Rutgers University
NCAA Quarterfinals: #7 Arkansas
No. 5 Women’s Soccer Set for NCAA Quarterfinals Friday versus No. 7 Arkansas
Nov 23 | Women's Soccer
No. 1 seeded Scarlet Knights hosts No. 2 seeded Razorbacks for Elite Eight matchup
"We're taking in that moment of advancing on PKs and seeing all the faith and belief we had in each other. A lot of girls have said that during the game, there were moments that it wasn't going our way. But for some reason, we just knew it wasn't our last game. We knew we were going to win that game. Taking that attitude and that belief and bringing it into the day. To know even if we go down a goal or it's not going our way that we can do it if we just keep believing in each other and keep on believing the process throughout the game," said senior midfielder Frankie Tagliaferri.
"The way that Sunday's game ended was so exciting for our entire team. Every game we've won so far has been exciting, but the dramatic ending to that gave us a lot of confidence. That even when a game is that close, we know how to pull it off and we can get the win," said sophomore midfielder Becci Fluchel.
Today, I can say at practice we were just focusing on having fun. We did some soccer tennis and 5v5. The energy was high, we had some music on. We're just really excited because we know we haven't been to the Elite Eight in a long time Now that we're here, all we can do is focus on the controllables, and that's our energy and our motivation to keep going forward," said freshman forward Kylie Daigle.
"We work for each other and put everything on the line because we have the same goals. We worked so hard to get the opportunity of being home and having the chance to play on our home field. It's awesome that we can have our families, friends and everyone who's been there to support us to be able to watch these games at Yurcak Field," said freshman back Emily Mason.
"The team's mentality is really good. We're all excited to be home and playing in front of our fans and be part of the Elite Eight. That's so special to us. Everybody's ready to go and just wants to win and go to the Final Four," said sophomore back Emma Misal.
THIS WEEK'S QUICK KICKS
WATCH AND FOLLOW | Friday's Quarterfinal match will be available to stream on B1G+ without a subscription. Live stats of the match will be available at NCAA.com.TICKETS | Tickets for the NCAA Tournament can be purchased by clicking here. Rutgers students can claim a free ticket to the event.
Rutgers moved to mobile-only tickets, which can be added to an Apple Wallet or Google Pay app. Fans can also download the Scarlet Knight App to access tickets, news, live updates and more. Tickets can be purchased at the gate with cash only.
WEAR BLACK | Fans are encouraged to wear black to Friday's game for a blackout.
PARKING | Parking for the NCAA Tournament is free at Yurcak Field. Fans are required to register their vehicle by clicking here. A one-time sign up will have the vehicle set for all home contests this season.
RU'S LAST TIME OUT | No. 1 seed Rutgers (19-3-1, 10-0 Big Ten) recorded a 4-0 victory over Saint Louis in the Second Round on Friday. RU then played No. 4 seed TCU to a 1-1, double-overtime draw in the Sweet Sixteen on Sunday. The Scarlet Knights advanced on penalty kicks, 5-4.
Overall, freshman forward Riley Tiernan has led Rutgers across its first three NCAA Tournament matchups, registering seven points with three goals and an assist. Senior forward Amirah Ali has contributed five points including two goals, a game winner, and an assist. Senior midfielder Frankie Tagliaferri follows with a game winner and an assist.
Senior goalkeeper Meagan McClelland has registered 17 saves in the first three rounds, recording two shutouts along the way. In Sunday's shootout, the keeper made a PK and saved three straight PKs to help RU advance to the quarterfinals.
NO. 1 SEED | Rutgers is tabbed a No. 1 seed for the 2021 NCAA Tournament. The seed marks the highest selection in program history, having been a No. 2 seed in its historic 2015 College Cup run.
