NEWARK, N.J. – Despite a 6-2 loss on the road against nationally ranked Rutgers-Newark (18-2-0), the William Paterson men's soccer team (10-5-3, 3-4-2) earned a spot in the New Jersey Athletic Conference postseason tournament for the first time since the 2014 season.
The Pioneers took advantage of a Kean victory over Ramapo and a Stockton overtime victory over Rutgers-Camden to claim the sixth seed in the upcoming men's soccer championship. WP will travel to third seed Montclair State in the opening round.
Senior
JP Gonzales (Paterson, N.J./Passaic County Tech) and sophomore
Kyle Adams (Bordentown, N.J./Northern Burlington Regional) netted the goals for the Pioneers, with Gonzales scoring on a penalty kick and Adams potting a loose ball on a failed clearance attempt by the Scarlet Raiders. Despite the two goals, the Pioneers could not keep up with the Rutgers-Newark attack, as the Scarlet Raiders finished with a 15-7 advantage in shots on goal and a 5-1 advantage in corners.
After falling behind early, the Pioneers earned a PK off of a hand ball in the penalty area and Gonzales buried the kick on the left side to make it a 1-1 game. Rutgers-Newark had the answer however, blitzing the Pioneers for three goals in a six-minute span to put WP on their heels and took the 4-1 advantage into halftime.
Trying to chip away at the lead, Adams deposited his seventh goal of the season in the 60th minute, but again it was the Scarlet Raiders with the response just over a minute later to push the advantage back up to three goals. A late tally gave Rutgers-Newark the 6-2 edge that carried into the final whistle.
The Pioneers will open the first round on the road at Montclair State Saturday, October 28 at 6:00 p.m.
Full Postseason Seeding:
- 1. Rowan University *
- 2. Rutgers-Newark *
- 3. Montclair State University
- 4. Kean University
- 5. Stockton College
- 6. William Paterson University
* Top two seeds receive an opening round bye
For all of the latest information on the Pioneers, visit
http://www.wpupioneers.com and
http://www.wpupioneers.com/socialmedia.
