Sophomore right-handed pitcher A.J. Achter is getting the run support he had been looking for all season — and he didn’t even need it Saturday. Fresh off a win against Iowa in which he received 10 runs of support, Achter worked eight innings and allowed one unearned run while striking out five to help MSU (20-24 overall, 10-7 Big Ten) beat Penn State (22-21, 5-12) 9-1.
It was 55 degrees accompanied by strong winds Saturday afternoon, and Drayton McLane was fighting to stay warm as the cool breeze swept across Kobs Field at McLane Baseball Stadium.
The only thing that would have made sophomore guard Durrell Summers’ dunk over Connecticut forward Stanley Robinson better is if Summers had been wearing a “Welcome to Detroit” T-shirt instead of a green MSU jersey.
In softball, the pitcher is the heart and soul of the team. “You don’t win unless you have a horse in the circle,” MSU pitching coach Jessica Bograkos said. “You don’t see any teams go the distance without an ace.”
During his 14 years as head coach of the MSU men’s basketball team, Tom Izzo has participated in his share of pressure-inducing activities. He’s coached in three Final Fours, thrown out the first pitch of a Detroit Tigers game and even rapelled from the ceiling of Breslin Center.
The MSU softball team split a doubleheader against Penn State on Wednesday, taking the nightcap 3-2 but losing the first game 6-3. The Spartans took the lead early in the second game with a deep three-run home run to left field by sophomore outfielder Jessica Bracamonte in the bottom of the first inning.
The No. 3 MSU women’s rowing team has grown accustomed to crossing the finish line and seeing its opponents far behind. The Spartans have dominated their opponents by so much this season they are having to re-practice what it feels like to have a close race as the team prepares for this weekend’s Big Ten Championship Regatta at Ohio State.
Slugglish starts stymied the MSU baseball team in both games of its Wednesday doubleheader against Eastern Michigan, but only once did they prove costly. The Spartans erased a three-run deficit to win 6-5 in the first game, but they ran out of magic in the second game, losing 6-1 to give MSU manager Jake Boss Jr. a de-facto no-decision in his first game managing against the team he coached last season.
With the cancellation of Tuesday’s MSU baseball game against Eastern Michigan, the Spartans (17-23 overall, 8-7 Big Ten) and Eagles will meet for two games Wednesday.
Not only does Kalin Lucas plan on returning to school for his junior season, but according to his coach, the star guard never even gave much thought to entering the 2009 NBA Draft.
For the MSU men’s golf team to three-peat as Big Ten Tournament champions, MSU head coach Sam Puryear said his squad is going to have to play flawless golf. But after a win this weekend at the Fossum/Spartan Invitational, he feels his team is closer than ever to reaching that summit.
Finally healthy, the MSU softball team is rounding into form, even if only six games remain on the schedule. The Spartans notched their first Big Ten wins of the season, sweeping Minnesota over the weekend to move their conference record to 2-11.
Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany spoke to the media earlier this month about a variety of topics. Here’s what he had to say.
The MSU football team’s defense loves the quarterback competition between sophomores Kirk Cousins and Keith Nichol.
Those seven-hour, late-night bus rides home from Big Ten destinations are a lot easier for the MSU baseball team after a weekend sweep.
The MSU Athletics Department announced Monday it signed contracts for home-and-home MSU football series with Alabama and West Virginia within the next 10 years. MSU will play West Virginia in Morgantown, W. Va., on Sept. 13, 2014, and against the Mountaineers at home on Sept. 19, 2015. The Spartans will meet Alabama for the first time in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Sept. 3, 2016. The two teams will play in East Lansing on Sept. 2, 2017.
Four Spartan football players that weren’t selected in last weekend’s NFL Draft have signed with teams as of Monday, and a fifth has a tryout with a pro team. Quarterback Brian Hoyer, safety Otis Wiley, defensive end Brandon Long and defensive tackle Justin Kershaw all have signed with teams. Right tackle Jesse Miller also earned a May 7 tryout with the New York Giants.
The MSU football team’s quarterback race is getting most of the publicity, but a few other intriguing story lines emerged from the Green and White scrimmage on Saturday at Spartan Stadium.
More than three decades ago, three young men gathered in the end zone of Spartan Stadium, commencing one important journey of their lives that would create a bond lasting for years to come.
After a weekend of stormy skies, gusting winds and pouring rain, the sun was shining brightly on the MSU men’s golf team in the final day of the Spartan/Fossum Invitational on Sunday at Forest Akers West Golf Course.