The Scarlet Knights (6-7-0, 4-4-0 BIG EAST) took on Cincinnati this past Sunday, winning the match 3-0. Sophomore Robbie McLarney (Londonderry, N.H.) erased the 0-0 tie following the intermission, when he struck his first goal of the season three minutes into the second half in the 48th minute. Yannick Salmon (Westbury, N.Y.) scored twice in the game. Rutgers and Cincinnati played to a scoreless first half, with the Scarlet Knights dominating much of the play, outshooting the Bearcats 13-4 in the opening period. The trend continued in the second half for RU which tallied 10 shots to UC’s four (23-8 shooting margin for the game).

 

Rutgers is led in scoring bySalmon who has six goals on the year, while sophomore Ibrahim Kamara (North Brunswick, N.J.) is right behind him with five. Rutgers sophomore Nate Bourdeau (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) is third on the team with two. Sophomore Bryant Knibbs (Pine Bush, N.Y.) leads the team with four assists, while classmates Nye Winslow (Piscataway, N.J.) and David MacVane (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) are tied for second with two apiece.

 

Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Morgans (Jackson, N.J.) picked up his first win of the season against Cincinnati, making two saves. 

 

 “We went [to NJIT] last year and they beat us, which I’m sure they remember and our guys certainly remember,” said head coach Bob Reasso. “It was a game that we should have put away and we didn’t. We made a couple critical mistakes late in the game and it cost us. You have to credit NJIT for continuing to compete but it’s one we should have had.”

 

In its last match, NJIT took on non-conference opponent Lehigh. The Highlanders lost 2-1 to the Mountain Hawks. NJIT freshman Franco Gamero scored his first collegiate goal just 6:14 into the game.  The goalkeeper for NJIT, Ryan Sutherland, stopped five of Lehigh’s seven shots on goal while Mountain. Rahim Stennett leads the Highlanders in scoring with 11 points on five goals and one assist, while Gustav Warfving has nine points on two goals and five assists.

  

Head coach of the Highlanders, Pedro Lopes, was a standout player during his collegiate days at Rutgers University. The two-time All-American helped the Scarlet Knights to a pair of final fours from 1990-94. Lopes also served as an assistant coach on the Rutgers staff for seven seasons following his playing career.

 

 “Pedro Lopes [NJIT head coach] was a great player for us, we went to two final fours and he was a two-time All-American so you know he’ll have his guys ready to play,” said Reasso. “It’s a New Jersey game, a local derby so that adds to the flavor of the match.”

 

The Scarlet Knights benefited from the return of several key players to the lineup who have missed some action while recovering from injuries. Reasso believes the squad’s confidence has been boosted by the win over a conference foe in Cincinnati and the healthy lineup will give them the edge moving forward.

 

 “Our guys are in a very confident mood right now,” said Reasso. “We played some good matches on the road and haven’t gotten results but I thought we culminated in a very good match on Sunday against Cincinnati.

 

“I think the biggest thing is we’re getting healthy again. Aly Mazhar was back, it was Gaetano [Panuccio]’s first 90 minutes all year long and Robbie [McLarney] and David [MacVane] were able to get through a full match together. Those are four very important players for us. We were the healthiest we’ve probably been all year and we got the opportunity to play at home and those are very positive things that we’re hoping will carry us into Wednesday’s game against NJIT.”

 

Following its final non-conference match of the season against NJIT, the Scarlet Knights will play their final three conference matches, starting with at road game at Louisville on Saturday, Oct. 24. Rutgers will then host Villanova (Oct. 28) and USF (Oct. 31) to close out the regular season.