Thursday, November 15
East Lansing, Mich.
7 PM
Michigan State University
vs
Illinois - Chicago
MSU Men's Soccer Hosts UIC in NCAA Tournament Thursday
11/14/2018 6:05:00 PM | Men's Soccer
The Spartans reach the NCAA for the third time in four seasons.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - No. 22-ranked Michigan State returns to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last four seasons, hosting UIC on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. at DeMartin Stadium. This is the third-straight season that MSU has hosted an NCAA game.
Michigan State is 10-4-4 this season, losing in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament to Maryland, 1-0 in overtime. Illinois-Chicago is 12-5-2 this season with a 3-5-1 road record.
The winner advances to the second round, they would take No. 4-seeded Louisville on the road on Sunday, Nov. 18 in Louisville, Kentucky.
If available, live video and live stats links will be at www.msuspartans.com.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
This is the Spartans' eighth NCAA appearance under Rensing. MSU has posted a 8-5-3 record in NCAA Tournament games under his guidance. The Spartans advanced to the Elite Eight in 2013, 2014 and 2017. Overall, MSU has reached the NCAA Tournament 20 times with a 26-14-5 record.
Last season, MSU hosted a pair of NCAA games with wins over the Hokies and the Broncos, respectively. This was the second-straight season that the Spartans hosted an NCAA Tournament game. In Bloomington in the Elite Eight, Michigan State and Indiana drew 1-1, but the Hoosiers advanced to the College Cup, 3-2, on penalty kicks.
In 2016 in the first round, SIU Edwardsville advanced 9-8 on penalty kicks. The teams battled to a 1-1 tie in double overtime, before the Cougars edged the Spartans in the penalty kick round.
DID YOU KNOW?
Senior forward DeJuan Jones was named a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award. He and Michigan's Robbie Mertz are the only two members from Big Ten schools to be named  finalists. Last season, Jimmy Fiscus was also named a finalist.
SCOUTING UIC
UIC earned the automatic bid out of the Horizon League after defeating Wright State for its third-straight Horizon League Championship. In the 3-1 win, the Flames got goals a pair of goals from Josiah Ash and one from Pau Mateo.
UIC heads into the NCAA Tournament with a 12-5-2 overall record. They were a perfect 7-0-0 at home and 3-5-1 on the road. The Flames have wins this season over Western Michigan, Wright State and IUPUI. MSU and UIC have to common opponents, as both have faced Northwestern and Oakland. The Spartans defeated Oakland, 4-2, and tied Northwestern 0-0. The Flames shut down Oakland 4-1 and stopped Northwestern 3-1.
The explosive Flame offense has scored 38 goals with 48 assists for 124 points. They have five players in double figures in scoring led by Max Todd's 12 goals and two assists for 26 points.
SERIES VS THE FLAMES
Overall, Michigan State holds a 15-3-4 record against UIC, including a 9-1-1 record at home. The last time the teams met was in 2014 when the teams tied  0-0 in double overtime in Chicago. In the last five meeting, MSU leads 2-0-3. The last time that the teams met in the NCAA Tournament was in the second round in 2008. In what was legendary head coach Joe Baum's final game, the Flames stopped the Spartans, advancing on penalty kicks, 3-2.
BIG TEN STRONG
MSU is one of four Big Ten teams to reach the tournament along with Indiana, Maryland and Michigan. Indiana is the overall No. 2 seed, while Maryland earned the No. 11 seed.
SECOND-HALF SURGE
Michigan State has been a second-half scoring machine this season. The Spartans have scored six goals in the first half and 22 in the second. Last season, MSU netted 11 in the first and 16 in the final period of regulation.
OFFENSIVE DEFENDERS
This season, the Spartans have been getting offense from more than just their forwards. Â Defenders Patrick Nielsen and Michael Wetungu have both scored two goals this year and both have one game-winning goal. Â Fellow defender John Freitag has also added two goals and a game-winning goal. Before losing him to injury, defender Nick Woodruff also added a goal.
