2015 WSOC Season Review
Dec 18 | Women's Soccer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - More than a week has passed since Rutgers women's soccer made its captivating run to the first College Cup in program history. For head coach Mike O'Neill, it's still remarkable what the team was able to accomplish.
They made a decision to be great, O'Neill said.
"They took 2014, and they had a good year in 2014, but they felt they could accomplish more," said O'Neill, in his second year as head coach. "The mentality when they came back, you could see was different. They were ready to go."
The Scarlet Knights maintained the demeanor and determination of champions through all 26 matches.
RU achieved program records in wins (19), shutouts (19), home wins (13), and fewest goals allowed (10) as the tight-knit group, using '30 Strong' as its unifying call, took the Rutgers community on a ride it won't soon forget.
The high point came in the form of a 7-6 penalty shootout upset at No. 1 Virginia in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals, sending the program to its first College Cup. Along the way new standards were achieved: a trip to the program's first Big Ten Conference Championship, four victories over top-25 opponents, an unfathomable eight-game, 770:16-minute shutout streak to begin the season.
The postseason laurels were plentiful and a record two players- defender Erica Skroski and goalkeeper Casey Murphy - were named National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Americans. On the NSCAA All-Region list, Skroski and Murphy were joined by Brianne Reed, who also won the Senior CLASS Award, and Colby Ciarrocca.
As a team, the Scarlet Knights finished the year ranked No. 4 in the NSCAA Coaches Poll - the highest ranking to close a season in program history.
"They set goals, accomplished goals. We achieved more on the field as a team and individually than ever before," O'Neill said. "Every day they came out and they just wanted to get better. And that environment is so important for success. That's the Rutgers women's soccer program. That's the expectation from player to player. That's the expectation from coach to player, and also player the coach. If you want to be a part of this program, you've got to bring your best."
From early August to early December, that's exactly what Rutgers women's soccer did. And long after the final minute of play, the support for the program has carried on.
"The support that we got from New Jersey was unbelievable," O'Neill said. "The way that the state embraced us and the soccer community embraced us, from the number of emails, text messages that the coaching staff received, that players received, was special to be a part of. The University, the athletic department and all sports teams, the alumni, the Rutgers community, the Riot Squad, the state as a whole - their support was critical to our success."
Nonconference Schedule
Record: 7-0 | Highlight: Eight-game shutout streak (770:16 minutes)
Prepared to conquer their challenging non-conference opponents, Rutgers emerged as a complete team on both sides of the ball. The Scarlet Knights achieved the longest winning streak of any RU team to open the season with wins against Loyola Marymount, Hofstra, Villanova, Massachusetts, Princeton, and Drexel.
The winning stretch set up one final nonconference test on Sept. 13 against a UConn team then unbeaten and ranked No. 20 in the nation.
With goals from Skroski and Ciarrocaa, and a five-save performance by Murphy, the Scarlet Knights handed the Huskies their first loss of the year and picked up their first of four ranked wins in 2015.
"The competition at that time was really good. I think to play against that level of competition and not give up a goal was exciting to be a part of," said O'Neill whose squad outscored its non-league foes, 13-0. "Part of that is the commitment of everybody to play both sides of the ball and to develop the style of play that we desire."
Conference Schedule
Record: 7-2-2 | Highlight: 1-0 win vs. No. 9 Penn State
Big Ten Conference competition began on the same pitch as it did in 2014. This time around, the Scarlet Knights made sure they left Ludwig Field with a different result.
A goal in the second minute of play from senior Samantha Valliant was all Rutgers needed in a 1-0 win at Maryland, avenging a 2-0 loss in the program's first-ever Big Ten match a year ago. The win also extended the shutout streak to eight matches.
"Those first eight games were so important," O'Neill said. "I think to do it the way that we did it was very special to watch against good competition. We recognized to be successful that's what we needed to do."
RU's only two losses in league play occurred the following weekend at Illinois (Sept. 24) and Northwestern (Sept. 27). How the team responded is a large reason why the Scarlet Knights were able to make a run to the Big Ten Championship match.
The Scarlet Knights stayed '30 Strong' and rattled off a 10-match unbeaten streak that pushed them all the way to a Big Ten title bout against top-seeded Penn State.
