Rutgers
Georgetown
Rutgers Gets Second BIG EAST Win
Sep 22 | Women's Soccer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -The Rutgers women's soccer team (7-1, 2-0 BIG EAST) won its fourth-consecutive shutout in a 2-0 victory over BIG EAST rival Georgetown (3-4-3, 0-2 BIG EAST).
This is the first time in school history that the Scarlet Knights have started out the season with a 7-1 record.
"We played quite well, especially in the first half," said head coach Glenn Crooks. "To come out and score a couple of goals right away was a great way to start out the game. Although we didn't have many good opportunities in the second half, we still prevented Georgetown from getting any serious chances to score."
The Scarlet Knights wasted no time attacking the Georgetown defense, registering two shots in the first seven minutes, both by Jenifer Anzivino (Middletown, N.J.).
On Rutgers' next possession, Anzivino made a pass to Karla Schacher (Tofield, Alberta) who used her left foot to nail the ball past Hoya goalie Jade Higgins.
Less than a minute later, the pair connected again, but this time, Anzivino put the ball in the back of the net for the Scarlet Knights. After a cross from Schacher, Anzivino got a foot on it as Higgins came off the line. Anzivino gave Rutgers their second goal, blasting the ball into the back of the net.
After suffering a concussion on Sept. 10 against FDU and missing three-straight games, Schacher, who scored twice in the first two games of the season, is picking up where she left off.
"It's great having Karla back. We're very deep in that area of the field, but if I had to rate our forwards, she's been our most consistent in terms of being dangerous and scoring goals," he said. "She's really getting it done on the field, there's still things she needs to improve, but we're really happy to have her back."
Gina DeMaio (Parsippany, N.J.), Caycie Gusman (Honolulu, Hawaii), and Amanda Allessio (Langhorne, Pa.) all continued Rutgers' aggressive offense, posting a flurry of shots in the middle of the first half.
In the second half of the match, Rutgers continued putting pressure on the Hoya defense as the Scarlet Knights tallied seven more shots. Alicia Hall (Port Republic, N.J.) took a team-high three shots in the second half, while DeMaio added two shots for Rutgers.
The solid defensive efforts of Kim Brand????o (Rahway, N.J.), Jaime Komar (Matawan, N.J.), Ashley Lunemann (Hillsborough, N.J.), Meghan Ryan (Crofton, Md.) and Nina Montero (Vineland, N.J.) limited the Hoya offense to only six shots in the match as BIG EAST Co-Goalkeeper of the Week Erin Guthrie (Sparta, N.J.) didn't face a shot on goal.
"We defended well as a team and it starts with our forwards defending their backs and trying to prevent them from serving the ball into their forwards," Crooks said. "We did a good job with that. When the ball did get on our end, our backs did a very good job of covering for each other and our one-vs.-one defending was exceptional today."
The Scarlet Knights will face BIG EAST-rival Villanova on Sunday, Sept. 24, at 6:00 p.m. at Yurcak Field. The Wildcats are 10-0, 1-0 in the BIG EAST and are coming off a 1-0 overtime win against Seton Hall.
"It's a battle between two unbeaten teams in the league and it'll be a huge match," Crooks said. "There will be a lot of excitement generated for that match-it's a local battle, it's always a good game and they're a very good team. We feel like we're a very good team, as well and it's definitely something to look forward to'for us, for them and for any soccer fan."
Last season, Villanova won a 1-0 match over Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights lead the all-time series,
11-6-5. Knowing the depth and talent that Villanova will bring to the field, Crooks knows the team will have to be up for a challenge.
"The reasons we've been successful lately is our match mentality and that we're starting to get in a rhythm with our attack," Crooks said. "It doesn't always work out that you can execute your game plan every match because sometimes teams force you to do things differently, but we've been playing a little better each match. Our defending has gotten better, as well, and I think playing tougher and more organized. It's going to be a great match."
Rutgers 2, Georgetown 0Women's Soccer Friday, September 22, 2006; Washington, D.C.
Georgetown 0 0 0 Shots: GU 6, RU 16. Saves: GU 5 (Jade Higgins 5) RU 0. Fouls: GU 14, RU 7. Corner Kicks: GU 3, RU 2. Offsides: GU 0, RU 1. Cards: YC-7:33 Karla Schacher Time Team Goal Assist8:21 Rutgers Karla Schacher Jenifer Anzivino
Rutgers 2 0 2
9:07 Rutgers Jenifer Anzivino Karla Schacher
