigh 3-0 on Wednesday night at Yurcak Field in Piscataway. The Scarlet Knights (2-1-1, 0-0) defeated the Mountain Hawks (1-2, 0-0) for the third time in as many games between the two teams.
Early in the first half, Rutgers made a push to gain offensive momentum. Senior forward Riley Tiernan attempted two shots in the first few minutes of the game for the Knights, but one was saved and the other was blocked.
Shortly after, redshirt freshman midfielder Gabriela Gil put Rutgers on the board in the 4th minute of the game. Assisted by Tiernan, Gil notched her first collegiate goal on a shot that trickled in from far out.
Following the goal, the Knights continued to fight for possession. Lehigh battled defensively in an attempt to stop Rutgers from scoring again, but its efforts proved to be futile.
As the game entered the 35th minute, the Knights continued to expand their lead. Junior midfielder Allie Post swiftly kicked the ball into the back of the net with an assist from freshman defender Mikayla Mandleur to double their lead.
“She slipped a great ball through,” Post said of Mandleur’s pass after the game. “And I was just there to finish it.”
Rutgers went into halftime with a 2-0 lead. Only around seven minutes of the second half of the game were played before there was an hour and a half-long weather delay.
“We were definitely all super tired. But we didn’t let that show,” Post said of the team’s mindset during the delay. “We went into the locker room, had a little dance party, and then refocused right before we came back out.”
Just like they wanted, the Knights continued to keep the pace following the weather delay, converting another attempt as Tiernan found the bottom left corner of the net in the 66th minute for her first of the season.
Neither team could score following Tiernan’s goal, giving the Knights their second win of the season. Rutgers concluded the game with a whopping 22 shots and nine shots on goals, while the Mountain Hawks only managed four shots, with three of them being on target.
Head coach Mike O’Neill commended his squad following the victory.
‘I thought we were on the front foot,” O’Neill said. “Some great goals, but we possessed the ball really well with a lot of really good ideas.”
The Knights will return to Yurcak Field in a Sunday afternoon matchup against Maine at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
For more updates on the Rutgers women's soccer team, follow @TargumSports on X.
