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Men's soccer hosts No. 25 Michigan for Senior Day

PISCATAWAY, NJ – The Rutgers men's soccer team (3-5-1, 0-2 B1G) returns to Yurcak Field to face No. 25 Michigan (5-0-3, 1-0-2) on Saturday, September 28 B1G) to be received at 4 p.m

The Scarlet Knights will celebrate Senior Day and NJ Youth Soccer Day after the game.

The contest will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network and available on WRSU.

Out last time

RU didn’t come over then – no. 7 Ohio State (7-0-1, 2-0 B1G) on Sunday night, 0-3.

The Buckeyes scored one goal in the first half and secured two goals in the second half to secure the win.

Come out quickly

Rutgers has been hot on offense from the start this season. The team has placed first in four of nine competitions this season.

The Scarlet Knights also scored five goals in the first 11 minutes of the contest, including three in the first five minutes.

vs. Northeast – Curt Calov – 3rd & 8th minutes '
vs. Princeton – Curt Calov – 1st minute, Ola Maeland – 11th minute
in Lehigh – Curt Calov – 5th minute

Calov leads RU with four goals in four games and scored them all in the first eight minutes of play.

2024 team captains

Head coach at the start of pre-season preparation Jim McElderry named captains for the fall 2024 season. Joey Zalinsky was selected for the award alongside his senior colleague for the second year in a row Aidan Flynn and Junior Cole Cruthers.

“It means a lot to me to be captain for the second year in a row,” said Zalinsky. “It shows that I am more than just a leader. I can help this team win and help my teammates on and off the field.”

Flynn, a four-year defenseman for the Scarlet Knights, has seen the team develop and thrive during his On The Banks tenure. Now he looks forward to driving and fostering that growth.

“This is a really great opportunity,” Flynn said. “I am so happy that I was able to be here all four years and follow the development. The culture has grown and every year we have become more of a family and a collective. It was so nice to see, and I’m looking forward to helping out.”

Although Cruthers is the youngest in the group, he is excited about what he can bring to the table. The 2022 Big Ten Freshman is poised for a great season on the field, but he's also ready to pass on what he's learned from his time at the collegiate level.

“It’s a big responsibility, but it’s a position I’ve been in before,” Cruthers said. “I’m happy to be able to help some of the younger guys like the older guys helped me. It’s truly an honor.”

All three will wear the captain's armband this season and are looking forward to taking RU to new levels.

The returnees

The Scarlet Knights return a solid 17 student-athletes on the 2024 roster. These include three of the top five goalscorers in the world Ola Maeland, Curt Calov And Ian Abbey. The three scored 10 goals together.

The team also returns several core members of its defense, including Joey ZalinskyBig Ten All-Freshman honoree Nicholas Collins, Eric Ruiz And Devon Stopek.

Also goalkeeper Ciaran Dalton returns for his junior season after posting four wins, 53 saves and one shutout in 14 games in 2023.

Presentation of the freshmen

Entering his sixth season, McElderry and his staff welcomed 11 newcomers in the offseason, marking the largest recruiting class since 2019.

The class consists of four international student-athletes: Kristófer Arnarsson (Grafarvogur, Iceland), Anthony Morano (Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada), Scott Godden (Leeds, England) and Arnar Adalsteinsson (Kopavogur, Iceland).

The remaining seven rookies come from the East Coast, including six from New Jersey: Graham Kois (Scotch Plains, NJ), Matty Lynch (Chesterfield, NJ), Eddie Krupski (Clark, NJ), Illia Tyrkus (Bridgewater, NJ), Dylan Carlson (Sayreville, NJ), Lenny Aviles (East Windsor, NJ) and Thomas Angelone (Boston, Mass.).

Godden is the only rookie to start all nine games this season, while ArnarAdalsteinsson has started seven games. Dylan Carlson three and Illia Tyrkus one. Several others have also seen time on the court.

B1G updates

With the Big Ten officially expanding this summer, Rutgers will meet two new faces at UCLA and Washington.

RU will host the Bruins in Piscataway for the first time as a member of the league on Friday, October 18 (7 p.m.). The teams renewed their historic rivalry with games in 2022 and 2023. UCLA earned victories in both meetings.

The Scarlet Knights will face the Huskies on Friday, October 25th at 10 p.m. ET. It will be only the fifth meeting of the two programs and the first since 1998.

Exploring the Wolverines

Michigan has yet to lose a game all season, recording five wins and three draws. They have tied with conference newcomers Washington (1-1) and UCLA (3-3) in their last two games.

Jason Bucknor currently leads the Wolverines in goals with four, while Bryce Blevins and Beto Soto lead the team with 11 points each.

Next

Rutgers will take another two-game road trip to Wisconsin (Friday, Oct. 4) and Penn State (Monday, Oct. 7).

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Follow Rutgers men's soccer on Twitter and Instagram (@RUMensSoccer) for the latest news and updates. The team is also on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersMensSoccer). For all the latest Rutgers Athletics news, follow us on Twitter (@RUAthletics), Instagram (@RUAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics). For more updates, please download the Gameday app.

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