Defense Making MSOC Dangerous in the Postseason
Nov 12 | Men's Soccer
By Tom Luicci
ScarletKnights.com
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - There didn't seem to be any redeeming value at first from a 3-1 loss to Maryland by the Rutgers men's soccer team in its regular-season finale on Nov. 11.
Not only did the defeat cost the Scarlet Knights a shot at the Big Ten regular-season title, it ended a seven-game winning streak. It also punctured the aura of invincibility surrounding a defense that had recorded the most shutouts in a season by a Rutgers team in 15 years.
But a week later, and following a back-on-track 2-0 victory over Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, that loss to Maryland - as damaging as it was in the short term - could prove to be a long-term benefit as Rutgers heads into the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Friday at No. 1-seed Ohio State (BTN, 1 p.m.).
"The Maryland game was a wake-up call for us," said junior goalkeeper David Grezcek, who earned second-team all-Big Ten honors this season. "We had seven-straight good defensive games before that. We feel good that were able to bounce back immediately against Northwestern by being very solid in the back. I think it was just a mental adjustment, of continuing to work together and being on the same page."
Defender Tyler Morris called the Maryland loss "a reality check."
"I think everyone on this team now realizes that the same focus has to be there every game, especially at this time of the year," he says.
Though the Scarlet Knights (12-5-1) head into Friday's semifinal as the No. 4 seed, they own a 1-0 victory over the Buckeyes (12-5-2). Since there was not a dominant team in the league this season, it means Rutgers views itself being on equal footing with the other three squads this weekend.
"We've already played them. We know we can beat them," head coach Dan Donigan said of Ohio State. "Certainly they're looking for redemption on their home field. They want nothing more than to win the Big Ten postseason tournament after winning the regular season so they can do the double. So we expect a competitive, hard-nosed, physical battle. It's two NCAA Tournament-bound teams, I'm sure."
Defense is what makes Rutgers, ranked No. 18 in the latest NSCAA poll, so dangerous this postseason.
Grezcek's eight shutouts are accompanied by a 1.03 goals against average, and he's quick to credit the back four for season-long stinginess.
"I think a lot of it has to do with discipline - in practice and games - and I think everyone has been on the same page," he said. "That comes from playing together. During my first two years here we never had a consistent back four. But the back four this year has been the same since day one. Tyler and (Niel Guzman) have made a very good transition."
Donigan said part of the reason for the consistently good defensive play, and the dramatic turnaround from last year's 6-12-1 campaign, is the "maturity with the group as a whole."
"It's certainly been David's performance in goal," he said. "It's certainly been the back four just being very tough and organized and in sync with each other. And the realization with everyone else, the midfielders and even the front runners, to understand we need to defend as a group and that we can't just rely on the back four and for David to make that big-time save.
"They all have to contribute to the defensive side of our game."
Since a 3-1 home loss to Michigan State on Sept. 25, Rutgers has gone 9-2, with seven shutouts. The goal differential over that stretch has been 27-9.
The steady, tight defense, combined with having two of the Big Ten's top four goal producers (Offensive Player of the Year Jason Wright and Miles Hackett), has the Rutgers players believing they can make an impact this month.
"What we're doing this season is because of the work we put in during the offseason," said Guzman. "The strength and conditioning coach gave us exactly what we needed. He knew we had a bad mentality as a team and he fixed that. And we put in the work to change everything from last year. And we've developed a good chemistry as the season has gone on."
