Nico Rosamilia positioned himself inside the box between two Maryland men’s soccer defenders.
Curt Calov put a low ball into the area. The Rutgers forward, with his back to goal, flicked the cross with his heel on target. Terps goalie Laurin Mack stood still as the ball passed him for the second time in the match.
No. 10 Maryland conceded three times and lost, 3-1, to the Scarlet Knights in Piscataway on Tuesday.
The Terps’ second loss in five days eliminated them from contention for the Big Ten regular season title.
Maryland (8-3-5, 5-2-2 Big Ten) entered the final week of the regular season two victories away from winning the conference, but Indiana’s win guaranteed the Terps won’t finish above second place and will miss out on a first round bye in the conference tournament.
Maryland, who came into the contest off its second goalless output of the season, didn’t produce its first shot until the 21st minute. Costabile sent in a hopeful ball to the box, but Rutgers goalie Ciaran Dalton caught comfortably.
Defender Jace Clark had the best Terps’ shot off of his head, but he hit the side netting. Then, forward Colin Griffith produced Maryland’s best offensive chance of the half.
[Maryland women’s soccer avoided Big Ten’s worst regular season record with Rutgers draw]
The junior danced with the ball inside the box. He got close to the goal line and fired a low cross across the face of goal, but no Terps’ attacker got their foot on it.
Maryland recorded just four shots in the half.
As the Terps struggled to create chances, Rutgers (5-9-2, 2-6-1 Big Ten) shared similar struggles.
The Scarlet Knights generated five shots with two attempts on frame. They thought they won a penalty when Maryland defender William Kulvik dove to block an effort and it ricocheted onto his hand, but a video review waved the claim away.
But after another review in the final five seconds of the first half, Rutgers was awarded its penalty.
Defender Bjarne Thiesen committed a foul just inside the box, and despite protest from coach Sasho Cirovski who received a red card, a spot kick was given. Scarlet Knights forward Ian Abbey slotted in a shot from 12 yards, scoring the first goal for his side in three games to put Rutgers up 1-0 to end the half.
Maryland almost had its equalizer early in the second half. The Scarlet Knights failed to clear a Terps’ corner and the ball fell right to midfielder Matias De Jesus in the center of the box. The junior hit a first-time volley, but his shot was blocked and cleared.
[With weight class shifts, Maryland wrestling hopes for more Big Ten success this season]Griffith took a shot from distance three minutes later, but he didn’t trouble Dalton. The Rutgers goalie then pushed a low effort from De Jesus wide of the post. Maryland had four shots in the first 15 minutes of the second half.
The Scarlet Knights doubled their lead after the Terps’ missed chances. Rosamilia’s composed finish put Rutgers two-goals clear in the final 25 minutes.
De Jesus pounced on a loose ball to score his first career Big Ten goal and make it 2-1, but Maryland couldn’t find an equalizer.
Aidan Flynn added the Scarlet Knights’ second penalty of the night in the 87th minute to end any hopes of a turnaround.
The Terps have netted just one time in the five halves without midfielder Leon Koehl. Devoid of its joint-leading scoring and mainstay in the midfield, Maryland has faltered down the final stretch of the regular season.
