A “cruel hoax” sent students sheltering into place on the first day of orientation after a false report of an active shooter, prompting a massive response by local and federal law enforcement as they worked to secure the campus.

The Rev. Peter M. Donohue, the university’s president, said the report caused “panic and terror” as students and staff were celebrating Orientation Mass.

Evacuations for an active shooter "hoax" during the Rider University vs. Villanova University soccer game was streamed live on Thursday. The game, which was nearly 40 minutes in, was interrupted as people and players could be seen running off the pitch and out of the stands.