No. 20 Rutgers had No. 5 Virginia on the ropes late, but the Scarlet Knights couldn’t quite finish the job in a 2-1 loss Friday at the Bauer Complex in the Big Ten / ACC Challenge.
The game stayed locked up in the middle of the field for long stretches, with both teams finishing at seven shots apiece. Rutgers actually won the corner battle, 5-2, and kept pushing after falling behind, but Virginia’s two first-half strikes proved just enough.
The Cavaliers opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Emily Eaton launched a long ball into the Rutgers circle and Catalina Quinteros finished the play. Virginia doubled the lead later in the second quarter on a goal from Kate Logsdon, who gathered the ball with her back to goal, turned, and slipped in the shot to make it 2-0.
Rutgers finally broke through with a little more than four minutes left. Laura Loycke inserted a corner for RU, sent the ball to the top, and Martha Goodridge played it back toward the back post before Loycke redirected it in for the Scarlet Knights’ lone goal. Rutgers kept pressing for the equalizer, but Virginia held on.
With the win, Virginia improved to 6-0 all-time against Rutgers.
Rutgers stays home as the Big Ten / ACC Challenge continues Sunday against No. 12 Syracuse at 2 p.m. Ohio State is also part of the weekend action at Bauer, facing Syracuse on Friday and Virginia on Sunday.
The Scarlet Knights’ schedule doesn’t ease up after that. Next weekend brings a Friday trip to No.
2 Princeton, followed by a Sunday home game against No. 9 UConn.
Five of Rutgers’ first six opponents are ranked, and nine teams on RU’s schedule were ranked in the preseason NFHCA Coaches Poll.
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The broader case around this game is built on Rutgers personnel advantages and the way UMass projects defensively, with the Scarlet Knights expected to find enough separation to make the number manageable. There is also one matchup note worth watching for those who follow the betting market closely, since Rutgers has a receiver who could create problems for the Minutemen secondary and tilt the game script early. [Read more 🡒]