THE DETAILS
Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals
Sat., Nov. 2
4:30 p.m. ET (3:30 p.m. CT) at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium (Minneapolis, Minn.)
#5 seed Rutgers (10-3-4)
vs. #4 seed No. 16 Michigan State (4-10-4, 1-8-1)
HOW THEY GOT HERE
Rutgers finished fifth in the new 18-team Big Ten with 21 points from a 6-2-3 conference record. The Scarlet Knights won 10 matches in the regular season for the 11th time in 12 full seasons (excluding 2020), and earned draws on the road at No. 1 Michigan State and No. 19 Penn State. Rutgers highest RPI win came via a 1-0 victory over No. 25 Wisconsin to open up Big Ten play.
No. 16 Michigan State, formerly a No. 1 ranked team in the United Soccer Coaches poll this season, are 12-1-5 overall and finished fourth in the Big Ten with a 7-1-3 record and 24 points. The Spartans have defeated No. 15 Notre Dame and No. Penn State, and own draws against No. 9 Arkansas, No. 15 Xavier, and No. 11 Ohio State. Michigan State won its final three matches of the regular season outscoring opponents, 6-1.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State’s +26 goal differential is the 17th best in the NCAA heading into the postseason, largely in part to their No. 21 ranked 0.67 goals-against average. Graduate forward Meg Hughes tallied a score in the regular season finale win over Purdue. It was Hughes’ team-leading seventh of the season, which also brought her 2024 point total to a team-leading 19.
Goalkeeper Kaitlyn Parks has a eight shutouts, a 0.75 goals-against average, and an .848 save percentage in net.
Saturday’s meeting between the two schools will be the 13th all-time and second this season. Rutgers holds a 9-2-1 edge in the series, which dates back to 2004. MSU and Rutgers have never met in the Big Ten Tournament.
The Spartans and Scarlet Knights played to a 1-1 draw in East Lansing on Sept. 29 this season. After a defensive battle through the first 80 minutes, MSU broke the ice with 10 minutes to go to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead. In the 86th minute, a handball by the Spartans in the box awarded Rutgers a penalty kick that was slotted home by redshirt freshman Gabriela Gil to seal the 1-1 result – matching Rutgers’ best result against a No. 1 ranked team.
BEST IN THE B1G
Rutgers women’s soccer placed three Scarlet Knights on the 2024 All-Big Ten awards, announced by the conference…
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