NEWARK N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Freshman back Mike Almeida (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) became just the second player to score against No. 3/9 ranked Rutgers-Newark all season when he connected in the 82nd minute but the New Jersey City University men's soccer team dropped a 3-1 decision to the undefeated and untied Scarlet Raiders on September 27 in a New Jersey Athletic Conference night game at Alumni Field.
 
Rutgers-Newark, ranked No. 3 nationally by D3soccer.com and No. 9 by the United Soccer Coaches, improved to 11-0-0 overall and 3-0-0 in the NJAC, outscoring opponents this season, 35-2.
 
NJCU (4-3-2, 0-2-1 NJAC) became the first team to score against Newark since Elmhurst College on September 10 (2-1, 2 OTs). The NJCU goal snapped the Raiders' five-game shutout streak and a 615-minute scoreless streak.
 
In an impressive note in defeat for the Gothic Knights, NJCU put six of its nine shots on goal—by far the most for any team against the Raiders. Prior to the game, the Raiders had only allowed 15 shots on goal in 10 games and no more than two in any game since permitting four on goal in the season opener on September 1 at Nazareth.
 
Almeida's goal, his second of the season, came with 8:09 remaining as the Knights attempted to mount a comeback, unleashing a shot that deflected into the upper right corner. Freshman goalkeeper Eric Lopes Silva (Newark, NJ/Newark East Side) made eight saves for NJCU.
 
Reigning NJAC Offensive Player of the Week, sophomore forward Fabio De Sousa (Long Branch, N.J.), had a goal and an assist in the first half when RUN gained a 2-0 lead. He scored his ninth of the year in the 14th minute on a free kick from the top right of the box into the lower left corner.
 
With just five seconds remaining in the half, De Sousa aired out a long ball into the box and junior midfielder Zachary Gillespie (Oakland, N.J.) chased it down before hitting a shot into the far side.
 
Up 2-0, RUN added an insurance goal 34 minutes later when senior forward Stefano Muniz (Manalapan, N.J.) headed in a set piece service inside the six from senior back Arek Szoldrowski (Lawrenceville, N.J.) late in the 79th minute.
 
Rutgers-Newark outshot NJCU, 22-9, and had all nine corner kicks. Sophomore keeper Andres Medina (Howell Township, N.J.), this week's NJAC Defensive Player of the Week, made five saves.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series: 43rd meeting. Rutgers-Newark leads the all-time series, 24-17-2, and has won the last nine meetings.

 
UP NEXT:

• NJCU plays game two of a four-game road trip on Saturday, September 30 (1 p.m.) when it visits William Paterson University (8-2-0, 2-1-0 NJAC) in Wayne, N.J. Watch live or view live stats.

 
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