PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers men's soccer (8-3-2, 2-3-1) travels to Michigan (6-5-3, 3-2-1) on Friday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. ET at U-M Soccer Stadium and live on Big Ten+. With two conference match days remaining, Michigan, Indiana, and Wisconsin are in a three-way tie for third place with 10 points, with the Scarlet Knights in striking distance of hosting a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal with seven points in seventh place.
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HOW TO FOLLOW: Big Ten+ | Live Stats
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PREVIOUSLY ON ...
- Rutgers gained a crucial three points on the Big Ten table with a 2-1 victory at Northwestern last Friday evening.
- With three regular season games remaining, the Scarlet Knights' eight victories are the program's most in a campaign since earning 12 during the 2015 NCAA Tournament season.
- The year 2015 was also the last time Rutgers won in Evanston. Ritchie Barry ensured that victory with the game-winning goal on a well-placed header in the 81st minute, redirecting a perfect cross from the left sideline by Nick Cruz, breaking a 1-1 tie and notching Barry's second goal of the year.
- Rutgers got the opener when Jason Bouregy led Jackson Temple into the attacking third in the 21st minute. Temple swiftly penetrated the defense and ripped a left-footed shot from the top of the 18-yard box up and over the keeper to the left side of the net for the 1-0 lead. It was the third goal of the season for the junior, which is now tied for the team lead.
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SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES: Michigan sits in a three-way tie for third in the Big Ten thanks to conference wins over Wisconsin, Indiana, and Northwestern, and a draw against Michigan State. Last match out, the Wolverines earned a scoreless draw on the road at Akron.
Kevin Buca leads the attack with nine points on four goals and an assist, one of 13 Wolverins to record a point this season. Goalkeeper Hayden Evans leads the Big Ten with 4.2 saves per game, coming into the Rutgers match with a 5-3-1 record, a 1.16 goals-against average, and a .776 save percentage (third in the B1G).
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HISTORY VS. MICHIGAN: Michigan leads the all-time series 6-2-2. U-M is 3-0-2 against Rutgers in the last five meetings between the two, including a 1-0 overtime victory in the Spring '21 campaign in Piscataway. When playing the Scarlet Knights at U-M Soccer Stadium, the Wolverines own a 2-1-1 advantage, last playing to a 1-1 draw in 2019 in Rutgers head coach
Jim McElderry's debut season.
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THE YOUNG GUNS: First-year student-athletes and New Jersey natives
Joey Zalinsky,
Matthew Acosta, and
Nico Rosamilia represent the Rutgers men on the Top Drawer Soccer Freshmen Top 100 midseason rankings. Rutgers is one of 11 schools across NCAA Division I to have three or more players on the ranked list.
- No. 21 Zalinsky has played in 12 of Rutgers' first 13 matches of the 2021 season with 11 starts on the backline while contributing to six RU shutouts, which ranks 21st in the nation as of Oct. 21.
- No. 51 Acosta has been a mainstay in Jim McElderry's lineup with a call to the Starting XI in all 13 games to start his collegiate career. The freshman picked up his first collegiate assist in the 1-0 victory over Penn on Sept. 20, and added his second helper on the goal against Michigan State on Oct. 10.
- No. 78 Rosamilia is the Scarlet Knights' leading scorer through 13 match days with seven points on three goals and an assist. He has played in all 12 contests with six nods to the starting lineup. The freshman recorded his first collegiate point in his very first game with an assist in the season opening victory over Delaware, then scored his first two career goals with a brace in the 2-1 Saint Joseph's victory on Sept. 13. Rosamilia made it three scores in two games with the opening tally in the 2-1 upset victory at then-No. 11 Indiana on Sept. 17.
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SPREAD THE LOVE: When
Nick Cruz and
Jason Bouregy assisted the goals in the victory at Northwestern last Friday, they became the 11th and 12th different Scarlet Knights to record a point in 2021. Following
Nico Rosamilia and
Jackson Temple's three goals apiece, senior captain
Pablo Avila and
Ritchie Barry both have two, while captain
Thomas DeVizio,
Ola Maeland,
Vincent Borden,
Anthony O'Donnell and
Cole Sotack have all found the back of the net this Fall. Acosta is one of three Scarlet Knights with multiple assists this season.
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RAKING IN THE HONORS: Rutgers has earned a Big Ten Player of the Week honor in four of the first six weeks to start the 2021 season.
Nico Rosamilia won the Offensive Player of the Week honor on Sept. 14.
Thomas DeVizio was also named to the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week for his two assists in the win over Lehigh from Sept. 10. It was the second national honor of the season, joining
Oren Asher's College Soccer News Team of the Week distinction from Sept. 7.
Asher is a three-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. Asher and the defense are one of just two teams in NCAA Division I to post four shutouts in their first four matches of the season. Asher was the only goalkeeper in the nation with 380 minutes played and no goals allowed to start the season. Asher is tied for 12th in the nation with six shutouts, while Rutgers ranks 27th in the nation and third in the Big Ten with a 0.81 goals-against average.
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OUT OF CONFERENCE IS IN: The season opener against Delaware was Rutgers' first non-conference match in 667 days. Last time RU had a non-conference slate, the Scarlet Knights went 6-1-2 out of conference for its fifth-best non-league winning percentage in school history.
Rutgers is now 11-1-3 in non-conference action under head coach
Jim McElderry.
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SPRING BACK: Head coach
Jim McElderry guided Rutgers not only through a nontraditional pandemic season, but also posted four Big Ten wins and finished in fifth place in the conference along the way - both tying program highs since joining the league in 2014. The conference-only campaign finished 4-4-1 and included historic wins for RU: a first-ever victory in seven tries against Michigan State and the program's first triumph over Maryland since 1995. The season ended with a touch of heartbreak as Maryland outlasted the Scarlet Knights, 5-4, in a penalty shootout at the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals following a 1-1 draw after 110 minutes.
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RU EXPERIENCED?: The vast majority of the group that found so much success last Spring is back for the Fall. The Scarlet Knights welcome back 10 returning starters. In all, 19 players who saw action last Spring return for the Fall, making up 24 of the 27 points scored and 91 percent of the minutes played throughout the roster. Rutgers returns some hardware with graduate student striker
Ritchie Barry staying on for his fifth year after being named All-Big Ten Second Team in the Spring.
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NEW KIDS "ON THE BANKS": McElderry recruited seven freshmen and three transfers to make up 10 newcomers on the 2021 Fall roster.
Xavi Olmos is a grad transfer from Florida International, while
Jason Bouregy (American) and
Jace Orvos (Penn State) transfer in as sophomores. The seven first-years include five New Jersey natives -
Matthew Acosta,
Aurie Briscoe,
Bryan Keating,
Nico Rosamilia, and
Joey Zalinsky - along with
Adam Davies from Pennsylvania and
Aidan Flynn from the Portland Timbers Academy.
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