MADISON, Wisc. – The Rutgers men's soccer team (4-5-2, 1-2-1 B1G) upset No. 8 Wisconsin (6-3-1, 1-3-1 B1G), 3-1, on the road Friday night. Curt Calov, Francesc Di Ponzio and Nico Rosamilia all scored second half goals to secure the Scarlet Knights' first Big Ten win of the season.
Wisconsin came out strong to start the contest, scoring in the 6th minute to take the 1-0 lead into halftime.
However, out of the break, Ciaran Dalton reinvigorated RU with a big save on a Badgers' penalty shot in the 52nd minute.
Just moments later, Calov cashed in on a PK for RU, knotting the score, 1-1. Dalton ended the night with five saves.
Momentum continued to trend in Rutgers' direction, as Wisconsin was issued a red card in the 59th minute and forced to play the rest of the contest with just 10 men. Di Ponzio took advantage, netting the first goal of his career at the most opportune time, scoring the ultimate game-winner in the 73rd minute.
Although the Scarlet Knights also went down to 10 men as Calov was issued a second yellow card, the team continued to persist. Ola Maeland found Rosamilia in a two-on-one attack to score in the final minute of the match and solidify the victory.
Goals
6' (WIS) Dean Boltz – Markie Hrvojevic
58' | (RU) Curt Calov – unassisted
73' | (RU) Francesc Di Ponzio – Nestor Cabrera
89' | (RU) Nico Rosamilia – Ola Maeland
Game Notes
- The 3-1 win over No. 8 Wisconsin is the highest ranked win in the six years Jim McElderry has been the head coach of the Scarlet Knights. In 2021, RU defeated then-No. 11 Indiana (2-1) and tied then-No. 8 Maryland (0-0, 2OT). They also drew then-No. 11 Oohio State (2-2) in 2022.
- Rutgers has now scored a season-high three goals three times in 2024. They netted a trio of goals against Northeastern (Aug. 22) and Princeton (Aug. 30) as well.
- RU has now came out on top in the last four consecutive meetings against Wisconsin. The dominated in the 2022 regular season (2-0), advanced in the 2022 Big Ten Tournament after winning in PKs (5-4) and was also victorious in 2023 (2-1).
- Calov's goal on Friday night marks is his first score since Sept. 2 at Lehigh. He paces Rutgers with five goals and 11 points.
- Di Ponzio's first career goal came in his fourth consecutive start. He now sits with three total points, after recording his first assist earlier in the campaign at Yale (Sept. 17).
- The late score by Rosamilia signifies his second of the slate and the fifth of his career.
- Maeland (2) and Nestor Cabrera (1) both registered assists against the Badgers. Maeland now ranks second on the team with eight points.
- RU dominated in shots (25-19) and shots on goal (15-8).
- The Scarlet Knights' 25 total shots marks the highest in a single game this season, beating their previous high of 20 shots earlier in the campaign against Yale. After registering 16 shots in the first half against then-No. 25 Michigan in their last outing, the Scarlet Knights bested themselves with a season-best 17 attempts in the second half in Madison.
- Ciaran Dalton made five saves in net, bringing his season total to 49 stops. In addition, he has recorded five or more saves in five contests.
- Freshman Scott Godden started his 10th outing while Arnar Adalsteinsson his ninth for RU.
- Other rookies in Matty Lynch, Thomas Angelone, Kristófer Arnarsson and Dylan Carlson also got on the pitch.
Looking Ahead
Rutgers will keep the road trip going, going out to Penn State on Monday, Oct. 7. The contest will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
Follow Along
Follow Rutgers men's soccer on Twitter and Instagram (@RUMensSoccer) for all of the latest news and updates. The team is also on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersMensSoccer). For all Rutgers Athletics news follow us on Twitter (@RUAthletics), Instagram (@RUAthletics), and Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics). For additional updates, please download the Gameday App.
