Rutgers men's soccer to face Providence on road, looking for 3rd straight win
For the first time since 2006, the Rutgers men's soccer team will travel north to Rhode Island to play Providence. Up against the Friars (2-1-1, 0-0) on Friday night, the Scarlet Knights (3-1, 0-0) have the chance to win three straight games for the first time since their 2022 Big Ten Title-winning season.
Last season, Providence reached the semifinals of the Big East Tournament but lost 1-0 to Xavier, the eventual Big East Title winner. This season, the Friars return 24 players from last year’s roster, four of whom were multi-goal scorers.
Pearse O’Brien is back in his second season at Providence after dishing out a team-high seven assists in 2023. The West Hartford, Connecticut, product also tallied 3 goals. He'll link up with Diego Batista in the midfield, who totaled 1 goal and five assists last season. Batista joined the Friars after transferring from Monroe, where he was named NJCAA Division I Player of the Year.
In his fifth and final season at Providence, Lukas Burns continues his role as starting goalkeeper. He had a 69 save percentage and boasted a career-high seven shutouts last season, which was second-most in the Big East.
The Friars have a void to fill up top, though, after losing Brendan McSorley, who scored a team-high 11 goals last season. The team's next-highest goal scorers were Nathan Messer and Bruno Rosa, each with 4 goals.
Providence brought Aidan Davock, a transfer from Colgate, to replace McSorley. Davock started 40 of 45 games and scored 14 goals. He was named to the All-Patriot League First Team, Patriot League All-Tournament Team and All-Patriot League Second Team in his four seasons.
As for Rutgers, it is coming off a 2-0 road win against Lehigh. Freshman defender Arnar Adalsteinsson was sent off with a red card in the 30th minute, but the Knights defended soundly to earn their first shutout of the season. Senior midfielder Curt Calov scored his 4th goal of the season, surpassing last year's tally of 3.
Senior defender Joey Zalinsky is eligible to play again after receiving a red card against Princeton. The Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week from two weeks ago has 1 goal and two assists in three starts on defense. Sophomore defender Erick Ruiz will likely start to replace the suspended Adalsteinsson.
The game will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday and will be broadcast on FloSports+.
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