Spartan Men's Soccer Travels to No. 12 Maryland Saturday

EAST LANSING, Mich. - It's a battle for the top of the table, as Michigan State men's soccer takes on No. 12/7 Maryland in College Park on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 7:30 p.m. Maryland is in first place with 10 points, while the Spartans are in second with nine.

MSU holds a 4-4-2 overall and 3-1-0 mark in league play after a 1-0 win against Northwestern on Tuesday. Maryland stands 5-1-4 overall this season and 3-0-1 in league play.

Nathan Schwartz and Tyler Lochte are on the call for B1G+.

FINDING HIS GROOVE
Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout leads the team in scoring with four goals and one assist for nine points. He has now scored in three of the Spartans' last four games. Stout is also first on the team in shots on goal with nine just ahead of senior midfielder Sean Kerrigan with eight. Sophomore forward Richie Ludwig, senior midfielder Sean Kerrigan, junior midfielder Jack Guggemos and freshman forward Mohamed Saad have also found the back of the net this season.

LOOKING AT THE TERRAPINS
Maryland stands first in the Big Ten with 10 points, holding a 5-1-4 overall record and a 3-0-1 mark in league contests. Last time out, the Terps tied Penn State 1-1 on Tuesday. Maryland has B1G wins over Wisconsin, Indiana and Northwestern.

Leon Koehl leads the team in scoring with four goals and one assist for nine points. Colin Griffith is second with four goals for eight points. Laurin Mack has started nine games in goal for the Terps, allowing only seven goals for a 0.82 GAA.

SERIES HISTORY
Maryland holds the overall series lead against Michigan State 7-6-6. In College Park, the Terrapins hold the advantage 4-3-1. In East Lansing, the series is tied 2-2-4. The series is 1-1-1 on neutral ground. The last time Michigan State won in College Park was in 2018 when the Spartans came out on top 2-0.

Last year in East Lansing, the No. 19 Spartans came from behind to earn a 2-2 tie against Maryland. Jake Spadafora and Jonathan Stout scored the goals for MSU.

LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State men's soccer collected its second-straight win with a 1-0 shutout victory over Northwestern on Tuesday. The Spartans finally broke throw in the 63rd minute. Junior forward Jake Spadafora started the play up the right side, finding Guggemos and beating Ponce De Leon. It was his first goal of the season, as well as the first assist of the year for Spadafora.

AROUND THE B1G
Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout is tied for fourth in the Big Ten in goals scored with four. Wisconsin's Dean Boltz is first with eight.

Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Zac Kelly is third in the Big Ten in saves with 32. He has lowered his overall GAA to 1.02 with two-straight shutouts.

IN CONFERENCE ACTION
The Spartans may not be lighting up the scoreboard in Big Ten play, but they have allowed only two goals in three games. Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Zac Kelly has allowed only two goals in three B1G contests. He has a stellar 0.50 GAA, making 15 saves.

Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout is tied for the league lead in goals scored in B1G games with three. He is tied for third in points scored with six.

FRESHMAN FRENZY
Freshman defender Brandon Munson has made the most of his brief time as a Spartan. He has played in all 10 games, starting nine. Against Washington on Sept. 13, his bicycle kick back save prevented the Huskies from scoring and was the No. 1 play on ESPN SportsCenter. Fellow freshman forward Mohamed Saad has also played in all 10 games, starting four. He has scored one goal this season against Oregon State.

PACKING THE STANDS
Michigan State is 13th in the nation in attendance this season, averaging 1,808 fans per game this season. That stands fourth in the Big Ten behind Indiana (3,177) which is eighth, Maryland (2,214), which is fifth and Washington which is 10th (1,929).

GETTING IN THE LINEUP
Through 10 games this season, MSU has used seven different starting lineups. In the first 10 games, four Spartans have started every in Zac Kelly, Cristiano Bruletti, Jeremy Sharp, and Josh Adam.

BIG TIME B1G
Five teams in the Big Ten are ranked in either the United Soccer Coaches Poll or the Top Drawer Soccer Poll. In the USC poll, Ohio State is ranked No. 4, while Wisconsin is No. 8, Maryland is No. 19 and Michigan is No. 25. In the Top Drawer Poll, Wisconsin is No. 8, while Ohio State (No. 10), UCLA (No. 15), Maryland (No. 18) and Michigan (No. 18) are all ranked.

BIG TEN OPENER
MSU opened Big Ten action against new Big Ten member Washington on Sept. 13. The Spartans are 7-1-2 in their last 10 Big Ten openers. Last season, the Spartans tied Rutgers on the road 1-1 in the league opener. In 2022, MSU tied No. 16 Indiana to open league play. In 2021, MSU tied Wisconsin 1-1 in Madison.

GETTING ON THE SCOREBOARD
The Spartan offense is still trying to get going with only eight goals in 10 games. MSU has not scored more than one goal in a game this season.

HERMANN TROPHY
Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout was named to the Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) Hermann Trophy Watch List. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. Stout is the first Spartan to make the list since Giuseppe Barone and Patrick Nielsen were named to the Hermann Watch List in 2019.

PRESEASON HONORS
Michigan State had three players named to the Big Ten Players to Watch List, as announced by the conference office.
Juniors Jeremy Sharp, Jake Spadafora and Jonathan Stout were all honored by the league.

Sharp, who hails from Roseville, Michigan, earned a spot on the B1G Player to Watch list for the first time in his career. Last season, the defender earned second-team All-Big Ten honors, playing in all 15 games. Sharp ended the season with third-team All-North Region honors.

Stout, a native of Wyoming, Michigan, was second on the team in scoring last season with 10 points on five goals. The midfielder was named to the preseason list last season as well. Stout was also named first-team All-Big Ten as a sophomore.

Spadafora, a forward who hails from Northville, Michigan, was tied for third on the team in scoring with three goals and one assist for seven points. He earned second-team All-Big Ten honors last season, as well as capturing second-team All-North Region accolades.

UP NEXT
After taking on Maryland on the road, MSU returns home to face No. 8/13 Wisconsin at home on Friday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m.

THE STAFF
MSU head coach Damon Rensing enters his 16th season at the helm of the Spartans. Assistant coaches T.J. Kolba is in his sixth season, while Nick Barry enters his fifth year at MSU. Reid Friedrichs, who enters his second year with Michigan State. Friedrichs has plenty of experience in the Green and White as a player, including Big Ten Player of the Year honors in 1996.

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Players Mentioned

Josh Adam

Cristiano Bruletti

Jack Guggemos

Zac Kelly

Sean Kerrigan

Richie Ludwig

Brandon Munson

Mohamed Saad

Jeremy Sharp

Jake Spadafora

Jonathan Stout