Rutgers University
Michigan State
Men's Soccer Welcomes Michigan State for Big Ten Home Opener Senior Day Celebration
Sep 15 | Men's Soccer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Rutgers men's soccer team (2-3-1) open Big Ten play against Michigan State (4-0-1) at Yurcak Field on Sunday at 2 p.m. The team will also celebrate Senior Day with a Scarlet Out. Everyone is encouraged to wear Scarlet to the game. In addition, RU will welcome the Kids Club, giving out pins and celebrating with a high five line.
The contest will be streamed on B1G+.
Last Time Out
Rutgers continued its winning ways at Yurcak as the team downed Columbia (1-2-1), 2-0, on Wednesday night. Jackson Temple notched the game-winner just before halftime while Luciano Sanchez added an insurance goal in the final minutes of play.
It was a quiet start to the game, although Rutgers maintained an early 6-2 edge in shots in the 15th minute. However, Temple broke through in the 41st minute to give RU the lead going into halftime.
Jackson Temple steps on the pitch and creates 👏#GoRU | #RUMS pic.twitter.com/HnGwcAJQb0
— Rutgers Men's Soccer (@RUMensSoccer) September 14, 2023
Coming out of the break, the Scarlet Knights continued to attack Columbia's defensive zone, with 11 shots in the second half. In the last moments of the moments of the contest, Sanchez broke free, out running multiple Lions defenders, to give RU the 2-0 victory.
90' | Luciano Sanchez breaks free for the insurance score 👏
— Rutgers Men's Soccer (@RUMensSoccer) September 14, 2023
📺 https://t.co/aIrvSVeEzi
📊 https://t.co/AaKY4fXAlF#GoRU | #RUMS pic.twitter.com/rjdWVrZjFP
2022 Big Ten Tournament Champions
The fall off 2022 was historic for Rutgers, as the team earned its first Big Ten Tournament Championship in program history and first conference title since 1997. The Scarlet Knights became the first men's team at Rutgers and third team overall to win a Big Ten Championship since joining the conference. The victory punched RU's ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2015.
The staff secured a 10-5-6 overall record, including a 4-2-2 mark in the Big Ten, to earn the No. 2 seed in the tournament, the highest in program history. The team hosted all three rounds of the conference tournament, bringing in record crowds including over 4,200+ fans for the title game.
The Returners
Rutgers returns 22 players from its 2022 Big Ten Tournament title team including key pieces like goalkeeper Ciaran Dalton, forward Ola Maeland and midfielder Cole Cruthers.
The Scarlet Knights will also bring back two graduate students, Jackson Temple and Chris Tiao. Both were huge parts of not only the previous fall season but also the conference tournament as both scored goals in the title run.
Head coach Jim McElderry also returns for his fifth season at the helm of the Scarlet Knights, along with his staff who was named the 2022 United Soccer Coaches North Region Staff of the Year.
Top of the Stats
Jackson Temple picked up where he left off last season, leading RU in multiple statistical categories. The graduate student paces the Scarlet Knights in both points (6) and assists (2) early in the season.
He is also tied with Luciano Sanchez to pace the team with two goals. The Millville, New Jersey product has registered a point in all but one game this season, with an assist at Delaware (Aug. 24), a goal against St. John's (Aug. 28), another helper against Saint Peter's (Sept. 4) and a score against Columbia (Sept. 13).
Impact Transfers
This offseason, McElderry and the coaching staff welcomed a trio of transfers in Curt Calov (Syracuse), Sawyer Koza (Temple) and Andrew Noel (Pitt).
Calov, a midfielder from Morristown, New Jersey, played a big part in helping Syracuse to its first National Championship in program history in 2022. He scored four goals and provided a career-high seven assists for 14 points.
In the College Cup, as he scored in the 33rd minute in the National Championship match in addition to converting the second penalty in the 7-6 shootout win over Indiana. He also assisted the first goal in a 3-2 win against Creighton at the College Cup Semifinal and opened the Quarterfinals against Vermont with an incredible Olimpico goal from the corner flag in the 11th minute.
In addition, Calov recorded an assist in Syracuse's 2-0 victory against Clemson in the 2022 ACC Championship Final.
In just six games "On The Banks" Calov has made his impact known, recording a goal and an assist to tie for second on the team with three points.
As a freshman with the Owls, Koza saw action in 13 games and made 10 starts. He recorded three goals, including a career-high two scores against St. Peter's on three shots on goal. He also scored against Stony Brook.
In addition, Koza added two assists during the fall with one against South Florida and his second versus No. 22 Tulsa. He totaled eight points to close out his freshman season at Temple.
Koza has also gotten comfortable in the Scarlet & White, playing in all six games and making one start. He has also registered two shots so far in the fall.
Noel comes "On The Banks" after spending two seasons at Pitt. Although he did not see action on the field, he has seen quite a bit of success playing with the New York Red Bulls Academy. He started for the New York Red Bulls U17 team and was called up to the U17 US National Camp junior year. He won two penalty shootouts in the GA cup junior season and was later called up to the U18 National Team camp. Senior year, Noel was called up to the USL and started for the New York Red Bulls U19 team.
Featuring Freshmen
RU welcomed a group of five freshman this offseason "On The Banks" including Nick Collins, Francesco Di Ponzio, Luciano Sanchez, Erick Ruiz and Devon Stopek.
All of the newcomers call New Jersey home and will remain in the Garden State for their collegiate soccer careers. Each of the rookies has made a big impact on their respective club teams and will continue to play a big part at Rutgers.
The five newcomers have all made their mark on the program early in the season, each seeing minutes on the pitch.
Collins and Ruiz have started three games on the backline this season while Stopek and Sanchez have started two games apiece.
Sanchez has been solid at striker as he paces the team with 17 shots and 10 attempts on frame. He ranks second on the squad with five points as he recorded an assist in the season opener at Delaware (Aug. 24), notched two goals against Saint Peter's (Sept. 4) and Columbia (Sept. 13).
All five freshman have combined for 975 minutes played on the pitch and combined for 10 starts.
Scouting the Spartans
Michigan State has yet to drop a game this season. They won their first two against Bowling Green (3-0) and Army (2-1) before drawing Villanova (1-1). In their two most recent contests, the Spartans defeated Dayton (1-0) and No. 10 Notre Dame (1-0).
Sean Kerrigan paces the team with two goals for four points. Jeremy Sharp also leads the team with three assists.
Next Up
Rutgers will travel to Michigan on Friday, Sept. 22 for its Big Ten road opener. The contest will begin at 7 p.m. and be available to stream on B1G+.