BIG TEN HONORS | Following the program's first Big Ten title, Frankie Tagliaferri was named Big Ten Midfielder of the Year, Gabby Provenzano the Big Ten Defender of the Year and Riley Tiernan the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. The three player of the year awards marks the most ever in a single year for the Scarlet Knights and the first multiple top awards in single year since two in 2015.
Amirah Ali (First Team), Riley Tiernan (First Team), Frankie Tagliaferri (First Team), Gabby Provenzano (First Team), Becci Fluchel (Second Team), and Meagan McClelland (Third Team) all earned All-Big Ten honors. Riley Tiernan, Kylie Daigle and Kassidy Banks were selected to the All-Freshman Team, while Shea Holland was tabbed the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient for Rutgers.
Head Coach Mike O'Neill earned Coach of the Year accolades. In his eighth season at the helm, O'Neill guided the program in setting a plethora of records, picking up his 100th career victory along the way. A full release on the awards can be found here.
ON THE ATTACK | A total of 18 different Scarlet Knights have contributed to scoring this year. RU has outscored opponents 62-14 on the year, including 13 different goal scorers, 11 multi-goal contributors, and 58 team assists.
Frankie Tagliaferri leads the squad with 34 points (13g, 8a) on the season. Amirah Ali follows with 28 points (11g, 6a) of her own while Riley Tiernan owns 26 points (7g, 12a). Allison Lowrey (6g, 4a) has notched 16 points, Sam Kroeger (5g, 3a) has 14 points, Sara Brocious (4g, 5a) has 13 points, and Kylie Daigle 11 points (3g, 5a) to round out the double-digit point contributors.
Rutgers ranks 10th in the nation in scoring offense with 2.70 goals per game across 23 matches. The Scarlet Knights lead the Big Ten and are top eight in the nation in total goals (5th -62), total assists (8th - 58), and total points (6th - 182). Tiernan ranks 11th in the NCAA with 12 assists, while Tagliaferri ranks 18th with 34 total points.
SHUTOUT SOCCER | The Scarlet Knights have registered 13 shutouts this season, including seven against Big Ten opponents. Rutgers has held all 23 opponents to nine or less shots on goal this season, including 10 to three or less SOG. The Scarlet Knights kept 14 to seven or less shots in the match overall. Dating back to 2019, RU has held 51 straight opponents to single-digit shots on goal in each match.
BIG TEN PLAYERS OF THE WEEK | Rutgers claimed 13 conference weekly awards this regular season, the most in a single season for the program. The honors have included Offensive honors for Frankie Tagliferri (8/31) and Amirah Ali (10/26), Defensive accolades for Gabby Provenzano (9/7 & 9/28), Becci Fluchel (9/21 & 10/12) and Allison Lynch (10/5 & 10/26), Goalkeeper honors for Meagan McClelland (10/26) and Freshman recognition for Riley Tiernan (8/31, 10/12 & 10/19) and Kassidy Banks (9/21).
MAC HERMANN TROPHY | Seniors Amirah Ali and Frankie Tagliaferri are named to the 2021 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. The trophy is awarded to the National Player of the Year. It marks the first time two Scarlet Knights have been added to the list in the same season.
SENIOR CLASS AWARD | Seniors Gabby Provenzano and Frankie Tagliafferi are named 2021 Senior CLASS Award candidates. The award recognizes student-athletes who excel both on and off the field. It marks the second straight year RU has had a candidate for the Award, as classmate Amirah Ali was named a finalist and First Team selection in 2020-21.
Tagliaferri was tabbed one of 10 finalist for the award. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I head coaches' votes to determine the winner. The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2021 NCAA Men's and Women's College Cup® championships in December.
IN THE RANKINGS | Rutgers entered the NCAA Tournament ranked 5th in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll released on Nov. 9, as well as ranking No. 3 in the latest RPI rankings. RU is also tabbed No. 2 by Top Drawer Soccer.
FOLLOW THE SCARLET KNIGHTS | Follow Rutgers women's soccer on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Download the Scarlet Knights App for Apple or Android today.
