No. 8 Michigan State upset No. 5 Rutgers Thursday morning to give the Spartans their first Big Ten Baseball Tournament win since 2016.

After a narrow 3-4 loss to top-seeded Maryland in the team’s first tournament matchup, MSU was facing elimination should they fall to the Scarlet Knights. But stand-out performances from junior infielder Brock Vradenburg and senior pitcher Wyatt Rush kept the Spartans' tournament run alive with a 6-4 victory.

The matchup between the two teams was stuck at a 4-4 tie-up going into the eighth inning, but two bases-loaded walks from Vradenburg and junior infielder Mitch Jebb gave MSU the two-run advantage to close out the final two innings.

Not only did Vradenburg have a part in one of the game-sealing walks, but the junior also made Spartan history. With his 22nd double of the season, Vradenburg tied Blaise Salter and Chris McCuiston for the most doubles in one season at Michigan State.

At the bottom of the fifth, Wyatt Rush was called in to replace junior Harrison Cook on the mound for the remainder of Thursday morning’s game. In his little over four innings pitching for the green and white, Rush allowed just three hits, struck out four hitters and did not allow a single run.

The Spartans will play again in Omaha on Friday at 7 p.m. against the loser of Thursday night's game between No. 1 Maryland and No. 4 Nebraska.