MSU Welcomes Bowling Green For Midweek Tilt

Oct. 18, 2011

The Particulars
Michigan State welcomes host Bowling Green in a non-conference contest on Wednesday afternoon.

• The All-Time Series
MSU has won nine straight games in this series, dating back to the 2002 season. All-time, the series is tied, 16-16-5; however, MSU owns a 9-6-3 record in games played in East Lansing.

• State of the Spartans
MSU is 4-7-2 on the season, with all of its losses by a single goal and two of its losses coming in overtime. Only one game this season on MSU's ledger has seen one of the two teams score more than two goals in a game.

• Scouting the Falcons
Bowling Green enters the week with an overall record of 7-4-1, and BGSU is 1-1-0 in MAC play. Freshman Danny Baraldi leads the Falcons in scoring, with 13 points. The Canton, Ohio, native has seven assists to lead the Brown and Orange in that category, and Baraldi is one of six Falcons with at least two goals on the year.Junior Rodcliff Hall is second on the team with nine points, and he leads the Falcons with four goals on the year. Baraldi, Silva and senior Colin Armstrong each have three goals this season to date. Armstrong and sophomore Ryan Comiskey both have six points on the year. Sophomore goalkeeper Michael Wiest has started nine matches this season, while redshirt senior Miguel Rosales has made four appearances, including three starts. Wiest has had five shutouts, a save percentage of .789 and a goals-against average of 0.97. Rosales has 16 saves, one shutout and a GAA of 1.21 to date.

• Last Time Out
MSU dropped a tough 1-0 decision at league-leading Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon, unable to counter after a Badger goal in the 34th minute of play. A pair of red cards issued in the 73rd minute to leading scorer Adam Montague and Rubin Bega - two of MSU's most significant scoring threats up front - did not help the Spartans in their attempt at an equalizing tally in the late minutes of the game. The game statistics tell the story of a very tight contest - Wisconsin held a slim lead in shots (7-6) and shots on goal (3-2), while MSU had a lead in corner kicks, 4-3. The Badgers were whistled for 18 fouls compared to just eight for MSU, while each team was given two yellow cards. Wisconsin's lone marker of the game came in the first half, as Chris Prince finished off a give-and-go at the top of the box, his shot eluding the slide of Jeremy Clark (two saves).

• Late Goals Lead to Decisions
In six of MSU's 13 games, late goals have been decision-making tallies. The Spartans have lost twice in overtime in golden goal situations, and allowed a marker with under three minutes left in regulation at Northwestern to forge a 1-1 tie in the Big Ten opener. On the reverse side, MSU got a goal by Kyle Rutz in the 79th minute to break a deadlock in a 2-1 win over UIC, and Fatai Alashe's goal in the 83rd minute forced a tie at Marquette on Sept. 16. Both Rutz and Alashe are freshmen. Most recently, Montague's tally in the 77th minute secured the Spartan's victory over Milwaukee.

• Playing from Behind
MSU has scored the first goal of the game in only four of its matches this season- in the 3-0 shutout at New Hampshire, in Big Ten opener at Northwestern and against Milwaukee. The game against New Hampshire is also the only game that MSU has played this season in which one of the teams scored more than two goals.

• Last Years, First Years Contributing
Each of MSU's 13 goals this season have been scored by either a senior or a freshman. Freshman Adam Montague leads the team in scoring with three goals and two assists. Seniors Mark Barone and Rubin Bega each have two goals, while seniors Cyrus Saydee, Joe Paljaj, and Garret Back all have one marker. Freshmen Fatai Alashe, Kyle Rutz, and Ryan Keener each have one score as well. Senior Jeremy Clark owns a 1.02 GAA and .781 save percentage, logging every minute of every game in net for the Spartans.

• Its a Factor
Three significant injuries have taken two All-Big Ten players out of the lineup - Domenic Barone was lost for the season before it began, and Kevin Cope was injured in the second game of the year against Connecticut - and Tim Kreutz has not played at all this season as well

• Media Darlings
The Big Ten Network will air 10 men's soccer games this fall, and of the nine that have been announced, three will feature Michigan State in Big Ten Conference matchups at DeMartin Stadium. The Spartans hosted Ohio State last Sunday, (Oct. 2), and will host Penn State this Sunday at noon. The Spartans will tangle with archrival Michigan on Sunday, Oct. 30 in a battle for the Big Bear Trophy, which will also air live.

• Next Up
The Spartans travel to Indiana on Sunday in a critical Big Ten showdown.