Kenie Wright: Anchoring a Solid Back Line

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – "No shots, no services, no goals" is the motto that the Rutgers women's soccer team focuses on every match. It is a motto that has guided the Scarlet Knights to an unbeaten record of 8-0-2, including nine shutouts already this season.

Junior outside back Kenie Wright has been a vital component of the RU defense. The captain is part of a back line that opened the year with a program record 924:07 straight scoreless minutes of its opponents.

"Our defense is very disciplined this year," said Wright. "Having Casey [Murphy] in net she is organizing all of us and we are all communicating well back there. We move as one and we are one unit. Our motto is 'No shots, No services, No goals' and it has been working for us."

Denying opponent goals is a tradition that has been upheld by Rutgers for many years.

"Rutgers soccer has always put emphasis on its back line," said Wright. "We don't give up goals and coming into this program everyone knows that. The first day of preseason everyone on our team, even the forwards, midfielders, the backs all focused on defending. Coach Mike O'Neill always says defense wins championships so we take a lot of pride in that."

Upholding the steel reputation of the Scarlet Knight back line rings true throughout the entire lineup.

"It feels very awesome to know that people before you have been working this hard and then once it becomes your time to be out there you just want to work hard for them as well as your entire team right now," said senior defender Courtney Norton. "It feels great to be out there with all my teammates. We are doing well right now and we have to keep it going."

"I use the defenders in the past as motivation to work harder because they have set such high standards that us as a back line now want to achieve," added sophomore back Chantelle Swaby. "We want Rutgers soccer to forever be known as a team that doesn't get scored on."

While it is clear that everyone across all positions has bought into this motto and drive, the key to executing it is the bond the squad has.

"We do it for ourselves and each other," said Norton. "We see someone out there get into a really great tackle, or they get down and block a shot, that makes everyone else want to do the same thing for them because you know they would do the same thing for you. We are all so close that we have each other's backs in everything that we do."

Another helpful addition is the leadership of Wright as captain, as well as Norton's experience.

"Kenie is such a hard worker who I know will always give 100 percent in anything she does," said sophomore defender Amanda Visco. "Her high energy feeds to the rest of the back line and team and motivates us to do our best all the time. Courtney is also such a hard worker who gives it her all. Her mentality of never stopping keeps everyone going."

Wright not only has been a force on defense, she has also contributed a goal and three assists for the Scarlet Knights this year. As the defense denies goals, the offense remains strong on the attack. Overall, RU has posted 24 goals this season, averaging 2.40 goals per game.

While the entire team has the mentality of defending goals, each position also has its mind set on being on the attack as well.

"As an outside back, you have the responsibility of being on the defensive side and on the attack," said Wright. "The role of outside backs on this team is that we do attack, we are going to be playmakers and we are going to score goals even though we are on defense. It's still our jobs."

A leader by example and a leader on the field, Wright modestly attributes the success of her leadership to the willingness and mentality of her teammates.

"It is great because everyone on the team is always listening and always looking to make changes," said Wright. "If you give them instruction they are always listening, they're always willing to help out. Being a leader on this team is an honor especially because Rutgers soccer has made a name for itself and I think we are only going up from here."

Another focus aside from defense that is just as important to the team is that the next game is always the most important game. The Scarlet Knights stay grounded by only focusing on the next opponent in its path at that point in time.

"It starts in practice. Every day at practice we work our hardest," said Wright. "We always say the next game is most important so we don't look ahead. We don't think about who we are playing next weekend or who we are playing in a month. Since the next game is our only focus it has helped us win these games because we are not looking to the future. We are playing in the moment."

Wright and the back line return home for their next game this Friday. Rutgers welcomes Minnesota for a rematch of the 2016 Big Ten Championship with a 7 p.m. match at Yurcak Field.

Schedule

Players Mentioned

Courtney Norton

Chantelle Swaby

Amanda Visco

Kenie Wright

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