Two early Michigan goals proved to be too much for the MSU women’s soccer team to overcome against the No. 21 team in the nation.
The Spartans (7-3-2 overall, 1-3-0 Big Ten) lost, 2-1, to the Wolverines (8-2-1, 2-1-1) in their second-consecutive loss to a Big Ten opponent.
Michigan got off to a quick start and controlled the ball for much of the game early on. In the 10th minute, Michigan midfielder Christina Murillo sent a hard shot over junior goalkeeper Courtney Clem’s head on the left side from 25 yards out.
Less than five minutes in the 15th minute, Michigan midfielder Meghan Toohey knocked a shot past Clem after getting a rebound from a blocked shot.
The Spartans got a lucky break with a media timeout soon after.
“We had to fix our psychology first of all,” head coach Tom Saxton said. “We gave up a tough goal to begin the game. I think a lot of people took their heads out of it a little bit, so we coached the psychology during that break and said, ‘Look, you gotta get back in this game it’s only a two goal game.’”
During the timeout, Saxton also made the decision to replace Clem with sophomore goalkeeper Gabrielle Gauruder after Clem gave up the two quick goals.
The Spartans rebounded nicely and both teams went back and forth. Even with a late goal by sophomore defender Mary Kathryn Fiebernitz, the Spartans couldn’t overcome the early goals.
“They’re a very good team, so you have to play every minute, I felt very good about how we competed after that first break,” Saxton said. “We told the team afterward you have to play a full 90 minutes, but we got off to a slow start and that cost us the game.”
Fiebernitz scored her fifth goal of the season on a header in the 78th minute. Sophomore midfielder Kirsten Evans took a free kick from the right side of the field and crossed it in the box to give Fiebernitz an opportunity to do what she does best.
“That’s been my key and strong point off of corners and free kicks so that was a perfect opportunity to put my team on the board and put us back in the game,” Fiebernitz said.
After the goal, the Spartans had a glimmer of hope, but weren’t able to capitalize. With time running out, MSU pressed the ball downfield and sophomore forward Allyson Krause punted it nearly halfway downfield near the goal, but time expired before anything could happen.
“We knew there was about 12 minutes left so we knew we needed to continue to play the way we were and keep settled down and not just force it because that’s when chaos starts,” senior defender Kelsey Mullen said. “We had our chances we just couldn’t finish.”
Mid-game change
After 23 minutes of play against No. 21 Michigan sophomore goalkeeper Gabrielle Gauruder replaced junior goalkeeper Courtney Clem.
Head coach Tom Saxton said the early goalie change was decided due to routine measures.
“If somebody’s having a bad day, we give someone else a chance,” Saxton said. “That’s what we wanted to do in goal, it’s a tough decision to make, but I thought Gabby (Gauruder) handled herself very well.”
Prior to the game, Clem’s save percentage was .843, second overall in the Big Ten. Clem now has a save percentage of .815.
Earlier in the season against New Mexico, Gauruder substituted in for Clem who was sidelined because of a concussion. Gauruder stepped up, only letting three goals in to pull off three consecutive wins for MSU. With seven games left in the regular season, her save percentage stands at .833.
Comparatively, Clem and Gauruder have the ability to pick up where the other left off, or vice versa.
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“(Courtney Clem) is a fine keeper and she had a great game against Minnesota, unfortunately she had…what I would call tough plays the last two games in a row, and Gabby (Gauruder) has become a lot better keeper in the past year.”
The Spartans will travel Sunday to face Iowa (9-2-0, 1-2-0) in Iowa City, Iowa.
