Final Regular Season Road Game
Oct 24 | Men's Soccer
Game Notes | | Buckeye Vision
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The Rutgers men's soccer team wraps up its regular season road slate at Ohio State on Saturday at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
ONE MORE FOR THE ROAD
The Rutgers men's soccer team embarks on its final road trip of the 2014 regular season as they travel to Columbus, Ohio to meet up with Ohio State. RU has only had five road games on this year's slate and has gone 1-2-1 away from the friendly confines of Yurcak Field. Video of Saturday's game is available through Ohio State's Buckeye Vision.
The Scarlet Knights are coming off a 1-0 victory over Army on Tuesday night which saw junior Mitchell Taintor capture the game-winner on his first goal of the year.
The 1-0 victory also gave RU its third shutout of the season.
POSITIONAL MOVE
Junior Mitchell Taintor moved to the front line against Army on Tuesday night and scored the game-winner in the 20th minute of play in the Rutgers men's soccer team's 1-0 win over the Black Knights.
Taintor, with his first goal of the 2014 season and sixth of his career, intercepted a clear by Army keeper Winston Boldt. As Boldt rolled the ball out down the middle, Taintor took possession 25 yards out and charged forward, sending a shot from six yards out into the back of the Black Knight net.
For Taintor, it was his third game-winner of his career and has now recorded a game-winning goal in each of his three seasons as a Scarlet Knight.
ABOUT OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes are 6-5-3 overall and in fourth place in the conference standings at 3-2-0 in the Big Ten. Ohio State was won its last two contests - a 2-0 victory at Wisconsin last Saturday and a 3-0 nonconference win over Bowling Green on Wednesday night.
Senior midfielder Yianni Sarris leads the squad with 12 points (5G, 2A) and is tied for sixth in the league in scoring. He is followed by junior defender Liam Doyle with eight points (4G).
In net, senior Alex Ivanov is posting an .829 save percentage and 0.88 goals against average. He has totaled 63 saves on the year along with six shutouts.
ALL-TIME VS. OHIO STATE
Saturday marks the first ever meeting between the Scarlet Knights and Buckeyes.
BACK IN NET
Sophomore David Greczek returned to net on Tuesday against Army after classmate Mitchell Walier garnered starts in the previous two games with Penn and Northwestern.
In his return, Greczek made five saves. Two of his saves came late in the game as Army's Sean Mogan headed in a free kick to the right post. Greczek made the save, but the ball bounced behind the Scarlet Knight keeper. The Black Knights' Ethan Spivack made a charge at the ball, but Greczek dove on top, making the stop right at the edge of the goal line.
Greczek currently has 165 career saves in 32 games played and needs five more stops to rank on RU's top ten career saves leaders list.
He currently ranks second in the Big Ten in saves (57) and leads the conference in saves per game (4.75).
WRIGHT AWAY
Freshman forward Jason Wright continues to lead the Scarlet Knights after adding a pair of goals last Tuesday night against Penn with 16 points (7G, 2A) on the year.
His two nets against the Quakers marked his third two-goal game output. Wright also had both goals in RU's 2-1 win over Lafayette and both Scarlet Knight goals in the setback to Princeton last week.
Wright needs one more goal to match RU's highest goal total by a Scarlet Knight in the last 12 seasons. Former Scarlet Knight and recent Coursen Award winner Kene Eze in 2012 and 2013, Dilly Duke in 2008 and Adam Sternberger in 2005 each had eight goals in their respective seasons.
UP NEXT
The Rutgers men's soccer team wraps up the regular season with a pair of home games. RU hosts Bradley on Friday, Oct. 31 and concludes the regular season with Maryland, last year's national runner-up, on Wednesday, Nov. 5. Both games kickoff at 7 p.m.
Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersMensSoccer) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/RUMensSoccer) for all of the latest news and updates. Fans also receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on both social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com.
-RU-
