Lone goalscorer graduate midfielder Justina Gaynor was “speechless” before the match when looking out at the stands. Spectators even leaked into the upper bleachers at Secchia Stadium next door. 

“To think a couple years ago, where we were and where we are now, it’s unreal,” Gaynor said postgame. “It hit me just before the game; this is what we’ve done. This is what the team's done and everyone that's come through the program and the mark they’ve left and the work they’ve put in to bring it here.”

The victory also marked MSU head coach Jeff Hosler’s 50th win with the program, a remarkable feat just three and a half years at the helm.

“I never would have imagined that three and a half years into this, that we would have accrued fifty wins at this point,” Hosler said. “College soccer, it’s hard to get wins, you know we’ve been in a lot of battles over the years and to come out on the front end is pretty cool.”

The Spartans entered Saturday winners of their last two games against Michigan. When all was said and done, they earned the three points they needed to join Rutgers and Ohio State for second place in the Big Ten. 

The Wolverines came out of the gate sprinting with an aggressive high press in the first ten minutes, looking to put MSU under immediate pressure. The Spartans weathered the initial storm and settled the game down, maintaining a majority of the possession. 

However, Michigan looked content on conceding control for large portions of the match, as many other sides have done against the Spartans this season. At the break, MSU controlled 62% of the possession but only had three shots on target to show for it. 

The Wolverines set up in a 4-4-2 diamond shape that looked to go man-to-man at midfield while an extra midfielder sat in front of their backline to give them a numerical advantage.

The low-block Michigan setup limited the Spartans' attacks and also gave the Wolverines two chances in the first half on the counter. The most dangerous of the pair came in the 35th minute, when freshman forward Elle Ervin found herself one-on-one with graduate goalkeeper Kaitlyn Parks, who came up big for the Spartans with a save to keep the game level.

As the two sides headed into the break, adjustments were necessary for the hosts, who had no clear answer to the Wolverine’s low block in the first half.

The second half saw a more aggressive MSU, which put two shots on target in the first ten minutes. 

Yet, Michigan stumbled upon the more dangerous chance with its only shot in the first 20 minutes forcing a goal-line clearance from junior defender Maggie Illig.

As the game dwindled to a close, Michigan defended with maximum effort, looking to keep the ball as far away from its goal as possible while fighting off wave after wave of the MSU attack.

“We knew Michigan was going to be a real tough out today,” Hosler said. “Our mentality all week has been 'all gas, no breaks' right from the start and I thought our group did an excellent job doing that."

Michigan kept inching closer to a hard-fought draw until MSU graduate midfielder Emily Mathews earned a late penalty in the 75th minute after being dragged down in the box.  

Gaynor stepped up to take the crucial pressure penalty, rolling it home and relieving MSU of its 75 minutes of built-up frustration. The Spartans closed it out from there. 

“Justina has such quality. She’s unquestionably the team leader and we all look to her, so in the toughest of spots to put her in a position like that, we knew she would step up,” Hosler said.

The win improved the Spartans' record to 9-0-4 on the season and moved them to a tie for second with Rutgers and Ohio State in the Big Ten at 4-0-2. 

MSU makes it first Big Ten trip to the West Coast, facing Oregon on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 9:30 p.m. and Washington on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 4 p.m. Big Ten Plus will stream both matches. 

“Our depth is going to have to really show up to get six points next week," Hosler said.