Men's Soccer Defeats No. 25 Oakland In Double Overtime

Oct. 8, 2003

EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State University men's soccer team won its third consecutive double overtime contest on Wednesday afternoon at Old College Field. In unseasonably warm weather for early October with temperatures approaching 80 degrees the Spartans defeated No. 25 Oakland University (5-2-3), 1-0. The game marked MSU's (7-2-2) fourth straight overtime match, and fifth in the last six games.

Michigan State sophomore midfielder Ryan McMahen (Munster, Ind.) capitalized on a pass from Jordan Gruber (Jr., Beverly Hills) and Steve Doster (So., Frankfort, Ind.) in the 106th minute. Gruber served the ball into the box from the right side and McMahen headed it past the Oakland goalkeeper. The goal was McMahen's second consecutive double overtime game-winning goal.

"We entered overtime knowing that we could win the game," said head coach Joe Baum. "I sensed that our team had a lot of confidence that comes from our previous experience of winning in overtime. Once you do it, you start to believe you can always do it. We did a great job of attacking in both overtime periods and we were finally able to score the game winner.

"I think the warm weather was definitely a factor today, especially as the game went into overtime. I'm glad we were wearing our home white jerseys, rather than the black ones that Oakland was wearing. We've worn black jerseys on a warm day before and as the game progresses, you can definitely feel the affect of the heat."

Senior Spartan netminder Mike Robinson (Troy) notched eight total saves on the day. The shutout was Robinson's third of the season.

The Spartans return to action on Sunday (Oct. 12) at 2:30 p.m. EDT against the Michigan Wolverines. In addition, the game is a Pontiac Challenge Cup contest. It will be the Spartans third straight home game at Old College Field.

Game SummaryGoals by Period        1    2   OT  OT2 TotalsOU             0    0   0   0   0MSU                0    0   0   1   1
Shots by PeriodOU                10    6   1   0   17MSU                5    2   2   3   12
SavesWiese (OU)         1    1   1   1   4Robinson (MSU)         3    4   1   0   8
Scoring Summary1. (105:35) MSU McMahen (Gruber, Doster,S)