No. 6 Rutgers women's soccer facing Wisconsin in Big Ten Tournament opener
The Rutgers women’s soccer team will host No. 8 seed Wisconsin at 3:30 p.m. this Sunday to open the 2021 Big Ten Tournament at Yurcak Field.
The No. 6 Scarlet Knights (15-2-0, 10-0-0) raised Rutgers athletic programs’ first Big Ten trophy this week after ending the conference season with a perfect record. After two road wins against Indiana and Illinois to close their regular season, the Knights finished with 15 overall wins, the most in program history.
Rutgers' last outing against the Fighting Illini (5-11-1, 1-8-1) that ended 3-0 capped their regular season with 11 total clean sheets. Six Knights contributed to the scoring, and senior goalkeeper Meagan McClelland saw her first career assist. After Saturday’s win, Rutgers was the first team to go undefeated in Big Ten play since 2005.
"Going into the game, we knew we already won the conference, but we wanted to go undefeated. We did that, we got the job done,” said sophomore forward Allison Lowrey, who opened the scoring in Saturday’s win.
The Badgers (8-4-6, 3-3-4) tied their last match 1-1 against Iowa. Wisconsin’s 2019 squad were Big Ten champions, finishing their conference season with a 10-0-1 record.
The Knights earned many prestigious accolades this week on top of their Big Ten Championship. Three Rutgers players claimed weekly honors following their final regular-season game. Senior forward Amirah Ali earned Offensive Player of the Week. She ranks second on the team in points with 21 this season.
Junior back Allison Lynch also earned Defensive Player of the Week for her contribution to their clean sheets last week. Lastly, McClelland received Co-Goalkeeper of the Week alongside Purdue goalkeeper Marisa Bova.
The Knights claimed their most Player of the Week accolades in a single week, tying the program record with the 2018 and 2015 squad. The team won 13 total conference weekly honors, the most in a single season for the program.
Rutgers ranks No. 6 in the country according to recent United Soccer Coaches rankings and No. 5 in NCAA RPI rankings behind some of the best teams in the country.
The Knights' last meeting with the Badgers ended in a 2-1 win for the Badgers. Rutgers hopes to continue this historic season and defeat the bracket starting this Sunday.
“We hit one milestone, and we're looking for more. We're going to keep going until the end," Lowrey said after Saturday’s season finale.
The Knights will host Sunday’s game against Wisconsin at 3:30 p.m. on Yurcak Field. The match will be streamed on Big Ten Network+ and broadcasted for radio listeners on 88.7 WRSU. Live stats will be provided at kickoff.
For updates on the Rutgers women's soccer team, follow @TargumSports on Twitter.
