NEWARK, N.J. (October 21, 2017) – The nationally-ranked Rutgers University-Newark men's soccer team improved to 17-2-0 overall and 7-1-0 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) with a 2-0 shutout of Montclair State University Saturday at the MSU Soccer Park.
Sophomore
Fabio De Sousa scored the game-winner in the 60th minute, senior
Hubert Dul added insurance with 1:00 remaining in regulation and sophomore goalkeeper
Andres Medina made four saves for another shutout.
Rutgers-Newark will host William Paterson University Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. in its regular-season finale on Alumni Field. Prior to the match at 7:15 p.m., the Scarlet Raider senior class will be honored as part of the annual Senior Night festivities.
The shutout was the 13th of the year for the Scarlet Raiders, and the R-N defense looks to be clicking on all cylinders as the team has allowed just two goals in its last six matches. For the year, the Scarlet Raiders have allowed a grand total of seven goals while pouring in a splendid 49 of their own.
De Sousa's tally came at 60:05 and was assisted by freshman standout
Adrian Velazquez. Velazquez played the ball back into the box after several R-N corners, and De Sousa finished with a header after a strong run. De Sousa now has 15 goals – seven of the game-winning variety – and Velazquez has four assists.
The Red Hawks were able to generate four shots after the De Sosa goal, but just one was on target as R-N closed out its 13th shutout of the season.
Rutgers-Newark finished the match with huge advantages in total shots (29-11) and shots on goal (13-4) , doubling up the Red Hawks in corners (6-3) as well.
At exactly 89:00, the Newark lead moved to two goals when Dul found the back of the net for the fifth time this season. De Sousa assisted on the play, moving into a tie for the team lead in helpers with Dul (six).
The road triumph for Rutgers-Newark is notable as the Scarlet Raiders have only beaten Montclair State in Montclair twice since 1983 prior to Saturday. The first win came in the 1983 season and the most recent came in the NJAC playoffs on November 6, 2013. The two sides also tied back in 2001.
"It was a difficult NJAC game against a good Montclair team," said Head Coach
Kevin East after the victory. "I thought we played well in the first half and were a bit unlucky to not get a goal or two. Once we scored, they had to push for a goal and put some pressure on us. We could have been a little better on the counter at that point, but the boys defended well and kept the clean sheet. I was proud of their effort on a hot day."
The 17 wins for the Scarlet Raiders are tied for the most in the regular-season in program history (2016), and Rutgers-Newark has clinched a bye in the first round of the NJAC Tournament with one tough game remaining on the slate against William Paterson.
Fans unable to make it to Senior Night Wednesday can watch live at
www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com/watch.
Want more Rutgers-Newark men's soccer? Follow @ScarletRaiders and @RUN_Soc on twitter!
