By Robert Bondy rbondy@statenews.com THE STATE NEWSnnThis is the one everyone has been circling on their calendars for months.
No. 14 MSU (4-0) takes on No. 19 Duke (4-0) and No. 20 North Carolina (2-1) this weekend in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge at Jenison Field House. As part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, both Duke and UNC will play road games against MSU and Michigan.All three teams made the NCAA Tournament last year and return a combined 38 letterwinners.A lot of talent will be on display, and here are a few players on each team to watch on Friday and Saturday.
Autzen Stadium will see a true strength vs. strength situation on Saturday when No. 7 MSU puts its hard-nosed defense up against No. 3 Oregon’s explosive offense in one of the season’s best non-conference matchups. “You look at Oregon, certainly you see what they’ve done offensively, and they are different from other spread teams,” head coach Mark Dantonio said during Tuesday’s press conference. “I think they’ve had so much success, a lot of people are taking some of the things and imitating them or not copying, but using their concepts and trying to adapt it into their offenses.
MSU won in thrilling fashion Tuesday night, as freshman forward Jamie Cheslik scored the game-winner in the 89th minute to defeat Oakland, 1-0.
Before redshirt-senior defender and pre-dental student Ryan Keener ever donned his MSU soccer uniform he was just a kid from Grand Blanc playing soccer for Grand Blanc High School.
MSU's third annual Spartan Hockey Clinic will take place at Munn Ice Arena on Wednesday from 6-10 p.m.
Head Coach Mark Dantonio was at the podium again Tuesday morning for his weekly press conference. In preparation for what is surely one of the most important games for MSU football in recent history, Dantonio addressed several topics, including the upcoming game against Oregon and his team’s 45-7 win against Jacksonville State Friday night.
MSU football rolled its way to a 45-7 victory over Jacksonville State and caught the eye of pollsters during the process, moving up one spot to No. 7 in the latest AP Top 25 Poll and two spots to No. 6 in the Amway Coaches Poll released on Monday.
All three of the MSU field hockey members named to the preseason
Last Friday, MSU Rowing alumna Emily Regan placed second with her three teammates at the 2014 World Rowing Championships, representing the United States in Amsterdam.Regan graduated from MSU in 2010, where she competed on the women’s crew team, coached by Matt Weise, during her four years of attendance. Adrienne Martelli (Washington), Tessa Gobbo (Brown) Susan Francia (Pennsylvania) and Regan,
No. 8 MSU (1-0 overall) football cruised to a 45-7 win over Jacksonville State last week to kick off the season.
When the clock struck zero on No. 8 MSU’s (1-0 overall) 45-7 win against Jacksonville State, Spartan players could shift their focus to the game that Spartan fans have had in their mind all summer.mr
This past weekend, the men’s soccer team earned two shutout victories. On Friday Aug. 29 the team beat the Southern Methodist Mustangs 1-0 with the goal coming from senior defender Ryan Keener.
The women’s volleyball team is undefeated, and a big reason why is because of the contributions of underclassmen.No. 14 MSU (4-0) swept the competition at the UAB/Samford Invitational over the weekend. The Spartans won three of the four games in the minimum three sets.
Coming off a weekend that saw MSU field hockey split two overtime games, it’s easy to imagine the difficulty of trying to weigh the positives and negatives. On one end, the Spartans took the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils into extra time on Friday following a late goal by senior forward Abby Barker. They were able to battle the ups and downs of the game against Maine on Sunday and find a way to come out on top.
After beginning the season with a win, the men’s soccer team (2-0 overall) kept the momentum going after a 3-0 shutout win over Florida International on a sunny afternoon at DeMartin Soccer Stadium. MSU struck early with a goal on a PK from senior midfielder Fatai Alashe at the 8:49 mark after senior forward Adam Montague was taken down inside the box.
Not even forty-eight hours after their emotional overtime defeat against Duke, the Spartan field hockey team took to the pitch again on Sunday morning.
With three games in the books, MSU has yet to lose a set. The Spartans (3-0) followed up yesterday’s two wins with another against Jacksonville State 3-0 (25-15, 25-14, 25-10). It was a true team effort for head coach Cathy George’s squad as every player on the roster saw playing time.
Mission accomplished for the Spartans, who defeated Southeastern Louisiana and UAB in straight sets. MSU (2-0) defeated Southeastern Louisiana in straight sets (25-8, 25-11, 25-21) in the day game of the doubleheader.
