Muniz, Defense Lift Rutgers-Newark Over Whitman
NEWARK, N.J. (September 9, 2017) – Junior Stefano Munizscored a gorgeous goal early in the second half and the defense pitched its fourth-straight shutout as the nationally-ranked No. 8 Rutgers University-Newark men's soccer team improved to 4-0-0 with a 1-0 triumph over visiting Whitman College in the opening game of the Brick City Soccer Classic.
R-N will take on Elmhurst College in the final match of the tournament on Sunday at 1:30 p.m., while Whitman (1-3-0) will face Drew University Sunday at 11 a.m. Drew (3-0-1) and Elmhurst (2-0-2) played Saturday's second match to a 0-0 draw.
The Scarlet Raiders are the defending Brick City Classic champs, winning the tournament in 2015 – the last time it was a men's a tournament.
Rutgers-Newark controlled the action early and in the seventh minute had a pair of excellent chances, one off the foot of sophomore Fabio De Sousa and another off the foot of senior Carlos Castro. Both players put good bids on target, but in each case sophomore goalkeeper Owen Davis-Bower was able to make the save.
Davis-Bower made back-to-back saves in the 25th minute, denying solid attempts from junior Breno Lustosa and Muniz, but Rutgers-Newark continued to press.
Whitman did not generate a shot or corner until the 29th minute as the Rutgers-Newark starting back line of goalkeeper Andres Medina, junior Brandon Goldy, senior Arek Szoldrowski, senior Isaiah Kuris and freshman Adrian Velazquez were suffocating from the start.
De Sousa broke free with a shade under 10 minutes to play in the first half, but his shot missed the far post by inches, and the game remained scoreless until the break despite the Scarlet Raiders holding an 11-1 margin in shots.
Rutgers-Newark took the lead early in the second with a gorgeous goal from Muniz. On the play, De Sousa won a header inside the top of the box, and Muniz controlled while shielding a Whitman defender. Muniz then touched once, and created enough space to take a perfect blind shot for his second goal of the year.
The run of play and possession would continue to favor the Scarlet Raiders as the hosts ended the match with a 20-4 margin in shots and a 4-3 edge in corners. The Rutgers-Newark defense continued to shine, allowing zero shots on target and recording its fourth-straight shutout. The Raiders have yet to allow a goal-against in 360 minutes of game time this season, and have now won 16-straight regular-season games dating back to September 17, 2016.
Medina picked up the win in goal, pocketing his second individual shutout of the season in the process. Davis-Bower made eight saves in the loss for Whitman.
Over its last two games, Rutgers-Newark has been dominant, allowing no shots on goal, while putting 27 on target on the other end. Over the last 180 minutes, the Scarlet Raiders have a 64-4 edge in shots, and for the season R-N is outscoring the opposition 13-0.
Fans can watch all of Sunday's action from the Brick City Classic live at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com/watch. Drew and Whitman kickoff at 11 a.m., and Rutgers-Newark and Elmhurst follow at 1:30 p.m.
Follow @ScarletRaiders and @RUN_Soc on twitter for the latest on Rutgers-Newark men's soccer all season.
