Friday, July 26, 2024

Sports

SPORTS

Freshmen find ways to win over Purdue

With nicknames like “Energizer bunny” and “Rudy” it’s obvious freshman outside hitter Jenny Rood and the rest of the freshmen bring something extra to the court when the MSU volleyball team plays.MSU head coach Chuck Erbe said the freshmen are more expressive on the court and that’s something the Spartans have been missing the last few years.“I think the freshmen are much more emotional in terms of how they express their passion for the game,” he said.

SPORTS

Womens soccer lose 3-1 to Illini

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The MSU women’s soccer team fell 3-1 to Illinois on Thursday in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament.The fourth-seeded Spartans only managed to score one second-half goal while giving up three second-half goals to the fifth-seeded Fighting Illini.

SPORTS

Icers primed to face No.1 Wolverines

Two titans will collide in Ann Arbor on Saturday, and it won’t be at the Big House.Top-ranked Michigan (6-0-2) and sixth-ranked MSU (4-1-1) will square off at Yost Ice Arena in the first of four meetings of the teams this season.“The Michigan game is always important,” MSU senior center Andrew Bogle said.

SPORTS

Womens soccer to face Illini in Big Ten tourney

The MSU women’s soccer team enters this year’s Big Ten tournament today in Champaign, Ill., without senior goalkeeper and co-captain Sara Kloosterman, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in last weekend’s 1-0 loss to Penn State.Kloosterman, who will stay on as MSU’s goalie coach next year - passed the baton to her protégé - freshman goalie Stacy Heller - prematurely when the Spartans beat Bowling Green 1-0 Sunday.

SPORTS

Smith released from Pistons, returns to CBA

Antonio Smith’s dreams of making an NBA roster will have to be postponed for a little while longer.The Detroit Pistons released the former Spartan forward last weekend before they departed for Toronto for their season opener.Charles Tucker, Smith’s agent, said Smith was a victim of the Pistons having too many players.

SPORTS

Fine dining available for cager fans before games

Tickets are now available for Breslin Student Events Center’s exclusive, upscale restaurant, the Tip-Off Cafe. In its fourth year, the Tip-Off Cafe offers basketball ticket holders a unique dining experience prior to every men’s basketball home game. “Many arenas, at least the ones built within the past four years, have a prefunction and bar space inside the arena,” said Scott Breckner, Breslin director.

SPORTS

Its OK to be a huge Buckeyes fan in East Lansing

I admit it, I’m a Buckeye. Sure, I only lived in Ohio for the first 10 months of my life, but I proudly root for my gridiron heroes from Columbus as though I grew up in the shadow of the Horseshoe. Before I go any further, let me clarify that I consider myself a Spartan fan too.

SPORTS

Safety gaining experience, improvemnt with gridder defense

If it weren’t for the wrong jersey, Thomas Wright could’ve been a wide receiver rather than a safety right now.On his first day of practice with MSU, Wright donned a white jersey that the offense wears instead of the defense’s green.Despite being an all-region wide receiver in Florida at Lake Wales High School, Wright said he was intent on playing safety.

SPORTS

Basketball season charges forward

This is the first in a series of previews about the Big Ten men’s basketball teams. Basketball coaches use various methods to inspire their teams. Some offer rewards for maximum effort, while others believe in military-style discipline. New Illinois head coach Bill Self came to practice early this fall wearing army fatigues, with a T-shirt reading “War” and war paint on his face. It was the last day of a two-week preseason training session that Self dubbed “Boot Camp,” a name the former Tulsa coach said was inspired by one of his assistants. “I was trying to loosen them up and show our team that we need to have fun doing whatever we’re doing,” Self said of the “suicide” drills the Fighting Illini were performing. Illini players said they couldn’t imagine former coach Lon Kruger dressing in army duds. “That was crazy,” said Illinois forward and emotional leader Sergio McClain.

SPORTS

Mens soccer faces Bowling Green in last game of the regular season

Today’s game at Bowling Green will give the MSU men’s soccer team a chance to ride the coattails of a six-game winning streak into next week’s Big Ten Tournament in Columbus, Ohio.Sunday’s 2-0 shutout versus Wisconsin gave MSU its longest winning streak since 1998, when they also won five straight.MSU head coach Joe Baum said he wants to end the season with a win so the team can contain its level of confidence going into the Big Ten Tournament.“I think we got a little momentum going now,” Baum said.

SPORTS

Low scores dont deter womens team

After the MSU men’s basketball team lit up the scoreboard with flashy dunks and three pointers in its annual Green and White game, the women’s team took the court for its Green and White game - and could have kept score on their fingers.

SPORTS

Green and White game lets team grade itself

The MSU men’s basketball team may have been wearing practice jerseys in the annual Green and White game Saturday at the Breslin Students Event Center, but the players dove for every loose ball, leaving the same amount of skin on the floor as they would in a regular-season game.The White team took an early lead but went to the locker room with a 42-41 halftime lead.

SPORTS

Kickers finish second in Big Ten

Like Batman lurking in the shadows, the MSU men’s soccer team appeared as if from nowhere to take second place in the Big Ten this season.The Spartans (10-5-1 overall, 4-1-1 Big Ten) clinched second place, shutting out Wisconsin (9-7-1, 2-3) 2-0 on Senior Day at Old College Field on Sunday.MSU head coach Joe Baum said the win sent a message to the rest of the Big Ten.