NCAA Tournament: UConn women’s soccer knocks off 6-seed Rutgers in first round

Two goals in six minutes help the Huskies move on.

UConn women’s soccer is moving on after knocking off the 6-seed Rutgers Scarlet Knights on the road in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday. The Huskies scored two goals in a six-minute span in the first half and held onto the lead despite allowing a goal in the 70th minute.

With the win, UConn secured the biggest upset in the tournament so far with every other 6-seed or better advancing except Rutgers. The Huskies were one of just five teams (from a possible 32) to claim a victory in the opening round.

Less than 10 minutes in, UConn goalie Kaitlyn Mahoney stepped up with a crucial early save. On a bouncing ball inside the six-yard box, she laid out and denied a shot from point-blank to keep the game scoreless.

In the 31st minute, the Huskies struck first. Anaya Johnson beat Rutgers to a 50/50 ball near midfield and sprung Chioma Okafor on a breakaway. The junior turned on the jets, beat the goalie with a cut to the left and buried the chance to give UConn a 1-0 lead.

The Huskies weren’t done. 5:52 later, Joyce Ryder lofted a corner kick into the mixer at the top of the six. Lucy Cappadona — who left the Big East championship game on crutches — leaped and connected on a looping header that tucked into the top right corner of the goal. UConn needed just two shots on net to take a 2-0 lead.

While Rutgers put five attempts on net in the first 45, the Huskies’ defense stiffened up in the second half, allowing just four shots and zero corner kicks. The Scarlet Knights pulled one back on a re-directed shot in the 70th minute but that would be all. They didn’t manage another chance the rest of the game as UConn came away with the 2-1 victory.

Next, the Huskies will head to Fayetteville, Arkansas for a matchup with the 3-seed Stanford Cardinal. The three-time national champions and 2023 national runner-up dispatched UC Santa Barbara with a 5-0 win in the first round.

The Cardinal come in with a 14-4-1 record, though they struggled down the stretch. After starting 10-1-0, Stanford went just 3-3-1 to close the regular season. The two teams have just one common opponent: Cal State Fullerton. The Cardinal picked up a 1-0 road win on Aug. 25 while the Huskies earned a 2-0 victory at Morrone Stadium on Sept. 5.

This will be the first meeting between the schools since 2013. UConn is 2-4-0 all-time against Stanford but has the lone postseason win: A 2-0 result in Palo Alto in the 2007 Sweet Sixteen.

Kick-off is set for Friday with a time still to be announced.