Fit to be tied: Irish equal No. 19 Rutgers
By JOE HETTLER
Associate Sports Editor
It was another good performance for the No. 10 Notre Dame mens soccer team and another game without a victory.
For the second straight game the Irish battled a ranked Big East opponent and still could not pull out a win, tying No. 19 Rutgers 1-1 in double overtime. Notre Dame lost to second-ranked St. John's 1-0 Thursday night.
"It's disappointing we didn't actually finish the job, but that'll come," Irish coach Bobby Clark said. "There's an old saying that you've got to be the bridesmaid before you can be the bride. So I think we've been the bridesmaid more than we should."
Midfielder Justin Detter scored his fourth goal of the season, while Chad Riley tallied his team-leading seventh assist of the year.
The Scarlet Knights took the lead in the 68th minute with a goal by Sam Castellano. But the Irish were able to match Rutgers' mark with Detter's game-tying goal in the 79th minute.
Notre Dame out shot Rutgers 21-13, forcing Scarlet Knight goalie Ricky Zinter to save 10 shots. Meanwhile, Irish goalie Chris Sawyer successfully defended four Rutgers shots.
While the Irish held the overall advantage in shots, Rutgers had an important 9-5 edge in corner kicks.
"We actually played very, very well," Clark said. "It was an excellent performance. It was a tough weekend for us because I thought we played very well in the St. John's game and the Rutgers game and we only came out with one tie."
The Irish are now 4-2-3 on the season and 2-1-1 in Big East play.
Notre Dame headed into the contest having lost its last five games against Rutgers, and the Irish were 1-6 at the Scarlet Knights' home field. In its last six meetings with Rutgers, Notre Dame had been outscored 11-2.
"I think this is all tremendous experience for this team and I think you know it's going to come out right in the end," Clark said.
Notre Dame will face Big East foe Pittsburgh Oct. 4 at home before heading to Akron, Ohio to face the Zips.
Clark knows his team must be sharp against Pittsburgh if they hope to win their third conference game of the year. Pittsburgh, like Notre Dame, lost to St. John's 1-0.
"[Pittsburgh] is a very tough team," Clark said. "They're a big, strong team and it'll be another test. It's going to be one of these tough games, and if we take them lightly for one second, it'll be a very, very long evening for us. We've got to be absolutely fired to get back into the race for the [Big East conference title]."
All Sports Stories for Monday, September 30, 2002
