Last Saturday, Rowan University’s men’s soccer team ended their perfect record in a 2-1 upset by the Rutger-Newark Scarlet Raiders. Ranked No. 12 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC), this makes their record 6-1 and they’re 1-1 in the NJAC.
Both Franco Catania and Joshua Breton-Jones scored for the Scarlet Raiders within the first 25 minutes. Defensively, the Raiders shot down the Profs, limiting them to only three shots in the first half.
Rowan had a slow start, but played more aggressively in the second half. Compared to the first half, the Profs were able to possess the ball longer on offense, applying more pressure on the Rutgers-Newark defense.
“What changed in the second half was our energy and trust we have in each other,” forward Wilby Alfred said. “We came out slow in the first, then at half[time], coach [Scott Baker] had a talk with us that definitely helped us.”
In the game’s 69th minute, Alfred dropped a Scarlet Raider’s defender to his knees, then kicked the ball to the back of the net to score the only goal for Rowan.
In this game, Rowan tied their season high of 20 fouls. Jake Logar and Leo Montesinos, midfielders, each received a red card ejection.
“Emotion got the better of some of our players,” Head Coach Scott Baker said. ”Between the crowd and the officiating not being good…there is still no excuse to have a lack of discipline.”
The Profs got their redemption when they defeated The College of New Jersey [TCNJ] on Wednesday night 1-0.
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