Rutgers men's soccer looks to continue winning run against Northeastern
The Rutgers men's soccer team will travel to Brookline, Massachusetts, to face off against Northeastern on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights (5-6-2, 3-3-1) will take on the Huskies (3-6-5, 1-3-3) for the first time in program history.
Head coach Jim McElderry and Rutgers are coming off a 2-1 win against Penn State, while Northeastern is coming into the contest off the back of a 1-1 draw with Boston.
The Huskies have not won in their last eight matches and are in seventh place in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) with 6 points.
Northeastern averages 1.21 goals per game (GPG) for a total of 17 goals this season.
Fraser Brown and Jack Monte are an attacking threat, as the duo has combined for 7 goals. The Knights will also need to look out for Federico Tellez, as he has dished out a team-leading eight assists and is a playmaker on the attack.
On the other side of the ball, the Huskies have conceded 18 goals this season and are more vulnerable on defense.
Between the posts, Gregor Shaw has started in 13 games for Northeastern, owns a save percentage of 70.2 and allows opposing teams to score an average of 1.31 GPG.
The Huskies are a physical team, as they lead the CAA in fouls committed and are tied for the top spot in yellow cards received. Rutgers will need to take advantage of this to win free kicks and penalty kicks.
The Knights will look to graduate student midfielder Jackson Temple to continue his impressive form in attack. Temple has a team-leading 14 points off 5 goals and four assists.
Rutgers must remain sharp on defense. The Knights have been poor defensively and have conceded a Big Ten-leading 22 goals in 13 matches.
Sophomore goalkeeper Ciaran Dalton will play an important role in Saturday's contest and will look to improve between the posts.
Dalton has struggled at times this season, having the highest goals-against average and second-lowest save percentage in the Big Ten. Dalton also has the second-most saves per game average, meaning Rutgers allows opposing teams to take many shots on goal.
The contest between the Knights and the Huskies will kick off at 1 p.m. on Saturday and will be played at Parsons Field in Brookline, Massachusetts. The match will be broadcast on FloSports and NESN.
"Every game counts. So, we'll go up there to win the game and keep our momentum going," McElderry said.
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