1990 Team To Be Inducted Into Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame
Aug 06 | Men's Soccer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The Rutgers University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics today announced that Gary Brackett (football), Keith Cromwell (lacrosse), Fred Hill (baseball), Dick Lloyd (special contributor/basketball) and the 1990 men's soccer team will comprise the 2015 Hall of Fame class. The newest members of the Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame will be recognized on Saturday, Sept. 26, when the Scarlet Knights host Kansas at High Point Solutions Stadium in the annual homecoming football game.
"We are incredibly proud to welcome such a distinguished class into our Hall of Fame," said Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Julie Hermann. "Not only has this class achieved tremendous competitive success, they have also served as great ambassadors for our University. We look forward to celebrating their many accomplishments."
"I was fortunate to have played against and with many of these players. This is certainly a very well deserved honor for this group of coaches and players," said head coach Dan Donigan. "They were a part of some of the very best years Rutgers soccer has seen."
The recognition of the Class of will take place at halftime of the contest versus the Jayhawks, which is slated for a 12 noon kickoff. For tickets to the game, call 866-445-4678 or visit www.ScarletKnights.com/tickets.
A Hall of Fame dinner will take place the prior evening, Friday, Sept. 25, at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick. More details regarding the dinner and events surrounding Hall of Fame weekend (Sept. 25-26) will be released soon. For more information, please contact Lucy Cruz (lcruz@winants.rutgers.edu) in the Rutgers Athletic Development office at 848-932-2292.
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| Bill Andracki | Lino DiCuollo | Alexi Lalas | Pedro Lopes |
The 1990 Rutgers Men's Soccer Team
The storyline of the 1990 Scarlet Knights began to develop on October 5, when near tragedy struck the squad. After a 1-0 win at Rhode Island, which moved the side to 7-1-2, the spiritual leader of the team, Alexi Lalas, fell ill. Doctors revealed that the tall redhead had a severely abscessed appendix, which could have been fatal if diagnosed any later. Injuries to Lino DiCuollo and Bill Andracki had interrupted a 5-0 start to the season but their temporary loss seemed minuscule to this situation.
Coach Reasso had only one day to think about his approach to altering the lineup. He put Jeff Zaun at sweeper back, and a host of others would fill in at midfield. When many thought the team would crumble, Rutgers played its most tactful and intense soccer. Legitimate talk of the national championship began when Rutgers absolutely dominated UCLA in the MetLife Classic, winning 2-1 against the top-ranked Bruins. Three days later, on October 17, Rutgers blanked arch-rival Seton Hall, 3-0.
That week spearheaded a streak of over 600 consecutive minutes of shutout soccer, a time that spanned six matches. Bill Andracki, Jeff Zaun, Chris Beach and Mike Miller were the stars of the nation's second-ranked defense in goals allowed, as Rutgers set its sights on the Atlantic 10 Tournament title, a trophy that had eluded the team for three seasons.
Rutgers shutout George Washington for the second time in the year, winning the semifinal match, 2-0. It set up a Rutgers/Penn State final, which had been the final in A-10 soccer for the first three tournaments. Penn State took home the title in those three games, and it looked like the jinx would continue when the Nittany Lions took a 1-0 lead into the locker room at halftime. However, as he had done most of the season, Steve Rammel took over the game. He absolutely demanded the ball, evened the match in the 67th minute and assisted on the go-ahead goal which was scored by Dave Mueller.
His second goal of the game clinched the 3-1 win, and the effort capsulized the kind of season he had. He was the nation's 11th leading scorer, and when Lino DiCuollo was slowed by a bruised ankle, Rammel stepped up to become one of the most dangerous strikers in the nation. He scored two or more goals in a game six times, and Rutgers did not lose a game in which scored. The target of brutal double and triple teams all season, Rammel never wore down. He would lead Rutgers into the NCAA Tournament as the hottest striker in the country.
Lalas also returned to action as he miraculously healed and recuperated in a month. In Rutgers Stadium, the Scarlet Knights defeated Adelphi and Dartmouth to advance to the Final Four, being held for the first time at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Rutgers drew Evansville, the nation's top-ranked and lone undefeated team. A first-half goal by Mike Miller would be the only scoring in the match and the 16th shutout of the year highlighted the defeat of the Aces, the second number one team to fall to Rutgers in 1990.
That set up the showdown with UCLA for the national title. The match was scoreless through regulation time and it stayed that way through four overtimes. In the shootout, Rutgers had a 1-0 lead, but could not hold it. The Bruins hit the net four times to Rutgers' three, and UCLA claimed its second national title.
Were they the best team there? The only team to score a goal in the tournament was Rutgers and they did not allow a goal in 240 minutes of play. Certainly, the Scarlet Knights could feel good about their season, considering the adversity that faced them.
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| Mike Miller | Dave Mueller | Steve Rammel | Jeff Zaun |
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