No. 2 Michigan State Hosts Minnesota Thursday

No. 2/3 Michigan State (9-1-2, 5-1 B1G) vs. Minnesota (7-3-2, 3-2-1 B1G)
Dates/Location	Thursday, Oct. 8 \| 7 pm DeMartin Stadium, East Lansing, Mich. \| Gameday Information
Tickets	Spartan Ticket Office
Promotions	Go Green! Wear White! \| See all Promotions
Webstream	B1G+
Live Statistics	Click Here
Media	Coach Hosler Press Conference (Oct. 5)
Game Notes	Michigan State \| Minnesota
Social Media	Facebook X Instagram

What you need to know about Spartan women's soccer

• Michigan State begins the second half of Big Ten play at home on Thursday, hosting Minnesota. The Gophers enter Thursday's tilt with a 7-3-2 overall record and 3-2-1 mark in Big Ten play, tied for eighth place with Northwestern. The Spartans have won the last four meetings of the teams, going back to September 2021. In the all-time series, MSU leads 16-14-4, with a 10-6-1 edge at home.

•  MSU enters the game 9-1-2 on the season, and is one of four teams in the Big Ten with just one loss. No team has gone undefeated through six games of Conference play: MSU is currently tied for the top spot, sharing a 5-1 record (15 points) with Ohio State and UCLA. The Spartans own a head-to-head win over UCLA but are not scheduled to take on the Buckeyes in the regular season.

• Michigan State maintains its No. 2 ranking in the IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches national poll this week and has been among the top five in that poll in every playing week this season. The Spartans are also No. 1 in the RPI rankings, holding that spot for each of the three weeks since the initial release.

• MSU has earned wins over four teams ranked in the top 20 of the IWSOC poll this season, as well as a win and a tie over teams receiving votes in the national poll at the time of the game. The Spartans' strength of schedule ranks No. 2 in the nation to this point of the season (via NCAA metrics) as its opponents are a combined 59-17-28 (.702

•   MSU has scored five times in the final seven minutes of a game this season, with four of those scores determining the game's outcome.   Bella Najera's game-winning goal against Illinois last Sunday came with just 4:30 to go in regulation, while the most dramatic game-deciding goal came from Ella Janz at Notre Dame, when she scored at 89:56 to forge a 2-2 draw. In addition, Kayla Briggs had the game-winner against Loyola at 82:40, and Emerson Sargeant's against Nebraska was at 86:46. Shelby Vaughn scored at 86:43 in the game at USC, a 5-0 MSU victory.   The Spartans have scored three times in the opening seven minutes of a game this season, with all three serving as the eventual game-winner: Briggs at USC (5:37), and at UCLA (6:55) and Janz against Washington (2:37).

• MSU's 25 total goals is third in the Big Ten, and the Spartans lead the league (and rank third nationally) in corner kicks (8.58). The Spartan defense has seven shutouts, including its last two games vs. Washington (Sept. 27) and Illinois (Oct. 4). MSU had 10 shutouts a year ago, and the school record is 13, set in 1987.

• Jeff Hosler has coached his teams to a 40-8-10 record in Big Ten games since coming to MSU. In his first season (2021), the Spartans went 5-4-1 in conference play and are 35-4-9 in the four-plus years since. He is 79-21-22 at MSU overall, and 312-88-40 in his head coaching career (21st season).

• At the halfway point of the league schedule, MSU's conference slate has it facing six of the other eight in the top half of the current standings - MSU does not play Ohio State or Wisconsin this season. The Spartans have four games against the top half remaining: at home vs. Penn State and Minnesota, and road tilts at Purdue and Northwestern.

• Bella Najera played the role of hero for the Spartans at Illinois last Sunday, scoring the game-winner at 85:30. It was her 27th career goal, (tied for 10th all time) and her 10th career game-winner, which is tied for fifth place. The senior – the most prolific scorer of the Jeff Hosler era at MSU – is now tied for ninth in career points (72) and is 13th in career assists (18).

• Kayla Briggs has 16 points on five goals and six assists. She leads the team in assists, which is third in the Big Ten/30th nationally. Her 16 points and 1.33 points per game both rank sixth in the Big Ten. She has the game-winning goal in four of MSU's nine wins this year (3rd, B1G/10th nationally). With nine game-winners in her 33 games as a Spartan, Briggs ranks ninth all-time in MSU history. In addition to being responsible for four Spartan game-winners in 2026, Briggs has also had the primary assist on two others (including Najera's at Illinois).

• Noelle Henning has posted clean sheets in each of her first two games back in the lineup, recording two saves vs. Washington (9/27) and three at Illinois (10/4). In five games, Henning boasts four shutouts, a 0.40 GAA, and .875 save percentage. The sophomore has surrendered just one goal in the run of play, and one on a penalty kick (both against UNC on the road). Henning owns 12 career shutouts, which is eighth all-time in MSU's record book.

• Emerson Sargeant has career totals of 16 goals and 19 assists (51 points); she is tied for 20th in points in the Spartan record book and 11th all-time in assists. Her 16 goals sit two outside MSU's all-time top 20, and her seven career game-winners ranks just outside the top 10.   She is the 23rd player in program history to achieve 50 points.

• Kaleigh McPherson is in her second season as a full-time starter for MSU and is often overlooked as kudos are handed out. The holding mid was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team in 2024 and had a goal and two assists in 2025. She has started 48 of her 59 career games.

• Sophomore Mackenzie Kruer has started each of the last nine contests on MSU's back line and has played a combined 771 minutes across MSU's 12 games. She picked up the first point of her college career at North Carolina (8/23), setting up Bell's second score. She is averaging 73 minutes a game in MSU's six Big Ten contests, and went a season-high 85 minutes at Illinois (10/4).

• Grace Jackson scored her first goal of the season vs. Washington (9/27). She missed most of the 2025 season with injury and was appearing in her third game this season.

• Freshmen Lacey Kindel and Samantha Powell have been named to Canada's 21-player roster for the FIFA U17 Women's World Cup in Morocco. The duo departed on Tuesday for the pre-tournament camp, and Canada's first game will be Oct. 18 vs. Brazil. Noelle Henning recently returned to East Lansing after spending a month in Poland representing Canada at the 2026 U20 Women's World Cup.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Kayla Briggs

Noelle Henning

Grace Jackson

Ella Janz

Lacey Kindel

Mackenzie Kruer

Bella Najera

Samantha Powell

Emerson Sargeant

Shelby Vaughn

Michigan State University Athletics