Field Hockey Opens B1G Play in Columbus, Hosts UM

Week Four: MSU at No. 6 Ohio State; No. 9 Michigan at MSU
at Ohio State	Friday, Sept. 20 \| 4 pm B uckeye Varsity Field \| Columbus, Ohio Ohio State Roster \| Ohio State Statistics
vs. Michigan	Monday, Sept. 23 \| 3 pm Ralph Young Field \| East Lansing, Mich Michigan Roster \| Michigan S tatistics
Live Stats	at Ohio State \| vs. Michigan
Live Webstream	at Ohio State (BTN+) \| vs. Michigan (Fox Sports App)
Game Notes	Michigan State
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QUICK STRIKES FOR THE WEEK AHEAD ...

• Michigan State has a split weekend of action as it opens Big Ten play. The Spartans travel to Columbus on Friday for a game against No. 6 Ohio State, and then return home for a Monday showdown with No. 9 Michigan.

• Friday's game will air live on BTN+ streaming service, while Monday's game against the Wolverines will air live on Big Ten Network and stream through the Fox Sports App.

• The Buckeyes are a perfect 6-0 entering B1G play, outscoring their opponents by a 24-3 margin. Makenna Webster leads the way with team bests in goals (6), assists (6) and points (18), with Brenna Bough ranking second on the team in points (4-1-9). Keeper Abby Danson boasts an .880 save percentage and 0.51 GAA. Jarred Martin is in his seventh season as the head coach at Ohio State.

• Michigan does not play over the weekend prior to the Monday game at Ralph Young Field. Marcia Pankratz has coached the Wolverines a combined 25 seasons, and has her squad with a 5-1 record with its only loss an opening loss to No. 2 North Carolina (4-1). UM has outscored its last four opponents by a 30-3 margin, including a 11-0 win over Central Michigan last Sunday. Kate McLaughlin leads the scoring attack with 9-4-22, while 2024 Olympian Abby Tamer has a 7-6-20 scoring line. Hala Silverstein owns a 1.46 GAA and .611 save percentage, facing just 18 shots on net over the six games.

• The Spartans are coming off an undefeated weekend, a 4-2 road victory at Bellarmine and a 5-0 win over Colgate on Sunday.

• The Sunday victory was the 100th in the career of Helen Knull. In her 14th season, she is the longest-tenured coach in program history and owns the second-most wins of any mentor since the start of the program in the 1972 season.

• The Spartans have matched their win total from a year ago (4) and have scored 19 goals through six games in 2024. The 2023 offensively-challenged Spartans scored 17 goals in 16 games combined.

• MSU has outscored its opponents by a combined 11-1 in the first two quarters this season, but has scored and allowed eight goals in the third and fourth quarters. Both of MSU's losses this season have come in overtime.

• MSU has had the same starting lineup in all six of its games, consisting of five seniors, four freshmen, and two sophomores. All five seniors have career bests in at least one offensive category.

• Freshmen Carmen Pucheta, Mora Cavazza, Lilian Knorr, and Caro Schafer have each started all six games, and classmate Carmen Maudlin has also appeared in all six MSU contests. Pucheta had a goal and an assist in each of last weekend's games, while Knorr scored her first collegiate tally agianst Colgate.

• Against Colgate, sophomore Bianca Pizano recorded her second two-goal game of the season. She leads the Spartans with five goals, which is more than any player on the team had a year ago. She scored twice in her freshman campaign.

• Sophomore Lyra Gavino picked up her first career shutout against Colgate, making two saves. She has started every game for MSU this season and owns a 1.76 goals-against average on the year.

• Emma O'Neill had a pair of goals and an assist last week, and now has a 2-4-8 scoring line. She leads the team in assists, and is two points shy of matching her career best 10 set in 2022.

• Maddie Lawlor returned to the lineup after missing the 2023 season with injury, and is tied with Ellie Rutherford (2-3-7) for third on the team with seven points (3-1-7). Rutherford's three assists is a career high, while Lawlor's offensive output is her career best in all three categories.

• Senior Jillian Bonczewski 's three goals is a career high in both goals and points (39 games).

• Ellie Wheatley, along with O'Neill and Rutherford, serve as the 2024 team captains. Wheatley and O'Neill are both fifth-year players, appearing in 66 and 70 Spartan games, respectively. Wheatley has three assists this season and a 1-13-15 scoring line in her career.

• MSU has a lone game next weekend, on Sunday (Sept. 29) at Ball State. It is the start of three straight non-conference tilts, as MSU takes on Miami (Oct. 1) and Kent State (Oct. 6) the following week.

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Players Mentioned

Jillian Bonczewski

Mora Cavazza

Lyra Gavino

Lilian Knorr

Maddie Lawlor

Carmen Maudlin

Emma O'Neill

Bianca Pizano

Carmen Pucheta

Ellie Rutherford

Caro Schafer

Ellie Wheatley