No. 9 Rutgers women’s soccer wins 8th straight to remain unbeaten in B1G play

No. 9 Rutgers women’s soccer dominated Maryland on the road on Thursday night for a 5-2 victory. It was the eighth straight win for the Scarlet Knights as they are now 12-2 overall and remain unbeaten in Big Ten play with a 7-0-0 record. The eight game winning streak ties a program record that was first accomplished during the 2015 season with the team that advanced to the Final Four. RU sits atop the Big Ten standings with 21 points, leading second place Purdue, who are 6-1-0 with 18 points.

Sophomore midfielder Becci Fluchel scored twice on Thursday night, while senior All-Americans Amirah Ali and Frankie Tagliaferri added a goal each, as did sophomore forward Allison Lowrey. Freshman forward Riley Tiernan added two assists, while Tagliaferri also had a helper.

The Scarlet Knights attacked from the opening minute of the match and took the lead in the 9th minute of the game as Tiernan found Ali, who broke into the box and scored on a strong finish past the goalkeeper at the near post.

Just one minute later, RU was awarded a penalty kick and Fluchel delivered once again in a pressure spot. She has now made all three penalty kick attempts this season.

Maryland got back into the game in the 13th minute as Loren Sefick scored a goal in transition that was assisted by Mikayla Dayes.

Rutgers responded quickly as Fluchel scored her second goal of the game in the 16th minute by continuing to play off of a deflection from the Terps goalkeeper.

Then in the 26th minute, the Scarlet Knights were awarded another penalty kick and Allison Lowrey buried it with precision.

With a 4-1 lead at the half, Rutgers came out and continued to dominate the action. Tiernan created another scoring opportunity and found Tagliaferri, who finished it with a one timer off the front side of her right foot in the 55th minute.

The Terps didn’t quit and were able to make it 5-2 with Catherine DeRosa scoring off of another Dayes assist in the 63rd minute.

Rutgers finished the game with a 26-10 shot advantage that included a 16-5 edge in shots on goal. The Scarlet Knights five goals were the most the program has scored in a Big Ten game. They’ve also held all seven Big Ten opponents this season to six shots or less on goal. They also held a 10-4 edge in corner kicks.

“Before every game, we sign a white board that says 28 strong, and we stayed true to that today. Every player went out and gave everything they had. It’s amazing that we were able to find the back of the net five times today,” said Lowrey.

While the defense allowed two goals, it was just the second time all season that an opponent scored more than once in a game. The offense has been fantastic and what has made Rutgers so dangerous is how balanced their attack has been. Eight players have three goals or more this season, while seven players have 3 assists or more. Eight players have at least 9 points as well.

Tagliaferri leads the team with 11 goals, is second with 7 assists and has a team high 29 points. Tiernan leads the team with 9 assists in addition to 4 goals, making her second overall with 17 points. Ali has 5 goals and 5 assists, while her 15 points is third.

Rutgers will return home for its final game of the regular season at Yurcak Field. They’ll host Michigan State on Sunday, October 17 at 1 p.m. at Yurcak Field. The Scarlet Knights will hold its Senior Day ceremony before the game, which will be an emotional moment for the program with so many prominent players set to be honored.