Included in that run was a 1-0 shutout of the Nittany Lions at Yurcak Field, and a 3-1 win against then-No. 19 Minnesota.
Postseason
Record: 5-2-1 | Highlight: 7-6 PK shootout win at No. 1 Virginia
Rutgers started the postseason at Yurcak Field in dominant fashion against sixth-seeded Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament. The Scarlet Knights conceded the game's first goal in the third minute, but responded with four goals from four different players in a 4-1 victory.
That momentum was carried into a methodical 2-0 win against Ohio State in University Park, Pa., taking RU to its second league final in three seasons.
Penn State, the eventual College Cup champion, prevailed with a 2-0 win over Rutgers in the Big Ten final. Regardless, the statement was clear - Rutgers has developed into one of the elite programs in both the Big Ten and the country.
"If you want something, you have to work for it. No one is going to give it to you," O'Neill said. "Everybody that's involved with this program wants more. You have to take that experience and utilize that experience to motivate you to stay at this level and go beyond."
Rutgers was rewarded for its memorable regular season by earning a No. 2 seed for the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The seed, RU's highest in NCAA Tournament action, meant the Scarlet Knights would play at least the first three rounds at Yurcak Field - a place they hadn't been defeated - as long as they captured winning results.
Rutgers maintained its clean sheet supremacy while doubling its scoring result with each round, beginning with a 1-0 win over Fairleigh Dickinson (Nov. 13), followed by a 2-0 win against Hofstra (Nov. 20) and a 4-0 exclamation point against UConn (Nov. 22).
The match the entire team saw coming was up next on the calendar - a meeting on the road at No. 1 Virginia. The Cavaliers had RU's number in the previous three meetings between the two schools, with two of those losses coming in the NCAA Tournament.
But Nov. 27, 2015 was Rutgers' day.
Considered by O'Neill to be one of the team's best defensive performances of the season, RU held the nation's most dangerous scoring threat off the board in a scoreless draw.
The script grew even more dramatic as the Scarlet Knights missed their first two penalty attempts for a 2-0 hole.
The narrative changed when Murphy strayed from net to take RU's third penalty attempt. The Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year buried her shot, made two additional saves down the stretch, and Rutgers converted its last seven attempts to shock the nation with a 7-6 shootout win and final four berth.
"I know that the goal of the team and the goal of the seniors when they came here is they wanted to make sure by the time they left that this program was one of the top five programs in the country," O'Neill said. "That's the way they wanted to leave it and that's the expectation and that's where they are."
Looking Ahead to 2016
Rutgers returns significant experience after what was undoubtedly the most successful campaign in program history. Coming back "To the Banks" are nine players that earned starting experience, including Murphy in net, leading scorer Colby Ciarrocca and Big Ten All-Freshman selections Katelyn Walters and Kenie Wright. Rising seniors Madison Tiernan, Erin Smith, Tori Prager, Jennifer Andresen will be critical to the team's success in 2016.
Continuity as a staff is critical to what RU has been able to accomplish and O'Neill credits his staff for the exceptional year.
"Not only does this staff work hard, but they're really good at what they do," O'Neill said. "From the soccer aspect, to dealing with the players and educating the players. When you come to a program, you have to get better. The recruiting aspect is important, but that time when you're here, you have to get better. You watch the day-to-day of that and the way the staff has developed this team, it's very special to be a part of."
Replacing the likes of the senior class - Cassie Inacio, Rachel Cole, Hayley Katkwoski, Erica Skroski, Brianne Reed, Gabby Moreno, Maggie Morash, Erica Sousa, and Cassidy Benintente - will not be easy. The senior group of Scarlet Knights was the first in program history to guide Rutgers to four consecutive NCAA Tournament berths.
"Our senior class set the example of wanting more," O'Neill said. "This program has gone to a different level because of their leadership, and now it's up to the players behind them to make sure that that's the women's soccer standard - that we expect to compete for championships every year."
The challenge now is maintaining the new Rutgers standard so that the Scarlet Knights can hold their position among the nation's elite.
"For the players that are returning, what they do with it is their choice. Is that going to be enough? Are they going to take that experience to motivate themselves and want more? Knowing the personalities that we have here, that's my expectation," O'Neill said.
"They're going to utilize this situation to make the team better, themselves better, the family stronger, and we want that to be a part of the culture of the Rutgers women's soccer program."
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