Spartans Hit the Road for Sunday Challenge at No. 11 Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Michigan State women's soccer prepares for its first ranked challenge of the 2022 season on Sunday, Sept. 4, as the Spartans hit the road to take on No. 11 Arkansas in a 1 p.m. (ET) kick on Razorback Field.

HEAD COACH JEFF HOSLER SAID…
"Arkansas has very talented and experienced attacking players," Hosler said. "We can't give them an inch. Our team has to win first and second balls and keep our composure. It is key that we make this about the soccer. We need to be effective with the ball and make them do more than just run in their press by making them think and forcing them to reorganize their shape often. We've played against chaos and good pressing teams twice in our opening week and managed it well. This will be a really good road test for us, and we are excited for it."

KICKIN' IT
The Spartans return to action following a dominant front-line effort in a 4-1 victory against the Dartmouth Big Green on Thursday, Sept. 1. The Green & White logged scores from four different players, and grabbed a trio of assists in the process. Senior forward Camryn Evans logged her third goal of the season in the game and maintains the team's lead in overall scoring with seven points this season. In goal, senior keeper Lauren Kozal continues to pave the way for MSU's success, carving out a quintet of saves with four shutouts this year to this point. Earlier this week, Kozal was joined by freshman midfielder Courtney Koehler, who each landed spots as Big Ten Players of the Week according to the league office.

BACK LINE? BRICK WALL.
Through the first five games of the 2022 campaign, Michigan State has allowed a single score by an opponent, putting up a quartet of shutouts against Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Central Michigan and Binghamton before allowing a goal against Dartmouth. MSU owns a whopping 106-22 differential in shots over its opponents and has only allowed eight shots on target all season, resulting in six goalkeeper saves and one team save. The Spartans are tied for seventh in the nation in terms of goals against average, notching a GAA of .200 through 450 team minutes. Indiana is the only program in the Big Ten remaining with a perfect mark of .000. The Spartans matched the season-opening shutout record set by the 2018 team, allowing zero scores through four contests. Michigan State went 443 total minutes from the opening kick of the season without allowing an opponent goal.

RESISTING THE RAZORBACKS
Razorback skipper Colby Hale leads Arkansas into its fifth game of the season boasting a 3-1-0 overall record, with its only defeat coming against nationally ranked Saint Louis in its season opener. Arkansas faces its second consecutive opponent from the Great Lakes State, having dispatched with the Western Michigan Broncos by a 3-0 score in its last game out. Ava Tankersley leads the way offensively for the Razorbacks, amassing six points on the year split between one goal and four assists. Jessica De Filippo and Ainsley Erzen each lead the team with two goals apiece. In net, Grace Barbara has recorded 15 saves this season while allowing only two goals.

MSU AGAINST THE SEC
Michigan State will face Arkansas for the first time in program history on Sunday, marking the fourth SEC opponent MSU has challenged all-time. The Green & White own a 4-2-2 ledger against current Southeastern Conference programs all-time, highlighted by a 3-1-2 record against the Kentucky Wildcats. MSU has also faced two other programs that currently reside in the SEC in Texas A&M and Vanderbilt, each in a one-off competition. The most recent meeting between Michigan State and a current SEC foe came on Sept. 2, 2005, in which the Spartans booked a gritty 1-0 win over then-Big 12 member Texas A&M in East Lansing.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
Sunday afternoon's Big Ten vs. SEC showdown will be streamed live to a worldwide audience via SEC Network+, with Brett Dolan and Josh Haley calling the action. Authenticated subscribers can access the live simulcast of each game via the ESPN app on their computers, mobile phones, tablets, smart TVs and other connected devices. Live stats provided by the University of Arkansas via StatBroadcast are available here.

FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State women's soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan women's soccer team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_WSoccer.

Spartans Hit the Road for Sunday Challenge at No. 11 Arkansas

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Players Mentioned

Camryn Evans

Courtney Koehler

Lauren Kozal