Rutgers Women’s Soccer headed to Elite Eight after defeating TCU
A shot by Allison Lowery found the back of the net in the seventh round of shootouts following double overtime providing the 5-4 margin of victory for the Scarlet Knights as Rutgers defeated TCU in their NCAA Third Round match before a cheering crowd at Yurcak Field.
The Scarlet Knights (now 20-3-0) are currently ranked No. 5 in the nation, and their victory today over No. 8 TCU was just another example of why the women’s soccer team is the most complete and formidable program of any on the campus of Rutgers University in 2021.
Excellently coached, the squad is loaded with seasoned veterans and talented younger players who are major contributors to the team’s success. There’s no one aspect of the team that opponent’s can identify as a “weakness,” because the Scarlet Knights can win with offense, with defense, and when needed—as was the case today—a reliable goalkeeper who makes big saves when the game is on the line.
As a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Horned Frogs were a mirror-image of Rutgers, with a team that had outscored opponents 59-13 this season while averaging over 19 shots per game. Defense figured to be the story of the match, as both teams led their respective conferences in goals allowed this year.
TCU would end up being a true test for Rutgers, with head coach Eric Bell’s Horned Frogs sporting a 19-2-2 record. TCU boasted a quartet of notable offensive weapons including senior forward Messiah Bright (17-6-40), junior forward Grace Collins (8-13-29), freshman forward Camryn Lancaster (8-12-28) and junior midfielder Gracie Brian (9-9-27). Add to that the consistent play in goal from Lauren Kellett (.55 GAA with a .867 save percentage), and it’s easy to understand how TCU was this year’s Big-12 Tournament Champions.
But as they prefer to do, it was Rutgers who quickly looked to establish the pace with early pressure to test TCU’s defense. When sophomore Sara Brocious found open space in TCU’s end and cut to the inside, the midfielder registered a shot on goal within the first minute of the contest, forcing a save by Kellett.
While the match soon settled into the predictable course with both teams moving up and down the pitch, Rutgers had the better of the play for the first 20 minutes. The Scarlet Knights saw their efforts come to fruition when sophomore Samantha Kroeger broke in on goal and dished off a pass to senior Amirah Ali, who fired a shot into the far corner to put RU ahead 1-0 at 17:38 of the first session.
But TCU’s offense sprung to life following the goal, and momentum swung in favor of the Horned Frogs shortly after RU made several player substitutions. With just under six minutes to play, a wild flurry of activity with high-quality chances in front of the RU goal forced goalkeeper Meagan McClelland to make a point-blank stop. When she could not control the rebound, the goal mouth was left unprotected and a second TCU shot was miraculously stopped by senior Gabby Provenzano who had rushed back in support of her teammate. The dynamic play was just another example of why the Sergeantsville, New Jersey native was named the Big Ten Defender of the Year in 2021.
That threat was the closest TCU would come to scoring the equalizer in the first half. Despite having three corner kicks and outshooting the Knights 9-3, Rutgers took their 1-0 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Following the break, the Horned Frogs came out with a renewed determination to tie the game and controlled the play in the entire second half. The Knights appeared to be scrambling to keep up with the pace, as TCU’s crisp passing led to multiple threats in the Rutgers zone.
The Knights went into a tight defensive formation, falling back every time TCU took possession in order to swarm to the ball. While the strategy worked to frustrate the Horn Frogs’ offense, it limited the Knights’ chances to extend their lead.
And it would end up costing them.
Eventually a prime opportunity presented itself for TCU, and when forward Camryn Lancaster slipped inside the Rutgers defense, the freshman fired one past McClelland to tie the game 1-1 with just 5:21 remaining in the contest. When neither team could find another goal, the game finished in a 1-1 draw at the end of regulation.
TCU nearly ended it with less than three minutes remaining in the first overtime when a corner kick led to a shot that went over the head of McClelland and rang the crossbar of the RU goal. But when the clock expired in the first extra session, the game remained tied after 100 minutes of play.
Rutgers had its best chance to end the game in the second overtime when Samantha Kroeger closed in on net and was taken down, leading to a Rutgers free kick with 1:36 remaining. Taking the free kick, Becci Fluchel’s rocket shot skimmed over the crossbar and the Rutgers faithful in the stands groaned with disappointment. After 110 minutes of play, the game remained stalemated at 1-1, leading to the shootout round.
Saves by both goalkeepers in shootout rounds five and six would eventually lead to the dramatic seventh and final round. When TCU’s Skylar Heinrich was denied by McClelland, it set up the dramatic final shot by sophomore forward Allison Lowery. The Bridgewater, New Jersey native then fired the ball past the right side of a diving Kellett to win the game and send the Scarlet Knights to the National Quarter-Finals of the NCAA Tournament. Exuberant teammates then hoisted up Meagan McClelland, who had not only made the seventh round stop that led to the win, but who had also scored one of the overtime goals herself.
The last time Rutgers advanced this far in the NCAA Tournament was 2015, when they were eliminated by the Nittany Lions, 2-0. But now, head coach Mike O’Neill will be steering this resilient group of Scarlet Knights into the Elite Eight to face the winner of the Arkansas-Notre Dame match as their incredible 2021 season continues.
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