When the Boston University women’s soccer team opens at home next week, it won’t be a day too soon. But before they can finally play at Nickerson Field, the Terriers travel to New Jersey this weekend to play in the Rutgers Doubletree Classic.
The Terriers (2-1-0, 0-0-0 America East) will face off with host Rutgers University tonight and St. John’s University on Sunday. Old Dominion University is also invited, but is not scheduled to play BU.
Friday night will be an interesting match-up as the Terriers will have a chance for revenge against Rutgers, which beat them last year in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Terriers are coming off a big win at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst last Sunday, when senior Tiffany Chag scored the game-winner in the 72nd minute for her first goal in three years.
In the two previous meetings between BU and Rutgers, the Terriers are 0-2 against the Scarlet Knights, most recently falling, 4-1, in the opening round of last year’s NCAA Tournament. The Terriers started that game strong when senior forward Nicole Soules scored in the 29th minute. Just as BU looked like they would carry the lead into the half, the Scarlet Knights went on a tear, scoring three goals in a span of 46 seconds and taking the life out of the Terriers.
The devastating loss was the only major blemish on the Terriers’ schedule last year, a season that was one of the most successful in team history.
Against Rutgers (2-1-1, 0-0-0 Big East), the Terriers will have to keep an eye on sophomore All-American Carli Lloyd, who leads the Scarlet Knights with seven points so far this season. In her four games, Rutgers senior goalkeeper Christine Caldwell has allowed only five goals, including two shutouts. Rutgers returns nine of 11 starters from last season, along with 19 lettermen.
All four goal scorers from the first-round NCAA loss also return this season. Current sophomores Meghan Cameron, Christine Wentzler and Lloyd all tallied goals, along with then-sophomore Samantha Swerdloff.
St. John’s (2-0-2, 0-0-0 Big East) comes into Sunday’s game after defeating BU’s America East counterpart, the State University of New York at Binghamton, on Tuesday. So far in four games this season, the story for the Red Storm has been freshman Kaitlin Schmidt. Schmidt has four goals in four games on only nine shots. After also adding an assist, Schmidt’s nine-point week earned her the Big East Rookie of the Week award.
The Terriers will need a contribution from current points leader and conference Rookie of the Week Meghann Cook, whose two goals lead the squad in the early going. Cook notched the Terriers’ second goal against Massachusetts, and scored the team’s only goal in a double-overtime loss to Kansas.
BU junior goalie Jessica Clinton and her 1.24 goals against average will guard the Terrier net, and will find a tough opponent in Red Storm senior goalie Tina Fogg, who earned her 15th career shutout in the 2-0 victory over Binghamton.
BU heads to the tournament this weekend attempting to finish off the five-game road trip that began in the Midwest with games against Kansas University and Creighton University and took them to Massachusetts last weekend. This weekend’s tournament will be the last tune-up for the Terriers before the America East season, which begins with the home opener against the University of Maine on Tuesday night before BU hosts the University of Rhode Island on Sept. 22.
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