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POSTSEASON PROS
The Spartans senior class has now made the postseason three out of the last four season, including reaching the Elite Eight last season. Jimmy Hague, Ryan Sierakowski, Connor Corrigan and Hunter Barone have played in four NCAA Tournament games so far in their careers.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague now has 25 career clean sheets in the Spartan Green and White, which now puts alone in second in the Spartan record books, passing Avery Steinlage (2008-10) and John Spink (1984, 86-88). MSU great Zach Bennett (2012-15) is the all-time shutout leader with 35.
MAKING AN IMPACT
This season, the Spartans have had five Spartans earn their first point this season.  Freshman forward Farai Mutatu is fourth in scoring with three goals and two assists  for eight points.  Sophomore Patrick Nielsen had two goals this season. Freshman Jack Beck and redshirt-freshman Nick Woodruff also scored their first goals of their collegiate careers in 2018. Junior Michael Wetungu also captured his first Spartan goal against Akron on Oct. 9.
RYAN'S RISEÂ
MSU senior forward Ryan Sierakowski is rising up the Michigan State all-time scoring charts. He currently has 75 points in 69 games in a MSU uniform, which is good for 13th all-time. He has  30 goals and 15 assists in four seasons. His 30 goals place him tied for eighth with Zdravko Rom (1973-76). He is two points away from tying Rubens Filizola for 10th (1960-62) with 77 points.
DEFEND DEMARTIN
Michigan State has been solid at home over the last few years. The Spartans were 9-0-2 at home in 2016 and 7-1-2 last season. MSU's only loss came during the Big Ten Tournament last season. In 2018, the Spartans are 5-3-3 at home. Michigan State is 18-3-6 during the regular season in the last three years.
SUPER SIERAKOWSKI
Senior forward Ryan Sierakowski is looking to become the first Spartan to lead the team in points for four-straight seasons. Sierakowski had 17 point as a freshman, 23 as a sophomore and 21 as a junior. He currently leads the team in scoring with five goals and four assists for 14 points.
LAST TIME OUT
With a goal in the 98th minute, fourth-seeded Michigan State men's soccer saw its Big Ten Tournament run come to an end as fifth-seeded Maryland stopped the Spartans, 1-0, at DeMartin Stadium on Nov. 4
Eric Matzelevich scored his second goal of the season off the rebound after a terrific save by MSU senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague.
With the loss, the Spartans fall to 10-4-4 this season, while the Terps improve to 8-6-3.
"It was tough, I thought the first half Maryland came out and was pretty strong. We were a little sloppy on some stuff and you give some credit to Maryland, but I thought the second half we controlled large spells of the game and certainly in overtime. It was all us, but it was just unlucky not to finish it off and win the game," MSU head coach Damon Rensing said.Â
Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague was once again spectacular in goal for MSU. He tied his career-high with eight saves and was active on defense all game.
AROUND THE BIG TEN
Michigan State is third in the Big Ten in points scored with 89, averaging 4.94 points per game. Indiana is first with 127 for 6.35 ppg. Senior forwards DeJuan Jones and Ryan Sierakowski are tied for eighth in goals with five. Senior forward Hunter Barone, freshman forward Farai Mutatu and Sierakowski are tied for fifth in the league in game-winning goals, behind Indiana's Andrew Gutman who has six. Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague is tied for fourth in shutouts with seven. He is also first in save percentage (.833). Hague is second in goals against average (0.69) behind Indiana's Trey Muse (0.54). Junior midfielder Giuseppe Barone is second in the league in assists with nine in the 18 games.
O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
This season, Michigan State will have three captains in seniors Connor Corrigan, Jimmy Hague and DeJuan Jones.
BARONE BUNCH
Junior Giuseppe Barone became the fourth member of the Barone family to don the Green and White last season. He joins current Spartan Hunter as well as former MSU players Mark (2008-11) Domenic (2008-12).
