Men: Rutgers 0 | Michigan 0
The Rutgers men’s soccer team squared off against No. 11 Michigan on an unseasonably hot Sunday afternoon in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines controlled play for most of the match, outshooting the Knights 17-6, and 5-1 on goal.
Star keeper Ciaran Dalton made five more stops, adding to his leading conference saves total, and the Rutgers backline bent but didn’t break against the constant Wolverines relentless offensive attack.
Camron Boumsong had Rutger’s lone shot on goal in the 76th minute but Michigan Keeper
Isaiah Goldson was able to make the stop and keep the match scoreless. The Wolverines had ample chances in the closing minutes to take the lead but Dalton made turned away all three shots to preserve the draw.
With the draw, Rutgers moves to 7-2-2 (2-1-1 B1G) and Michigan to 6-1-3, (2-1-1 B1G). Interestingly, Rutgers moves up to No. 16 in RPI with the Wolverines falling to No. 24. The Scarlet Knights are unbeaten in their last four contests and have won five of their last six as they build their postseason resume.
Notable
- Dalton has now come up with five shutouts in 2025, including in the past three contests, a season-high throughout his career.
- Dalton is the only Scarlet Knights to play all 90 minutes of all 11 matches this campaign.
- Sunday’s match against the Wolverines marks the first time the team hasn’t found the back of the net all season.
Next Up
Rutgers returns to the friendly confines of Yurcak Field to face Big Ten foe Wisconsin on Friday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. for Senior Night.
Women: PSU 2 | RU 1
Unlike the men’s squad, the women’s squad continues to struggle, falling 2-1 to the Nittany Lions on a hot Saturday afternoon at Yurcak Field. Penn State dominated possession, outshooting RU 11-3 in the first half. Knights keeper Bodmer made four saves but the Lions found the back of the net in the 32nd minute to take a 1-0 lead heading into the half.
As has been the case in Big Ten play, Rutgers came out of the locker room and scrapped back into the match, with true freshman Kennedi Cotter knocking in a well-placed crossing ball into the box from Ashley Baran to knot the score up at 1-1. It was Cotter’s second goal of the season, which is surprisingly tied for second on the team, indicating the team’s difficulty scoring with any type of consistency.
In the 80th minute, Kaitlyn MacBean put the Lions up the Lions ahead, 2-1, and Penn State held Rutgers scoreless the final ten minutes to secure the conference victory. Penn State improves to 7-4-2 (3-2-1 Big Ten) while Rutgers falls to 3-4-4 (1-4-1). With five regular season matches remaining, the prospects for Rutgers making their 14th consecutive NCAA tournament appearance appear slim.
Next Up
Rutgers returns to action next weekend with a road trip to Illinois. The Scarlet Knights will take on Illinois on Thursday at 8 p.m. and Northwestern at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
