Spartans Fall in Exhibition, 4-0

Aug. 15, 2010

East Lansing, Mich. - The Michigan State women's soccer team got its first taste of external competition on Sunday evening, falling to in-state foe Central Michigan, 4-0, in an exhibition contest. The game was played in Mt. Pleasant, the home of the defending MAC champion Chippewas.

"The result isn't the important thing in exhibition games - the ability to utilize personnel in different combinations and situations is where the value lies," noted head coach Tom Saxton. "Tonight gave us a look at our squad - and we were going up against another good team, so there were some good challenges for our players. Today we got to see where some of our strengths will lie, and the areas in which we need to work in the coming week. We will play two very good teams in Texas, and it's now time for us to focus on playing St. John's on Friday."

The Spartans were behind 1-0 at halftime, as Ashley Mejilla crossed up the marking defender as she was going wide; Mejilla drilled her shot wide just inside the far post to give the Chippewas the early lead. MSU junior goalie Jill Flietstra made five stops in the first half, keeping the teams close.

Flietstra made way for freshman keeper Elizabeth Watza to start the second half; Watza surrendered a goal in the 61st minute when Charlese McLemore beat her on the near post for a 2-0 CMU lead. Watza played 25 minutes in net; Courtney Clem went for the balance of regulation, giving up a goal to McLemore (a header off a corner play) in her first two minutes, then a defensive miscue allowed Mejilla to set up Kaely Schlosser for the final marker in the 85th minute.

The Spartans depart for Texas later this week to participate in the Aggieland Invitational at Texas A&M. MSU's first opponent in College Station will be St. John's on Friday, then the Spartans will tangle with top-ranked North Carolina on Sunday afternoon.