For a moment, it seemed as though head coach Tom Izzo had pulled off an impressive Evel Knievel impersonation. Clad in stuntman gear, Izzo rode a cannon, hashtagged #IzzoCannon, into Breslin Center. He joined his wife and kids at the center of the court with a helmet under his arm.
Every game is becoming more and more crucial for the women’s soccer team. After starting the season out 6-0-2, the Spartans (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten) have been in a tailspin since conference play.
The field hockey team has been on a hot streak. But in order to remain undefeated in Big Ten play, they will have to overcome the other undefeated Big Ten team — No. 3 Penn State. “We’re going to try and do what we’ve been doing,” junior forward Abby Barker said. “It is a big game, there’s a lot of pressure on the line. But like we were saying the other day, pressure is a privilege, and we’re excited to be able to compete.”
The real games have finally arrived. The puck will drop on the new season for the MSU hockey team when they travel to Amherst, Mass., to take on UMass Friday and Saturday night.
After a thrilling 14-4 comeback in the first set, it seemed as though the Spartans were on their way to another Big Ten victory. Perhaps the improbable first set comeback drained them. Or maybe it was simply an off-night.
Now is the time to shine. With just six games left in the season for the men’s soccer team, it’s up to this squad to show whether they’re capable of making any run in the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.
One word has been circulating the women’s field hockey locker room and has made its way out onto the field: Destiny. “One of our team goals was to win against the Big Ten from the start of season,” head coach Helen Knull said. “In non-conference season we didn’t get the result we wanted. But now we’re far more focused on the process, which is practice Monday through Thursday, and taking care of business on Saturday … But win or loss, on Saturday, our destiny is still in our hands.”
The 2013 football season is halfway over for MSU (5-1 overall, 2-0 Big Ten), and things appear to be looking up for the Spartans heading into tomorrow’s matchup with Purdue (1-5, 0-2). Since its season opener reminded everyone another dismal season wasn’t out of the question, MSU has reshaped its image and emerged as a Legends Division favorite. Sophomore Connor Cook has taken the reins at quarterback and his supporting cast has improved each game while getting multiple players involved. Here are the most notable players and events from the season’s first half.
Every game is becoming more and more crucial for the women’s soccer team. After starting the season out 6-0-2, the Spartans (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten) have been in a tailspin since conference play.
The No. 5 MSU volleyball team will resume its Big Ten season tonight, taking on No. 10 Minnesota (16-3 overall, 4-2 Big Ten) on the road. The match will be televised on ESPN2 live at 8 p.m.
The moment he uttered the remark, it would have been easy to see it as a slip of the tongue. And realistically, how else could it be interpreted? Sophomore quarterback Connor Cook, a 100-yard rusher?
Junior back Jenni Smith, who was honored as Co-Defensive Player of the Week Tuesday, was a key member of a stifling field hockey defense last weekend that held Michigan to two points and Ball State to zero.
Jim Bollman faced a bit of a quandary early this year. After spending the 2012 season as Boston College’s offensive line coach, Bollman was named to the same position at Purdue under first-year head coach Darrell Hazell, his former colleague, on Jan. 18. Hazell and Bollman worked together for seven years at Ohio State, where Bollman served as offensive coordinator from 2001-11.
Thirteen seconds. That’s how long it took sophomore midfielder Jay Chapman to give the MSU men’s soccer team (8-1-2) a 1-0 on in-state rival Oakland (5-3-5) on a rainy Wednesday evening.
My, how the tables have turned. During an overall disastrous 2012 season, the MSU football team didn’t clinch bowl eligibility until the final regular season game, going winless against Big Ten teams at home while nursing a stagnant offensive attack.
Rookies, newcomers, young ones — if this was basketball, ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale might even call them “diaper dandies, baby!” But to most, they’re just freshmen. They haven’t been on campus for more than a couple months, but a group of freshmen already have been contributing to the MSU women’s soccer team (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten).
The men’s soccer team may have a difficult week ahead of them, but they’re looking forward to the challenge. The No. 18 Spartans (7-1-2 Overall, 1-0-1 Big Ten) will face a tricky midweek tilt against in-state rival Oakland (5-2-5, 3-0-1 Horizon) at 4 p.m. Wednesday at DeMartin Stadium.
A season that once held so much promise for the MSU women’s soccer team now is in need of saving. With just five games remaining on the Big Ten slate, the Spartans (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten) sit tied for last place in the Big Ten with Northwestern (3-9-2, 1-5-0) and are five points behind the final spot in the Big Ten Tournament.
Thomas Ebbing and Mackenzie MacEachern have been friends for years. Both hail from Troy, Mich., and played hockey at Brother Rice High School in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. as well as the?Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League.
Last weekend, a different MSU field hockey team showed up to play at Ralph Young Field. Instead of the usual team that failed to hold onto early leads and oft-suffered from defensive lapses, a team that found its offense early, closed out a close game and twice displayed mental toughness for 70 minutes showed up.