MSU senior midfielder Lauren Astry wins the ball Wednesday at Old College Field. MSU won the game, 2-0.
Despite it being a week since it dismantled Detroit Mercy, the MSU women’s soccer team showed no rust Wednesday afternoon.
Once again using their depth and offensive firepower to their advantage, the Spartans (4-2-0) knocked off Eastern Michigan, 2-0, at Old College Field.
“The depth did prove to work well for us,” MSU head coach Tom Saxton said. “Eastern just came off a tough road trip to California, and I was hoping that we could wear them down, and I think that was the case.
The final margin could’ve been more, if not for the stellar play of Eastern Michigan goalkeeper Maggie Manville, who was able to tip several hard shots either over the goal completely or off the crossbar and over.
She had 16 total shots fired her way and made five saves.
“We had some brilliant chances,” Saxton said. “We scored a couple nice goals but also put together some build-up and nice chances and their goalie came up big for them.”
The Spartans took a 1-0 lead at 20:17 when sophomore forward Lauren Hill booted in her fourth goal of the season from 10 yards out. Senior midfielder Maureen Pawlak and sophomore midfielder Lauren Sinacola picked up the assists.
As the second half started, MSU started to dominate the game. The Eagles found it tough to advance the ball past midfield and it showed on the scoreboard, as MSU senior goalkeeper Nicole Galas only had to make one save.
The early pressure finally got to Eastern Michigan, as the trio of Pawlak, Hill and Sinacola combined for another tally.
This time it was Pawlak who was on the receiving end of a beautiful string of passes, as she found the back of the net for the third time this season, giving the Spartans a commanding 2-0 lead.
“It was off a cross from Lauren Hill, and I just ran on and tried to get something on it,” Pawlak said.
Saxton called it an “awesome goal.”
“That way we got the ball to Hill on the weak side, and she made a great touch to get it into Mo,” Saxton said, “Mo was right in the right place where she needed to be and really made a nice touch with the outside of her foot.”
After that, the Spartans were able to relax and held Eastern Michigan off the scoreboard for the team’s fourth shutout of the season.
Wednesday’s game marked the first day of stretch where MSU will play three games in five days.
The Spartans host Bowling Green on Friday before making the short jaunt to Central Michigan on Sunday.
But from a coach’s standpoint, it can become difficult to manage what could be tiring during such a tough stretch. In preparation, Saxton played 19 players Wednesday.
“This is a big stretch of our season, a tough stretch,” Saxton said.
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