Box Score NEWARK, NJ – Rutgers University-Newark exploded for four goals in the first half to run its winning streak to 13 with a 4-0 New Jersey Athletic Conference victory over Richard Stockton on Alumni Field.
The Scarlet Raiders (13-2-0, NJAC 5-0-0) dominated play despite playing a man down for the final 78 minutes, out-shooting the Ospreys (8-4-3, NJAC 1-2-2), 15-9. Senior forward
Raphael Araujo etched his named – again – in the Raider record book while junior goalkeeper
Matt Broomall added to his standing R-N mark with his 17th shutout.
Araujo and sophomore forward
Charlie O'Connell exchanged goals and assists to give the Raiders a 2-0 lead in the opening 7:18. Araujo sent a through ball from the middle to the left side of the box where O'Connell put away his 10th goal of the season just 3:57 into the fray.
O'Connell hammered a shot off the right post which rebounded to Araujo on the left side for his 15th goal of the season. The marker tied Araujo with Rutgers-Newark Athletic Hall of Famer Danny Lopes (1994-97) who chalked up 42 goals in 66 matches. Araujo played in his 36th match in Scarlet & Black. The 2013 NJAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year and a D3Soccer.com All-American after netting 27 goals as a junior, Araujo again leads the NJAC in goals while ranking among the leading scorers in NCAA D-III.
O'Connell's goal was his fourth game winner of the season.
A red card against senior midfielder
Rafael Donado for a dangerous tackle in the 12
th minute did not slow the Raiders who piled up an 11-4 edge in shots during the opening period.
Senior midfielder
Diego Moraes ripped a free kick from 25 yards out through the hands of diving Osprey senior goalkeeper Bobby Varga in the 16th minute.
In the 40th minute, freshmen
Chigozie Atubi and
Arek Szoldrowski capped the scoring against Stockton sophomore goalkeeper Chris Giraudin. Atubi dribble to the right side endline and sent a pass back to Szoldrowski who registered his first career goal by firing a low, hard shot inside the near post.
Rutgers-Newark head coach
Kevin East took his foot off the gas in the second half when Stockton out-shot the Raiders, 5-4, and took four of its six corner kicks. Both teams emptied their benches.
Broomall lowered his goals against average to .92, needing just three saves behind a solid defensive effort to post his fourth shutout of the season and his third in NJAC play.
It marked the ninth time in its last 10 matches that Rutgers-Newark has limited an opponent to less than 10 shots.
The Raiders notched a shutout for the seventh time during their winning streak while the other six opponents managed just one goal apiece. Rutgers-Newark, which entered the NCSCA/Continental Tire Top 25 Poll for the first time in program history at No. 21 last week, has been perfect since dropping matches to Covenant and Emory in Atlanta during the last weekend in August.
Rutgers-Newark is at William Paterson (6-6-2, NJAC 1-3-1) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. for an NJAC match before hosting Kean on Alumni Field on Saturday.
