Michigan
1-3, 1-3B1G
Rutgers
3-2, 3-2B1G
Garrett Nets Game-Winner in OT to Lift Michigan Past No. 14 Rutgers
3/5/2021 6:35:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
» Molly Garrett scored the game-winner in the first overtime period.
» Garrett scored four goals on five shots.
» Caitlin Muir had three goals and one assist in the win.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (U-M Lacrosse Stadium)
Score: #21 Michigan 12, #14 Rutgers 11 (OT)
Records: U-M (1-3, 1-3 B1G), Rutgers (3-2, 3-2 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 7 -- vs. #14 Rutgers (U-M Lacrosse Stadium), Noon
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Graduate senior Molly Garrett scored four goals, including the game-winner in overtime, to lift the No. 21-ranked University of Michigan women's lacrosse team to a 12-11 sudden-victory win over No. 14 Rutgers on Friday afternoon (March 5) at U-M Lacrosse Stadium.
Garrett took on her defender one-on-one driving toward the goal and ripped a shot into the bottom-right corner of the net to end the game.
The matchup featured eight ties and two lead changes with Michigan coming away victorious in its 2021 home opener.
Garrett led the offense with four goals on five shots, and senior Caitlin Muir had three goals and an assist for Michigan (1-3, 1-3 Big Ten). Senior Maggie Kane also recorded a pair of goals, and Caroline Bean had two points with a goal and an assist.
Junior Kaitlyn Mead won a team-high six draw controls and Garrett won two, while Rutgers (3-2, 3-2 Big Ten) won the overall draw control battle, 14-11.
Defensively, Kane had four caused turnovers and Garrett had three. Morgan Whitaker and Katherine Galzerano also were keys to the Michigan defense with four and three ground balls, respectively. In goal, Arielle Weissman made five saves, including a clutch stop late in the contest.
Rutgers scored five minutes into the first half, but that sparked back-to-back Michigan goals in less than a minute to give U-M a 3-1 advantage with just under 20 minutes to play in the opening half. The Wolverines and Scarlet Knights continued to trade goals for the remainder of the first half as the two teams were tied at 5 heading into the halftime break.
Muir fed Garrett with a pass as she cut down the center that led to a U-M goal just two minutes into the second half, but Rutgers once against responded, scoring on their next possession off the draw-control win to tie the game for the third time.
Each time the Wolverines looked to break away with a bit of a lead, Rutgers had a response as the game would go back-and-forth three times in the second half. With just under three minutes to play and Rutgers leading, 11-10, Bean passed the ball to Muir behind the net as she wrapped around and fired the ball into the bottom-right corner to knot the game at 11 and force the sudden-goal overtime period.
Rutgers won the draw control to start the overtime, but a turnover caused by Garrett gave possession back to the Wolverines with 4:37 left to play in the first extra period. Muir found the first big shot, but the keeper got a stick on it to keep the Scarlet Knights alive.
As Rutgers looked to clear the ball, Mead forced a turnover and picked up the ground ball, taking it toward Michigan's offensive side of the field. Garrett drove down the center and fired the ball into the bottom corner of the net to give Michigan its first win of the season.
U-M and Rutgers will conclude their two-game series Sunday (March 7) at noon at U-M Lacrosse Stadium. The game will be streamed live on Big Ten Network Plus.
