Rutgers University
Nebraska
Starting XI: Women's Soccer at Nebraska
Sep 27 | Women's Soccer
The 11 things to know before the Scarlet Knights visit the Cornhuskers on Thu., Sept. 28 at 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
I
THE DETAILS
Thu., Sept. 288 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT) at Hibner Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Rutgers (5-4-2, 1-2-0)
vs. Nebraska (7-2-2, 1-1-1)
Watch on Big Ten Network/Fox Sports App | Live Stats
II
PREVIOUSLY ON...
Rutgers used a second-minute Emily Mason marker and held on for a 1-0 victory over Purdue (3-7-1, 0-2-1) for its first Big Ten win of the season on a drenched Sunday afternoon at Yurcak Field. It took just 82 seconds for Rutgers to take an early advantage with Riley Tiernan at the corner spot. Her well-placed service found Emily Mason on the far side of the Purdue 18-yard box, where the defender collected and fired off the inside of the near post for her first tally of the 2023 season.III
SCOUTING THE HUSKERS
Nebraska is 7-2-2, 1-1-1, and climbed to No. 27 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings. Despite outshooting No. 4 Penn State 16-13 on the road last time out, the Huskers dropped their first conference match of the season, falling 1-0 to the Nittany Lions on Sunday afternoon.
Eleanor Dale earned her second-straight Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor this month as she currently leads the country and conference in total goals (13) and game-winning goals (5), while also leading the conference in shots (55), shots on goal (27) and points (28). Additionally, she's tallied five braces in just 11 games to open the season. As a team, the Huskers are fourth in the nation in shots per game (20.36), seventh in assists per game (2.91), 10th in points per game (8.55) and tied for eighth in total goals (31). In the goal, senior Sami Hauk has recorded 36 saves and is currently fifth in the conference standings in saves per game (3.27). The Huskers have tallied three shutouts in 11 contests.
Rutgers is 1-0-6 against Nebraska since joining the Big Ten in 2014. The Scarlet Knights broke a string of six consecutive draws to start the series with a 1-0 victory in 2021 in New Jersey, the last meeting between the two sides. The series has featured four draws in Lincoln, matching 1-1 ties in 2014, 2017, and 2019, and a scoreless draw in the spring of 2021.
IV
TIERNAN UP THE DEFENSE
Junior forward Riley Tiernan has two goals and three assists on the 2023 season, but the stat line doesn't tell the full story of the superstar from Voorhees, New Jersey. The highlight reel also shows elite ball skills in the attacking third, and the premonitions of said skills drawing double and triple teams from opposing backs - opening up opportunities and chances for her teammates."I don't really care much about my personal stats," Tiernan said. "It's more about getting the results for the team. So I want to put myself into dangerous spots, whether I'm getting the ball or not, making plays, being creative, and to put pressure on the other team to allow us to be more successful in the attack."
The 2021 Big Ten Rookie of the Year has been named on the United Soccer Coaches National Players to Watch list for forwards for the second consecutive season. Tiernan was one of three Big Ten players on the national watch list, joining Rebecca Cooke from Penn State and Sarah Weber from Nebraska. Tiernan earned United Soccer Coaches All-Region Second Team and All-Big Ten Third Team accolades during her sophomore season in 2022. The striker has 22 career assists, already good for sixth place in the RU record book.
"We always say that our next game is the most important game of the year," Tiernan said. "We need to continue to be vocal with each other and continue to stay focused. We have a lot of core values we go over during meetings, and I think we changed our dynamic at practice because of that. Everyone works 10 times harder. We're there to learn and get better. And I think everyone's locked in and knows how it feels to lose and knows how it feels to win. And we all obviously like winning much more."
Tiernan was at the middle of the 2021 College Cup run and the best start to any season at 9-0-0 in 2022. She helped set the standards, and now is assuming a leadership role in resetting the group when those standards have not lived up to their own expectations to start 2023.
"My sister [assistant coach Madison Richard] always says you don't have to respect us, but you will fear us," Tiernan said. "We use that as motivation. I think that a lot of teams overlook Rutgers and kind of laugh in the face of Rutgers sometimes. And I think that we should just take that and use that as ammunition to come out and work harder than every other team. And no matter how talented another team is compared to us, we're just going to be hungrier and we're going to have more of that bite than they do. And that's going to get us the results that we want in the end."
That first goal of the season feeling‼️@RUWSoccer wins 2-0 on opening night. pic.twitter.com/6MJ58O6VhE
— Big Ten Soccer (@B1GSoccer) August 18, 2023
V
HATS OFF
Senior forward Allison Lowrey netted Rutgers' first hat trick since 2019 in the 7-0 victory over FDU on Aug. 31. The trio of goals gave the Bridgewater, New Jersey native a team-high six on the season, which ranks sixth in the Big Ten. Lowrey now has 21 career goals with the Scarlet Knights.VI
THE SLATE
Rutgers faced a top-five ranked team (Penn State) for the first time since dropping a hard-fought 1-0 final score against eventual national champions and No. 1 ranked Florida State in the NCAA College Cup national semifinals in 2021. It was the second match in a row the Scarlet Knights faced an unbeaten team midway through the regular season after playing at 6-0-2 Indiana last Sunday. The Scarlet Knights topped previously unbeaten Providence, who was 5-0 and did not surrender a single goal, by a 1-0 score on Sept. 7. RU also worked to a scoreless draw at now-ranked No. 13 Princeton, who was 2-0 back on Aug. 31.The Scarlet Knights also took on CAA champions, Hofstra, on Aug. 20, NEC champions, FDU, on Aug. 28, and three-time defending Big East champions, Georgetown, on Sept. 4. RU visited NCAA Tournament participants NC State on the road Aug. 24.
