Rutgers women's soccer ties Maryland on Senior Day, closes out regular season
In front of a season-high crowd of 1,573 at Yurcak Field on Busch campus, the Rutgers women's soccer team tied 1-1 with Maryland on Senior Day. The Scarlet Knights (10-3-4, 6-2-3) closed the regular season, being outplayed by the Terrapins (4-10-5, 1-8-2) and now shift focus to the Big Ten Tournament.
Despite sitting second to last in the Big Ten, Maryland started the game as the better team with its high press. The Terrapins were first to every ball, dominating possession and attempted three shots in the first 5 minutes.
Rutgers did not register its first shot of the game until the 15th minute, as sophomore forward Ashley Baran's effort was skied over the crossbar on a counterattacking opportunity.
The Knights may have started the game poorly, but they opened the scoring in the 24th minute. On a free kick, senior forward Riley Tiernan crossed the ball to the back post to senior defender Emily Mason, who shot it with her right foot into the top of the net. It was Mason's 2nd goal of the season and Tiernan's team-leading ninth assist of the season.
Despite being outshot 10-5 in the first 45 minutes, Rutgers had the 1-0 lead at halftime.
Like the first half, Maryland started the second with more possession and opportunities, but redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Olivia Bodmer came up big with some important saves, including a lights-out leaping save in the 74th minute.
But Bodmer made a game-costing mistake in the 87th minute, coming off her line to try to clear the ball. The ball deflected behind her, and the Terrapins had a wide-open goal, with Lisa McIntyre slotting the ball into the back of the net.
The Knights will now head west to Minnesota for the Big Ten Tournament, playing Michigan State in the quarterfinals on Saturday. The game will kick off at 4:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
"You know I thought we did some good things, I felt that at times when we kept the ball, we made things a little easy for ourselves," said head coach Mike O'Neill. "But I think at times we kind of gave it away and gave it away too easy."
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