Box Score Oct. 31, 2014 Box Score
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The Rutgers men's soccer team was not able to overcome an early Bradley goal, as they fell 1-0 in their final nonconference contest of the year at Yurcak Field on Friday night.
Bradley scored in the game's fifth minute as Chrisitian Okeke used a pass from deep in the right corner to Johnny Contreras 25 yards out in the front of the net for the night's lone score.
The Scarlet Knights (5-10-1, 1-5-1 Big Ten) put pressure on Bradley throughout the night. RU managed 21 shots in the loss from 11 different Scarlet Knights, but was unable to find the back of the net with the Braves clogging up the box.
"After their goal, Bradley was able to defend and sit nine, ten of their guys back in the box and make it very difficult for our guys to get good looks on the net," said head coach Dan Donigan. ""Bradley is a team that is going to get a lot of numbers behind the ball and is going to look to counter and restart situations, which is pretty much what occurred all game long. I thought we played well in the second half but were not fortunate to get one. Give credit to Bradley for playing a very good defensive game."
Leading scorer, freshman forward Jason Wright (Kingston, Jamaica) had one of Rutgers' best opportunities for an equalizer prior to the half. Wright hit the far left post in looking for his ninth goal of the season and the most goals by an RU player since 2003.
In the early moments of the second half, RU would also have another chance to tie the game only to have the ball bounce off the post and back into play. Sophomore Erik Sa (Watchung, N.J.) used a takeway in Brave territory to feed Mitchell Taintor (Storrs, Conn.). Taintor, who moved into the midfield after the intermission, entered the box from the left side and struck the near post.
Taintor also had another chance to put the Scarlet Knights on the scoreboard with three minutes remaining. Freshman Miles Hackett (Montclair, N.J.) drew a foul just outside the box giving Taintor a free kick at the top of the 18. However, a wall of Brave defenders came up with the crucial block to keep the their team's lead.
RU outshot Bradley, 21-14, with the Braves' Logan Ketterer making four stops in the win. At the opposite end, sophomore netminder David Greczek (Fairfield, N.J.) registered a season-high nine saves for the Scarlet Knights.
"It's been a season of tough breaks and tough luck, but we have to move on, stay positive, keep working and look forward to the post season," added Donigan. "We still have one game to finish up the regular season and we can use that as momentum to carry us into the postseason, where everything is at stake and anything can happen."
The Rutgers men's soccer team closes out the 2014 regular season as it hosts last season's national runner-up and fellow Big Ten newcomer, Maryland, on Wednesday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. The Scarlet Knights will honor its lone senior, Nate Bruccoleri, prior to kickoff. The game will also be streamed live on BTN Plus.
KNIGHT NOTES:
- RU closes the nonconference schedule at 4-5-0, including a 4-4 mark at Yurcak Field this season.
- Rutgers' 21 shots were the second most attempts this season and third time they recorded 20 or more shots. The Scarlet Knights had a season-high 22 shots in its 3-2 overtime win at Wisconsin on Sept. 12.
- Sophomore goalkeeper David Greczek's nine saves were a season-high, surpassing his previous high of seven stops against five different opponents (Syracuse, Hofstra, Wisconsin, Indiana & Penn State). It was his 16th career game with five or more stops and eighth career game with seven or more saves.
- With his nine saves, Greczek cracked RU's top ten all-time save leaders list. He is currently eighth on the list with 177 career stops. The sophomore goalie needs nine more saves to surpass Matt VanOekel (`05-'07) for seventh on the all-time list.
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