In Friday’s season opener at DeMartin Stadium at Old College Field, three sophomores recorded goals and MSU easily defeated Duquesne 3-1.

The game also marked Damon Rensing’s first collegiate win as head coach of the Spartans. He served as an assistant coach for MSU for 10 seasons before taking over the reigns of the program in January.

“It feels good to get that first win,” Rensing said. “And if there was any focus on me, hopefully this takes it off me and focuses it on the team. It’s a good group of guys and they are the ones that deserve a lot of the credit. I thought we had a good game plan, but once that whistle blows it’s really up to the players and they executed the game plan great.”

The Spartans (1-0-0) scored the first three goals of the game, but allowed a Duquesne goal in the 83rd minute, thus ending the team’s shutout streak at 905 minutes.

But junior goalkeeper Avery Steinlage still has his shutout streak alive, as Duquesne scored their lone goal on sophomore goalkeeper Jeremy Clark 37 seconds after he entered the game. If Steinlage can go another 86 minutes without allowing a goal, he will have set the NCAA all-time record, which is held by Loyola’s Milos Kocic at 974 minutes.

Steinlage was quick to credit the defense in front of him for the MSU victory. The Spartans back line allowed only five Duquesne shots, and the Dukes only shot in the first half came 36 minutes into the game.

“The defense did such a great job today,” Steinlage said. “In the first half I think I touched the ball once and it was right in my hands. The second half they were pushing a little bit more and they hit a couple air balls, but the defense did a great job.”

Sophomore midfielder Rubin Bega struck first for the Spartans in the 25th minute after sophomore midfielder Cyrus Saydee sent a cross into the box that pinballed around before bouncing out to the 18-yard line where Bega was on the prowl.

But it almost wasn’t Bega who earned the bragging rights of scoring the first goal of the season.

“The ball was on the six yard line just waiting for me,” sophomore forward Mark Barone said. “So I am thinking, ‘Here is my first goal.’ I hit it as hard as I could and as low as I could. But the goalie came out and it hit him right in the shin and came back rolling to Rubin who got a good left foot goal and put it right in the corner.”
When the ball bounced out of the scrum in front of the net, Bega was in the perfect position for the finish.

“It looked like it was coming out in a gap between a bunch of people and I made the run and just assumed it would come out there,” Bega said. “Luckily it came out right there and I was able to drill it home between the littlest gap. I just wanted to kill the ball incase it hit something. That way it would either go in with the guy or just go in.”

The Bega-Mark Barone connection carried over to the Spartans next goal, which game in the 56th minute. This time, Bega bent a through ball perfectly around a defender and hit Mark Barone right in stride. Then all Mark Barone had to do was touch the ball to his left to beat the keeper and finish it into the back of the net.

“Rubin got the ball outside and played a beautiful ball and bent it right around the defense,” Mark Barone said. “It was a perfect through ball and I had the easy job of just touching it by the goalie and putting it in. I have to thank him for the pass, it was a beautiful pass.”

The Spartans third goal came in the 72nd minute from the foot of Mark Barone’s twin brother, Domenic. Domenic stole the ball from a Duquesne defender and walked right in on goal. He made a quick move to his right to make the goalkeeper commit, then fired a sharp angle shot that ticked off the far post and into the net.

“Goals are going to be more by committee and I think that showed tonight,” Rensing said. “There were three different players scoring goals but our defense is the backbone. We didn’t give up goals, so that takes pressure off the forwards to score.”

The Spartans will head to Illinois-Chicago on Sunday and tensions will run high, as Illinios-Chicago eliminated the Spartans from the NCAA Tournament on penalty kicks last season.

“I think we did get some confidence today,” Rensing said. “We have a little extra motivation for playing them. I know some of the guys are talking about it. But they are going to be a very good side and they are very well organized and well coached. So we are looking forward to the challenge.”

Mark Barone said the Spartans have something to prove against the team that ended last year’s storybook season.

“Now that this game is over, (the Illinois-Chicago game) is all we are focused on,” Mark Barone said. “It was a tough game and it went into penalty kicks. That’s just a bad way for out seniors to lose, especially on their home field. You can’t say that they were the better team but that’s the way it goes. We are going to try and get some revenge for the last year’s seniors this weekend.”