RENSING SAYS
"This is going to be a very tough match with UIC. They are very well coached. Max Todd has 12 goals this season, and I think they have scored 38 goals on the year. They have a very high-powered offense. We have some history there. Ten years ago, UIC came in here and upset Michigan State in what happened to be Coach Baum's last game here."
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Michigan State is 10-4-4 this season, losing in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament to Maryland, 1-0 in overtime. Illinois-Chicago is 12-5-2 this season with a 3-5-1 road record.
The winner advances to the second round, they would take No. 4-seeded Louisville on the road on Sunday, Nov. 18 in Louisville, Kentucky.
If available, live video and live stats links will be at www.msuspartans.com.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
This is the Spartans' eighth NCAA appearance under Rensing. MSU has posted a 8-5-3 record in NCAA Tournament games under his guidance. The Spartans advanced to the Elite Eight in 2013, 2014 and 2017. Overall, MSU has reached the NCAA Tournament 20 times with a 26-14-5 record.
Last season, MSU hosted a pair of NCAA games with wins over the Hokies and the Broncos, respectively. This was the second-straight season that the Spartans hosted an NCAA Tournament game. In Bloomington in the Elite Eight, Michigan State and Indiana drew 1-1, but the Hoosiers advanced to the College Cup, 3-2, on penalty kicks.
In 2016 in the first round, SIU Edwardsville advanced 9-8 on penalty kicks. The teams battled to a 1-1 tie in double overtime, before the Cougars edged the Spartans in the penalty kick round.
DID YOU KNOW?
Senior forward DeJuan Jones was named a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award. He and Michigan's Robbie Mertz are the only two members from Big Ten schools to be named  finalists. Last season, Jimmy Fiscus was also named a finalist.
SCOUTING UIC
UIC earned the automatic bid out of the Horizon League after defeating Wright State for its third-straight Horizon League Championship. In the 3-1 win, the Flames got goals a pair of goals from Josiah Ash and one from Pau Mateo.
UIC heads into the NCAA Tournament with a 12-5-2 overall record. They were a perfect 7-0-0 at home and 3-5-1 on the road. The Flames have wins this season over Western Michigan, Wright State and IUPUI. MSU and UIC have to common opponents, as both have faced Northwestern and Oakland. The Spartans defeated Oakland, 4-2, and tied Northwestern 0-0. The Flames shut down Oakland 4-1 and stopped Northwestern 3-1.
The explosive Flame offense has scored 38 goals with 48 assists for 124 points. They have five players in double figures in scoring led by Max Todd's 12 goals and two assists for 26 points.
SERIES VS THE FLAMES
Overall, Michigan State holds a 15-3-4 record against UIC, including a 9-1-1 record at home. The last time the teams met was in 2014 when the teams tied  0-0 in double overtime in Chicago. In the last five meeting, MSU leads 2-0-3. The last time that the teams met in the NCAA Tournament was in the second round in 2008. In what was legendary head coach Joe Baum's final game, the Flames stopped the Spartans, advancing on penalty kicks, 3-2.
BIG TEN STRONG
MSU is one of four Big Ten teams to reach the tournament along with Indiana, Maryland and Michigan. Indiana is the overall No. 2 seed, while Maryland earned the No. 11 seed.
SECOND-HALF SURGE
Michigan State has been a second-half scoring machine this season. The Spartans have scored six goals in the first half and 22 in the second. Last season, MSU netted 11 in the first and 16 in the final period of regulation.
OFFENSIVE DEFENDERS
This season, the Spartans have been getting offense from more than just their forwards. Â Defenders Patrick Nielsen and Michael Wetungu have both scored two goals this year and both have one game-winning goal. Â Fellow defender John Freitag has also added two goals and a game-winning goal. Before losing him to injury, defender Nick Woodruff also added a goal.
