Grand Rapids - The MSU hockey team played a strong first period against Minnesota-Duluth, down by only one goal in the Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday at Van Andel Arena. All the Spartans needed was to carry their play over to the next period.
The MSU women's basketball program is on the rise and the 2003-04 team took a few big steps, as it broke or tied numerous records en route to one of its most successful seasons ever. "Our goals were to win championships; we flirted with those goals but came up short," head coach Joanne P.
Led by senior pitcher Jessica Beech, the MSU softball team launched its home season with a convincing sweep of Valparaiso on Saturday at Old College Field. The Spartans (17-10) made just one error and registered 15 hits and three home runs in the doubleheader. "These are the things we need to do," head coach Jacquie Joseph said.
Laden with baby powder and energy bars, the MSU men's track and field team pledged a competitive effort in its first outdoor event of the year which yielded two 12th-place finishes over the weekend at the Stanford Invitational at Cobb Track and Angell Field.
The MSU women's golf team tied for seventh place after the last day of competition at the 2004 Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic in Athens, Ga., this weekend.
The MSU women's tennis team earned its first Big Ten win of the season with a 6-1 victory over Penn State on Sunday. The Nittany Lions fell to 6-9 overall, 0-3 Big Ten, while MSU improved to 6-8, 1-2. The Spartans swept all six singles matches on Sunday. On Saturday, MSU lost, 4-3, against No.
The No. 44 MSU men's tennis team was victim to a 4-3 upset at No. 56 Penn State on Sunday. The Spartans doubles team of senior Chris Mitchell and junior Andrew Formanczyk to move to 18-9 for the season, but it was the only doubles win MSU would earn. Freshman Joseph McWilliams, junior Cameron Marshall and Mitchell each earned singles wins for the Spartans, who drop to 13-7 overall, 0-2 Big Ten. In the Big Ten opener at Ohio State on Saturday, MSU fell to No.
Senior Jamie Krzyminski saw a record-breaking run Friday at the Stanford Invitational. Krzyminski, who was the lone representative of the MSU women's track team at the Invitational, placed second at the meet.
Despite an unscheduled double-header against Western Illinois, the MSU baseball team pulled out two victories - including one shutout - on Saturday at Kobs Field. The first game was a shutout with a score of 14-0, while the second game was neck-and-neck, with two runs in the bottom of the ninth leading to an 8-7 win.
In front of a Breslin Center crowd that was buzzing with anticipation Saturday, Drew Neitzel, MSU's point guard of the future and recently-crowned Mr. Basketball of Michigan, scored 36 points and showed why he could be the missing ingredient for the Spartans next season. It was the biggest game of Neitzel's high school career, and it was on the biggest stage.
MSU's No. 15 women's golf team will head to Athens, Ga., along with eight top 25 teams this weekend for the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic. The Spartans lineup features three seniors in Allison Fouch, Sarah Martin and Ann Marie Kersten.
Sophomore swimmer Ian Clutten will represent MSU this weekend at the 2004 NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships. Clutten, the only swimmer from MSU to compete in an individual event, is swimming the breaststroke in East Meadow, N.Y.
If he weren't teaching the game of hockey to a group of college kids, MSU head coach Rick Comley isn't sure what he'd be doing with his life.
The No. 44 MSU men's tennis team kicks off its Big Ten season Saturday in Columbus, Ohio, against No.
The MSU women's tennis team will host two matches this weekend as it faces Ohio State and Penn State. The Spartans (5-7 overall, 0-1 Big Ten) lost to No.
Coach Rick Comley, it is time to put on another pot of coffee, crack that playbook and review more game tape.
MSU junior captain Jim Slater says this season hasn't been a good year for him. It's not enough that he leads the MSU hockey team in points, with 48, and ranks as one of the top 10 in the nation. It's not enough the Lapeer native has registered 15 points in the past 11 games. And it just might not be enough that a 2004 All-CCHA First Team member was recently named one of 10 finalists for college hockey's most prestigious individual award - the Hobey Baker. Slater still isn't satisfied with what he's done. "I went through a drought from November to January," Slater said.
The MSU baseball team broke out its bats and showed the potential to be an exciting team in its home opener against Grand Valley State University at Kobs Field on Thursday. The Spartans (5-10) hit four home runs on their way to a 13-8 win over Grand Valley (12-7). "We've got a lot of big strong guys," head coach Ted Mahan said.
A beaming smile graced Earvin "Magic" Johnson's face as the scissors in his hand snipped the final piece of the net in Salt Lake City. The Spartans were champions. It was 25 years ago today the Spartans were national champions for the first time, captivating the nation and changing college hoops in East Lansing. "The first thing in memory is that it did revolutionize college basketball," said Billy Packer, a current analyst for CBS and broadcaster for the '79 championship game.
One of the biggest losses the MSU hockey team suffered following last season was the graduation of defenseman John-Michael Liles. A confident kid with a constant smile on his face, according to MSU head coach Rick Comley, the Zionsville, Ind., native plays for the Colorado Avalanche and is in contention for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL's Rookie of the Year. Michel Goulet, Vice President of Player Personnel for Colorado, said Liles is day-to-day with a bruised knee injury he suffered Tuesday.