“I think this means I have been lucky enough to do this for a long time,” Saxton said in a postgame statement. “However, it is all about the 2016 team today and they needed to win today heading in to Big Ten play.”

In the first minutes of the game, the pace of play dragged on compared to typical games the Spartans are accustomed to. MSU was able to keep the mostly in UDM territory during the first half, but the Titans didn’t let up, causing MSU to turn the ball over multiple times.

In the 20th minute, the Spartans started to piece together their first goal of the game. Assists from both junior defender Madison Duncan and junior forward Jamie Cheslik allowed freshman midfielder Hannah Jones to score the first goal of the game, giving the Spartans the lead early on.

During the last seven minutes of the half, MSU was able to keep UDM from taking a single shot and kept possession in Titan territory until halftime.

The Titans came out in the second half playing with more urgency than they did in the first half, but MSU was still able to take four shots on the Titans in the first 10 minutes of the second half.

Cheslik sealed the deal for MSU in the 65th minute, scoring MSU's second goal of the game with an assist from Morgan McKerchie. 

MSU will open up conference play on Friday when they take on Nebraska, 6-2, on the road. Game time is set for 8 p.m.