COLLEGE PARK, Md. – No. 24 Rutgers men's soccer (7-1-1) is on the road at No. 8 Maryland on Tuesday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. at Ludwig Field airing live on Big Ten Network and the Fox Sports App. This contest will mark the program's first Top 25 battle since No. 23 Rutgers fell to No. 5 Akron in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 22, 2015. It would be the first regular season ranked battle since a No. 25 Rutgers win over No. 6 Notre Dame on Oct. 11, 2003.

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HOW TO FOLLOW: Big Ten Network (Dean Linke & Patrick Doody) | Live Stats | Live Audio

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PREVIOUSLY ON ... 

• Rutgers took its first loss of the 2021 season in its ninth match on Friday evening, suffering a 2-0 defeat to Wisconsin (4-2-3, 1-0-1) at Yurcak Field. The Badgers are now 4-0-1 over their last five contests.
• The Scarlet Knights held the majority of possession and outshot the Badgers, 13-9, but Wisconsin produced the more dangerous opportunities with a 4-2 edge in shots on goal and capitalized where Rutgers could not.
• Rutgers' freshman goalkeeper Aurie Briscoe made his collegiate debut with the start in net after Oren Asher could not suit up with a non-COVID illness on Friday. It was the first time any keeper other than Asher manned the RU goal since both Asher and McElderry arrived together "On the Banks" for the Fall of 2019. Briscoe made two saves in his debut and gave up a pair of goals that were largely out of his hands.

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SCOUTING THE TERPS: Maryland vaulted into the nation's Top 10 with a 7-1 record and a perfect 2-0 start to Big Ten play with matching 2-1 wins over Michigan and Ohio State. Maryland's only loss came to No. 1 Georgetown, a 1-0 setback on Sept. 11. Ben Bender (two goals, three assists) and Joshua Bolma (three goals, one assist) are tied for the team lead with seven points apiece, while Jamie Lowell (0.27 GAA, .889 save%, 3-1-0, two shutouts) and Niklas Neumann (1.40 GAA, .625 save%, 4-0-0) have split time in net with four starts each.

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HISTORY VS. MARYLAND: The Terrapins hold a 10-2-1 advantage in the all-time series dating back to 1960, including a 6-1-0 mark as Big Ten regular season opponents since 2014. The 2020 season (played in the Spring of 2021) saw the Scarlet Knights pick up their first win over Maryland since 1995 with a 2-0 triumph in Piscataway in March on a pair of goals from Ritchie Barry and a shutout from Oren Asher. The Terrapins got revenge in the postseason, however, advancing in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals in a penalty shootout, 5-4, after a 1-1 draw after 110 minutes.

Ola Maeland scored the goal in the tournament game before being named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team for 2020.

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A GARDEN STATE STATEMENT: The Scarlet Knights entered the national rankings with a No. 21 listing in last week's United Soccer Coaches poll, joining a No. 14 rank by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 20 rank at College Soccer News. Following RU's first loss of the season to Wisconsin on Friday, Rutgers remains in the coaches' poll at No. 24 in the Sept. 28 rankings.

The stunning 2-1 victory at the three-time defending Big Ten regular season and tournament champions Indiana marked the Scarlet Knights' first victory over a ranked opponent since 2015. Indiana lost its Big Ten opener for just the third time in its storied history, falling to 23-3-5. Scoring twice in the contest, it also marked the first time Rutgers tallied a goal in the series with the Hoosiers since 2015.

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COMING UP ROSAMILIA: Scarlet Knight rookie Nico Rosamilia launched into the team lead with seven points thanks to his three goals, two in the 2-1 victory over Saint Joseph's and the equalizer at No. 11 Indiana. The Roseland, New Jersey native started the first three games of the season, grabbing his first collegiate point on Rutgers' very first goal of the 2021 season, an assist to Thomas DeVizio. Rosamilia is a product of Major League Soccer's New York Red Bulls development academy, where he netted 12 goals in 2020 and earned "Man of the Match" honors in consecutive weeks against the Montreal Impact and DC United.

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RAKING IN THE HONORS: Rutgers has earned a Big Ten Player of the Week honor in the three weeks to start the 2021 season. Nico Rosamilia is the latest with 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 two-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 fourth in the nation with five shutouts, while Rutgers ranks 22nd in the nation and second in the Big Ten with a 0.65 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.

Freshmen Acosta and Zalinsky both made starts in eight of the nine games halfway through the season, while Rosamilia leads the team with seven points on offense.


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