The Scarlet Knights have played four teams currently ranked in the Top 25 of the NCAA RPI as of Sept. 24.
VII
MASON MARKS
Junior back Emily Mason has been named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for National Player of the Year and a 2023 Player to Watch by United Soccer Coaches. The Flemington, New Jersey native has also been listed on Top Drawer Soccer's Big Ten Conference preview as one of five Players to Watch, along with an honor on Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Best XI Third Team.A Third-Team All-American, All-Big Ten First Team, and All-North Region First Team selection as a sophomore in 2022, Mason turned in 14 matches with the full 90 minutes played, contributing to eight shutouts on the Scarlet Knight defense. The versatile, 5-foot-10 defender has also chipped in on the attack, scoring her first collegiate goal in a 7-0 win against Temple on Sept. 1 and then scoring her first collegiate brace in a 3-0 win at Purdue on Oct. 2. She also added an important assist in the 1-1 draw at then-No. 8 Northwestern on Sept. 29. Mason missed the first two contests of the season while serving with the United States Youth National Team at the U20 World Cup in Costa Rica. She previously won gold with the USYNT at the Concacaf Women's Championship and the Sud Ladies Cup in 2021.
VIII
THE ARMBANDS
Rutgers women's soccer head coach Mike O'Neill has named Becci Fluchel, Allison Lynch, and Emma Misal as captains of the 2023 Scarlet Knights squad.The trio has been at the center of Rutgers' sustained success over the past four years, which included consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament, the undefeated 2021 Big Ten Championship, and the run to the 2021 NCAA College Cup. Fluchel and Misal enter their senior seasons, while Lynch returns for her fifth year "On the Banks." This high-performing group has been part of a backline that allowed just 12 goals in 18 regular-season games in 2022, including only three during the historic 9-0 start to the year.
Lynch returns for her second captainship in her fifth year with nearly 7,000 minutes of action on defense for the Scarlet Knights. She led the team with 88.2 minutes per game in 2022. Not shy to move forward, Lynch scored an important goal in a 2-2 draw with Minnesota last fall and carries nine career points on three goals and three assists into her final season. The Bridgewater, New Jersey native played all 90 minutes in 17 of her 20 games last season, including the final 15 of the campaign.
Misal earns her first captain's armband after being named Third Team All-Big Ten as a back in 2022. The defender from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania has contributed to one of the nation's top defenses over the past three years, chipping in on five Rutgers shutouts last fall. Misal worked back from a training camp injury to earn a starting job during the season's final 12 matches, which included 85-plus minute efforts in the last four games.
IX
CHASING HISTORY
Riley Tiernan (6) and Sara Brocious (7) led in assists last season and are marching up the record book in career helpers at RU. Tiernan is sixth all-time with 22 and needs one more to enter the Top 5. Brocious has 17 career assists, breaking into the Top 10 in a tie with RU greats Carli Lloyd and Taylor Aylmer. The all-time assist record at Rutgers is 29 set by Gina DeMaio from 2006-10.
X
NEW KIDS "ON THE BANKS"
Rutgers women's soccer head coach Mike O'Neill welcomes 11 freshmen to the program for the 2023 season, including nine hailing from New Jersey. The class includes Brianna Azevedo, Ashley Baran, Ava Brass, Audrey Cain, Elliot Forney, Gabriela Gil, Alyssa Martinez, Reilly McGlinn, Shannon Reiser, Olivia Russomanno, and Tehya Scheuten.
This standout group includes a New Jersey Player of the Year, All-Americans, multiple national and state champions at the high school and club levels, and numerous All-State honorees.
Baran scored her first collegiate goal against FDU on Aug. 28, while Russomanno picked up her first point with an assist in that 7-0 victory. The rookie teammates have played in all 11 matches to start their Rutgers careers.
XI
LIVING 'VICARI'OUSLY
Rutgers women's soccer welcomes impact transfer Gia Vicari to the 2023 roster. The Georgetown transfer and dynamic forward will be a graduate student at Rutgers and will play her final year of eligibility "On the Banks" after leading the nationally ranked and three-time Big East champion Hoyas in scoring over the past three seasons.Vicari is coming off a 2022 season that earned Second Team All-East Region honors from United Soccer Coaches, along with All-Big East First Team honors after leading Georgetown with six goals and four assists during a 15-2-5 season. The Hoyas won the 2022 Big East Championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, ending the season ranked No. 19.
Vicari picked up her first Rutgers goal in the 7-0 victory over FDU on Aug. 28, and added a second at Indiana on Sept. 17.
Stay up to date on the latest news and schedule updates by following Rutgers women's soccer on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Download the Scarlet Knights App for Apple or Android today.
-RU-
