PISCATAWAY, NJ – For the first time in 304 days, the Rutgers University men’s soccer team (1-1-0) will return to Yurcak Field to host Princeton (0-0-0) for the 2022 home opener on Friday, Sept. 2 at 7 p.m
Last Time Out
Rutgers fell to Creighton (2-0-0) on the road, 6-1, on Aug. 28 to complete the team’s opening weekend. Both teams traded possessions in each other’s defensive zones early before the Bluejays got out to a 3-0 lead. To start the second half, sophomore defender Joseph Zalinsky scored the lone goal for the Scarlet Knights for the first points of his career. The Jays followed up with three more goals to secure the win.
Welcoming the Newcomers
McElderry and his staff added 11 newcomers to the squad in the offseason, including three transfers and seven freshmen.
Transfers MD Myers (High Point), Sahab Kular (Cleveland State), Nick Spittle (Seneca [OCAA]), Zach Riviere (Georgetown) and freshmen William Baker, Sam Delgado, Ian Abbey, Nestor Cabrera, Cole Cruthers, Ciaran Dalton and Dylan Van Der Walt were all welcomed to the team.
The freshmen duo of Abbey and Dalton both found their way onto the stat sheet in their collegiate debuts against Omaha. Abbey contributed a goal while Dalton recorded two saves in net.
Back Again
The Scarlet Knights return 20 student-athletes overall and 11 players with eight or more starts from the 2021 roster that went 9-6-2, the most wins in a campaign since 2015. Notably, All-Region and All-Big Ten selection Jackson Temple and All-Big Ten Freshman Team picks Matthew Acosta and Joey Zalinsky will be returning to the roster.
One Last Go
Graduate students Thomas DeVizio and Pablo Avila made the decision in the offseason to return to the pitch for their final year of eligibility. Last season, the two veterans combined for 13 points, including three goals and seven assists.
The pair is already proving to be productive as DeVizio has played 161 minutes and Avila added a score and an assist so far this slate.
Preseason Hype
The Big Ten announced Matthew Acosta, MD Myers and Jackson Temple as Player to Watch heading into the fall 2022 season. The team was also picked to finish fifth in the conference standings.
Acosta, returning unanimous All-Big Ten freshman pick, started all 17 games of his rookie season and recorded a pair of assists. A transfer from High Point, Myers is a proven scorer and Big South standout. He recorded 51 career points with the Panthers on 21 goals and nine assists throughout three seasons. Temple returns to RU for his senior year after leading the squad with six goals and two assists for 14 total points.
Temple, a 2021 United Soccer Coaches All-North Region Second Team pick, was also just named to the United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division I Players to Watch forwards list on Aug. 16.
Looking Into the Tigers
Princeton will return to the pitch to open its 2022 season against Rutgers. After winning the Ivy League championship and finishing with a 12-6 record last season, the Tigers fell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to St. John’s (1-0). Ahead of the fall, Princeton was chosen to repeat as Ivy League champions in the Preseason Media Poll, receiving 12 of the 16 first place votes.
The Tigers return United Soccer Coaches “Defender to Watch” Lucas Gen in addition to All-Region selection Daniel Diaz-Bonilla and All-Ivy honorees Malik Pinto, Issa Mudashiru and Walker Gillespie.
On the schedule
The team will get comfortable playing in front of a home crowd at Yurcak this season, with 11 home games. Rutgers will play six road games, including two non-conference and four Big Ten matches.
After opening the season with a pair of games in Nebraska, the Scarlet Knights will enjoy a five-game homestand, starting with Princeton, before traveling to Wisconsin to begin conference play on Sept. 23.
Rutgers will get one more three-game stretch at home to start off the month of October before trading home-away games to end the 2022 regular season.
Looking Ahead
RU will continue its homestand on Monday, Sept. 5 as the team welcomes Yale at Yurcak Field at 7 pm
Follow along
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