The Rutgers Scarlet Knights have their first ever Big Ten Title. The honor was achieved by the women's soccer program which clinch the outright title with a 2-0 win over Indiana on Thursday. The Scarlet Knights improved to 9-0 in Big Ten play and clinched the No. 1 seed in the 2021 Big Ten Women's Soccer Tournament.
Currently ranked No. 9 in the country, Rutgers will finish their regular season at Illinois on Sunday, Oct. 24.
At 14-2 overall, the Scarlet Knights have now won 10 straight and are one of the hottest teams in the country.
On Thursday, Amirah Ali scored 21 minutes into the contest, giving Rutgers the lead. It was her sixth goal of the season. The second goal came from Rutgers scoring leader, Frankie Tagliaferri, who notched her team high 12th goal of the season. Ali had returned to Rutgers for an extra year because she felt herself and the team had unfinished business after last season. Tagliaferri joined Rutgers program as a graduate transfer from Penn State. She wanted the chance to end her collegiate career in her home state. Now, the two are an integral pair and a big reason the Scarlet Knights have accomplished this goal of winning a Big Ten regular season title.
The Scarlet Knights will cherish this championship, but have their eyes set on much more.
"Winning this title in my eyes had so much more meaning than just a championship," said Ali in a statement released by the school. "Being able to lift up that trophy with this team only made my final collegiate season that much more special! All of the hard work we put in since July prepared us for moments like this. But we know we have more goals as a team and are very excited for the next game and postseason!"
This program, led by head coach Mike O'Neill, has been on an upward trajectory for a few years, and they can now call themselves champions. Rutgers Athletics as a whole has begun to see a great deal of success in the Big Ten and this could very well be the first of many Big Ten Championships.
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