No. 4 MSU Men's Soccer Opens Road Trip at Yale

EAST LANSING, Mich. - No. 4 Michigan State men's soccer returns to the road for a pair of road games, beginning with a game at Yale on Friday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. The Spartans improve to 5-0-1 this season after a 4-2 win on Sept. 10 against Oakland. Yale holds a 1-2-0 mark this season.

If available, live video and live stats links will be at www.msuspartans.com.

SCOUTING YALE
Yale opened its season 1-2-0, with its lone win coming against Niagara on Aug. 31. The Bulldogs suffered losses against Fairfield and No. 20 Georgetown. The Yale coaching staff features a friendly face in head coach Kylie Stannard, who was a former associate head coach under Damon Rensing. Stannard was a member of the Spartan coaching staff from 2008-14.

The Spartans lead the all-time series with Yale, 1-0-1. The Spartans won the last meeting between the two schools in 2016 when the Spartans defeated the Bulldogs, 2-0, in East Lansing.

Freshman Paolo Carroll was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Sept. 10, after scoring his first career goal against Fairfield on Sept. 3.

REUNITED
This is the second time that Damon Rensing's Spartans have faced Kylie Stannard's Bulldogs. The first meeting was in East Lansing on Oct. 19. 2016. MSU captured the win 2-0 behind goals by Andrew Herr and Ken Krolicki.

SCOUTING NOTRE DAME
No. 8 Notre Dame suffered its first loss of season after a 2-1 overtime loss to in-state rival Indiana at home. The Irish are now 3-1-1 with a very tough schedule. The overtime goal against IU was the first time they had trailed in any match so far this season. The Fighting Irish have defeated two ranked opponents already this season with a 3-0 shutout of No. 18 UConn and a 2-0 shutout of No. 22 Dartmouth.

Notre Dame leads the all-time series 17-7-6. The Spartans defeated the Irish, 1-0, in the last meeting between the two schools in South Bend in 2016.

This season, Notre Dame has been led by Patrick Berneski, who has four goals in four games for the Fighting Irish.

THE SPARTANS VS. THE NCAA
This week in the NCAA statistics, Michigan State is fifth in the nation in scoring offense, averaging 2.67 goals per game. Saint Mary's is first in the league in scoring with 3.8 gpg. The Spartans are first in the nation in assists per game with 3.83. This season, MSU has scored 16 goals off of 23 assists. Junior midfielder Giuseppe Barone is fifth in the nation in total assists with five in six games. On the defensive side of the ball, senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague is ninth in the country in shutouts with 3.0.

AROUND THE BIG TEN
Michigan State is first in the Big Ten in points scored with 55, averaging 9.17 points per game. Indiana is second with 41 for 6.83 ppg. Senior forward DeJuan Jones is also first in goal with five so far this seasons while fellow senior forward Ryan Sierakowski is tied for second with three. Senior forward Hunter Barone is tied for first in the league in game-winning goals with Indiana's Andrew Gutman with two. Senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague is tied for second in shutouts with three.

BEST OF THE BEST
Michigan State is tied for second in assists per game, averaging 3.5 apg. George Washington is first in the nation with 4.0 apg. Giuseppe Barone is second in the nation in assists with four. William & Mary's Antonio Bustamante is first with five assists so far this season.

LAST TIME OUT
Another two-goal performance from senior forward DeJuan Jones led No. 3 Michigan State men's soccer past in-state rival Oakland, 4-2, at DeMartin Stadium on Tuesday.

With the win, the Spartans remain unbeaten with a 5-0-1 record, while Oakland falls to 3-2-1 this year. The MSU offense has been on fire of late with 15 goals in its last four games.

Giuseppe Barone scored the game winner in the 77th minute. Senior forward Ryan Sierakowski started the run before passing to freshman forward Farai Mutatu. Giuseppe Barone took it from there with a spinning move before blasting shot from inside eight yards.

RENSING SAYS
"Yale has improved every year Kylie (Stannard) has been there. I think this is the best team he has had since he has gotten there. They're very organized; I am sure he will take things we have done here at Michigan State. They have a couple of talented guys that can hurt you on the counter and hurt on the attack. I think it's necessary to take our guys out of region and play an Ivy League opponent. So Big Ten vs Ivy League will be a very cool environment."

O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
This season, Michigan State will have three captains in seniors Connor Corrigan, Jimmy Hague and DeJuan Jones.

KING OF THE NORTH
This week, Indiana is one point ahead of MSU, standing first in the North Region rankings. Michigan State is second in the region head of Michigan (No. 3) and UIC (No. 4). SIUE holds the fifth spot in the polls.

AROUND THE HORN
Michigan State is the only undefeated team in the Big Ten with a 5-0-1 record. No. 2 Indiana holds a 5-1 overall mark, while Michigan is 4-1-0.

MICHIGAN STATE NOTES
• No. 7 Michigan State men's soccer team was voted second in the Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll, as voted on by the B1G coaches on Wednesday. Seniors Jimmy Hague, DeJuan Jones and Ryan Sierakowski were also named to the Big Ten Preseason honors list.

The Spartans finished last season with an overall record of 13-3-4 and a 5-0-3 Big Ten record earning a trip to the Elite Eight. MSU ended the season ranked No. 6 in the United Soccer Coaches poll and was one of three Big Ten teams to finish in the top 10 along with Indiana (No. 2) and Wisconsin (No. 10).

Indiana was picked first in the league after advancing to the NCAA College Cup National Championship last season. The Spartans were picked second after being voted fourth last season. MSU reached the Elite Eight in 2017. Maryland was voted third, followed by Michigan and Wisconsin, respectively. Ohio State and Penn State were tied for sixth, while Northwestern an Rutgers were voted eighth and ninth, respectively.

• The 2018 Big Ten Tournament will begin on Sunday, Nov. 4 at the top four seeds' home sites. The semifinals will follow on Friday, Nov. 9 and the championship will be held on Sunday, Oct. 11. The Big Ten semifinal and championship will be played at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana for the third-straight season.

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).

UP NEXT
After facing Yale, Michigan State will remain on the road to take on No. 8 Notre Dame in South Bend on Monday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. The Spartans will then return home for their Big Ten opener on Friday, Sept. 21 at 7 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Giuseppe Barone

Hunter Barone

Connor Corrigan

Jimmy Hague

DeJuan Jones

Ken Krolicki

Farai Mutatu

Ryan Sierakowski