Rutgers men's soccer returns home for promising matchup against Northwestern
After a two-game road stretch, the Rutgers men's soccer team will return to Yurcak Field on Busch campus to face Northwestern on Friday. The Scarlet Knights (4-6-2, 1-3-1) have an excellent opportunity to grab their second conference win against a struggling Wildcats (6-5-0, 0-4-0) side that is winless in Big Ten play.
Rutgers started its road trip with a convincing 3-1 win over then-No. 8 Wisconsin, the program's first ranked win since 2022 and highest under head coach Jim McElderry. But the Knights could not build on that statement win, falling 2-1 to Penn State on Monday night after conceding a penalty with 30 seconds remaining in the game.
The loss to the Nittany Lions (5-5-2, 2-2-2) was tough, but Rutgers is back on the Banks and will be looking to bounce back against Northwestern.
The Wildcats opened the season with four straight wins — their best start to a season in program history. But that all changed once Big Ten play began, as they have lost all four of their conference games so far.
To preview Friday's matchup, The Daily Targum sat down with Jake Epstein, gameday editor of The Daily Northwestern.
"The main two things would be giving away unforced errors and PKs, and just bad looks early in matches, and for sure also just the lack of that defined (goal) scorer," Epstein said, on what's led to Northwestern's struggles against Big Ten opponents.
The biggest blow to the Wildcats was the departure of striker Justin Weiss to Indiana in the summer. Weiss had a team-high 7 goals and seven assists last season, the third-most and second-most in the Big Ten, respectively.
Northwestern has yet to find a true replacement for Weiss. No player has scored more than 2 goals this season, but 11 players have scored at least 1.
"I would say, at least for this season, I would probably see that trend continuing," Epstein said. "I think as of now, there's not a clinical finisher at that nine position, so I would say for now, as it stands, there's not gonna be someone who steps in as that reliable scorer. It'll be more of a scoring by-committee approach, and in the Big Ten, that oftentimes doesn't get you the points that you need."
The Wildcats also have a new starting goalkeeper this season after last year's starter, Jackson Weyman, graduated in the offseason. Rafael Ponce de León is the new starter between the posts, boasting a 69 percent save ratio and a 0.90 goals-against average.
"I think he's been pretty impressive, I mean he's made the saves that they've asked him to make and that's pretty key," Epstein said on Ponce de León. "In Big Ten play I've been impressed with just the way he's making saves that you ask him, he makes a few saves that, quite frankly, you wouldn't expect ... I think definitely going forward this year and next year, he'll probably remain the starter between the sticks."
When asked about a player to look out for, Epstein highlighted veteran center-back Nigel Prince, who has started every game this season and has 1 goal.
"(Prince) was a First Team All-Big Ten last year, spectacular defender, wins the duals, he's big,” Epstein said. "He's the heart of that defense."
Prince's center-back partner, Reese Mayer, has missed the last three games due to injury but is still someone Epstein says could make a difference defensively. Mayer did warm up in Northwestern's last game but did not play, so it's possible he will make his return against the Knights on Friday.
The contest will kick off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
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