NEWARK, N.J. — The Rutgers-Newark men's soccer team battled back from an early four-goal deficit Saturday afternoon but ultimately fell to Montclair State, 4-2, in New Jersey Athletic Conference action at Frederick Douglass Field.
Montclair State (10-2-0, 2-0-0 NJAC) opened the scoring in the 16th minute when a Rutgers-Newark defender accidentally kicked the ball into his own net giving the Red Hawks and early 1-0 lead.
The Red Hawks quickly added to their lead, with Kevin Contreras scoring twice in a span of just 74 seconds to make it 3-0. Tomas Monteiro then found the back of the net in the 22nd minute, giving Montclair State a 4-0 advantage.
Rutgers-Newark (5-3-2, 1-1-0 NJAC) responded before halftime. Zahradeen Amadou scored in the 38th minute off an assist from Samuel De Souza, cutting the deficit to 4-1.
Amadou nearly added another early in the second half, forcing a save before hitting the right post in the 71st minute.
The Scarlet Raiders continued to battle and pulled within two in the 77th minute when Ethan Geronimo scored his second goal of the season. Augusto Vieira was called offsides later in the half as the Scarlet Raiders continued to create chances, but Rutgers-Newark could not find another goal in the closing minutes.
Amadou finished with a goal and three shots, while Geronimo added a goal and Vieira recorded two shots.
David Bejarno started in goal for Rutgers-Newark and made one save in the first half. Ilan Golden played the second half and recorded two saves.
The Scarlet Raiders return to action next Wednesday, October 7th as they host the Ospreys of Stockton.
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