St. John's University Athletics
Second-Ranked SJU Mens Soccer Set to Host Rutgers
9/25/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
St. Johns has won its first four games of the season, including two BIG EAST matches, leading the conference with a 4-0 overall record and a 2-0 conference slate.
Rutgers, meanwhile, is 3-1-1 overall and 2-0 in the BIG EAST following an impressive 3-0 win at Notre Dame this past weekend.
The Red Storm has been led, as usual, by a stingy defense, one of the main ingredients to success under 11th-year head coach Dave Masur. In his 10 years at the helm, St. Johns has recorded at least 10 shutouts each season, including 11 last year when the Red Storm reached the NCAA Tournament for the ninth-straight year and the Round of 16 for the fifth-straight season.
Sophomore tri-captain Chris Wingert (Babylon, N.Y.), who has stepped in to play center-back for SJU, leads a unit that has allowed only one goal in four games this season, and no goals in the last 283:37, just over three games.
On offense, St. Johns has been spearheaded by a pair of seniors, All-American candidates Shalrie Joseph (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Jeff Matteo (Stormville, N.Y.). Joseph leads the team in scoring with two goals and two assists for six points, while Matteo ranks second with two goals for four points.
Joseph scored two goals and had two assists in the first two games of the season, wins over perennial power Indiana and Butler at the season opening adidas/IU Credit Union Classic, and was named the Tournaments Offensive MVP, as well as National Player of the Week by CollegeSoccerNews.com.
The Red Storm soccer program will not charge admission to Wednesdays games, asking that fans make donations toward the Universitys Eddie Williams Memorial Scholarship Fund, which benefits the children of deceased New York City firefighters and police officers who were killed in the line of duty.
