On to the championship! The Rutgers Scarlet Knights women’s soccer team (11-3-5) advanced to the Big Ten Championship Game after defeating top-seeded and No. 4 ranked USC (15-1-3) in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals at CITYPARK, the home of MLS team St. Louis City SC.
The Scarlet Knights pulled off the upset in comeback fashion, down a player after due to a red card in the 49th minute. Neither team was able to put the ball in the net in the first half. After the break, USC scored the opening goal 1:10 into the second half.
Down a goal and player, Rutgers held strong as a team and continued to battle. In the 52nd minute, Emily Mason played a long ball into USC territory. The ball was pushed on by Sydney Urban to Ashley Baran, who got a shot off into the side netting to tie the match at 1-1.
In overtime, Rutgers bent but never broke. USC continued to dominate possession and outshot Rutgers, 8-0, during the 20 minutes of extra time. Rutgers goaltender Olivia Bodmer made three stops in overtime to force the penalty shootout. Bodmer made eight saves overall in regulation and overtime.
A perfect 3-0 margin in penalty shootouts is nearly unheard of, but Rutgers was able to complete that feat on Thursday. Mason, Shaela Bradley, and Allie Post each made good on their attempts while Bodmer made all three saves.
The Scarlet Knights advance to the Big Ten Championship Game, Sunday, Nov. 10 at 1 p.m. ET at CITYPARK in St. Louis, Missouri against two-seed and No. 9 ranked UCLA. It will be the fourth appearance in the Big Ten Championship for Rutgers since joining the league in 2014.
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