Â
POSTSEASON PROS
The Spartans senior class has now made the postseason three out of the last four season, including reaching the Elite Eight last season. Jimmy Hague, Ryan Sierakowski, Connor Corrigan and Hunter Barone have played in four NCAA Tournament games so far in their careers.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague now has 25 career clean sheets in the Spartan Green and White, which now puts alone in second in the Spartan record books, passing Avery Steinlage (2008-10) and John Spink (1984, 86-88). MSU great Zach Bennett (2012-15) is the all-time shutout leader with 35.
MAKING AN IMPACT
This season, the Spartans have had five Spartans earn their first point this season.  Freshman forward Farai Mutatu is fourth in scoring with three goals and two assists  for eight points.  Sophomore Patrick Nielsen had two goals this season. Freshman Jack Beck and redshirt-freshman Nick Woodruff also scored their first goals of their collegiate careers in 2018. Junior Michael Wetungu also captured his first Spartan goal against Akron on Oct. 9.
RYAN'S RISEÂ
MSU senior forward Ryan Sierakowski is rising up the Michigan State all-time scoring charts. He currently has 75 points in 69 games in a MSU uniform, which is good for 13th all-time. He has  30 goals and 15 assists in four seasons. His 30 goals place him tied for eighth with Zdravko Rom (1973-76). He is two points away from tying Rubens Filizola for 10th (1960-62) with 77 points.
DEFEND DEMARTIN
Michigan State has been solid at home over the last few years. The Spartans were 9-0-2 at home in 2016 and 7-1-2 last season. MSU's only loss came during the Big Ten Tournament last season. In 2018, the Spartans are 5-3-3 at home. Michigan State is 18-3-6 during the regular season in the last three years.
SUPER SIERAKOWSKI
Senior forward Ryan Sierakowski is looking to become the first Spartan to lead the team in points for four-straight seasons. Sierakowski had 17 point as a freshman, 23 as a sophomore and 21 as a junior. He currently leads the team in scoring with five goals and four assists for 14 points.
LAST TIME OUT
With a goal in the 98th minute, fourth-seeded Michigan State men's soccer saw its Big Ten Tournament run come to an end as fifth-seeded Maryland stopped the Spartans, 1-0, at DeMartin Stadium on Nov. 4
Eric Matzelevich scored his second goal of the season off the rebound after a terrific save by MSU senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague.
With the loss, the Spartans fall to 10-4-4 this season, while the Terps improve to 8-6-3.
"It was tough, I thought the first half Maryland came out and was pretty strong. We were a little sloppy on some stuff and you give some credit to Maryland, but I thought the second half we controlled large spells of the game and certainly in overtime. It was all us, but it was just unlucky not to finish it off and win the game," MSU head coach Damon Rensing said.Â
Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague was once again spectacular in goal for MSU. He tied his career-high with eight saves and was active on defense all game.
AROUND THE BIG TEN
Michigan State is third in the Big Ten in points scored with 89, averaging 4.94 points per game. Indiana is first with 127 for 6.35 ppg. Senior forwards DeJuan Jones and Ryan Sierakowski are tied for eighth in goals with five. Senior forward Hunter Barone, freshman forward Farai Mutatu and Sierakowski are tied for fifth in the league in game-winning goals, behind Indiana's Andrew Gutman who has six. Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague is tied for fourth in shutouts with seven. He is also first in save percentage (.833). Hague is second in goals against average (0.69) behind Indiana's Trey Muse (0.54). Junior midfielder Giuseppe Barone is second in the league in assists with nine in the 18 games.
O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
This season, Michigan State will have three captains in seniors Connor Corrigan, Jimmy Hague and DeJuan Jones.
BARONE BUNCH
Junior Giuseppe Barone became the fourth member of the Barone family to don the Green and White last season. He joins current Spartan Hunter as well as former MSU players Mark (2008-11) Domenic (2008-12).
RENSING SAYS
"This is going to be a very tough match with UIC. They are very well coached. Max Todd has 12 goals this season, and I think they have scored 38 goals on the year. They have a very high-powered offense. We have some history there. Ten years ago, UIC came in here and upset Michigan State in what happened to be Coach Baum's last game here."
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