Rutgers Blanks Lehigh 2-0
Sep 01 | Men's Soccer
PISCATAWAY, NJ - Sean Cameron (North Brunswick, NJ) and Charlie Cox (N. Yorkshire, England) provided the offense and a solid team defensive effort shut down Lehigh's offense as the Rutgers men's soccer team (1-2) shut out Lehigh (1-1), 2-0 at Yurcak Field for its first win of the season.
Despite persistent rain which made for slick conditions on the field, the Scarlet Knights overcame a slow first half to score two goals in the second half en route to the victory. Rutgers did manage to generate several offensive opportunities in the first half, as senior Nick LaBrocca (Howell, NJ) took two of his three shots in the half. Thanks to Rutgers' stingy defense, Lehigh struggled to establish any scoring opportunities through the first half of play and went into halftime without a single shot taken on goal.
Rutgers came blazing in the second half as junior Chris Moore (Gosforth, England) set up Cameron's goal with a cross and Cameron found the net for Rutgers' first goal of the match, and his first of the season. Cameron was aggressive on defense, as well, stealing several Lehigh passes to end any potential scoring threats. With just over five minutes left to play in the second half, Cox's shot made it past a wall of Lehigh defenders for the match's second goal and his first of the regular season. Lehigh's Adam Gazda finished with two of his team's three shots.
RU goalkeeper Matt VanOekel (Chesapeake, VA), had one save on the day as Rutgers' defense, anchored by Bart Koffeman (The Hague, Netherlands) and Brinker Dailey (Alpharetta, GA), did not allow a shot until well into the second half. Lehigh goalie Jim Morahan made three stops for the Mountain Hawks.
Overall, Scarlet Knights head coach Bob Reasso was satisfied with his team's performance.
"I think it was a decent result for us. Lehigh is a very organized, very well-coached team and they were hard to break down," he said. "It was nice to see the goal come early in the second half, see the guys relax a little bit. It was great that Charlie Cox get his first goal today and Nick LaBrocca was very good. On the whole, I'm quite pleased. It gives us something to build on and we can move on from here."
Rutgers is back in action next Friday, Sept. 8, when the Scarlet Knights travel to play BIG EAST opponent, Connecticut, in Storrs, CT, at 7:00 p.m.
Soccer Game Summary (Final)
2006 Rutgers Men's Soccer
Rutgers v. Lehigh (Sept. 1 at Piscataway, NJ)
Rutgers (1 -2) vs. Lehigh (1-1)
Date: Sept. 1, 2006 Attendance: 351
Goals by Period: 1 2 Tot
Rutgers 0 2 2
Lehigh 0 0 0
Scoring Summary:
Shots: RU - 11, LU - 3.
Saves: RU - 1, LU -3.
