BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 9, 2019) – Rutgers men's soccer exited the Big Ten Tournament in the opening round with a 1-0 loss to Ohio State on Saturday afternoon at a neutral site at Indiana's Bill Armstrong Stadium. The Scarlet Knights end the season with a 7-8-1 overall record.
 
The eighth-seeded Buckeyes (7-10-1) scored the match's lone goal in the 65^th minute on a corner kick. Ohio State advances to play No. 1 seed Indiana on Sunday in the quarterfinals.
 
Freshman goalkeeper Oren Asher made seven saves to keep Rutgers in the contest throughout the postseason game. On the other end of the field, Valentino Ambrosio and Anthony O'Donnell each took two shots and each put a shot on goal to force saves from Ohio State keeper Parker Siegfried, who made three total stops in the shutout.
 
"Disappointed for our guys today," said head coach Jim McElderry, coaching in his first Big Ten Tournament game. "But I am proud of the team and especially our two seniors – Jake Longo and Tim McQuaid. They all worked very hard since last January."
 
Asher finished his rookie season making every start in net, joined by fellow freshmen Hugo Le Guennec, Jørgen Wisth Lie and Jackson Temple in every starting lineup this fall.
 
The Scarlet Knights' seven victories this season under McElderry are the most in a Rutgers campaign since 2015.
 
"I am very optimistic for Rutgers soccer," McElderry said. "We have a good young core of players who will only get better this offseason. We will look to 2020 with excitement as we return this young group and will definitely add to the team with new, dedicated and talented student-athletes."
 
 
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