Bell's Five-Point Night Paces MSU In 4-0 Win Over Minnesota

Thursday, October 8

7 PM

Michigan State University

10-1-2, 6-1-0

Minnesota

7-4-2, 3-3-1

Team	1	2	Final F
Minnesota	0	0	0
Michigan State	2	2	4

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Kennedy Bell had a five-point night vs. Minnesota

Bell's Five-Point Night Paces MSU In 4-0 Win Over Minnesota

10/8/2026 11:06:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

East Lansing, Mich. – Senior Kennedy Bell had a five-point effort and sophomore keeper Noelle Henning had her third consecutive shutout as No. 2 Michigan State opened the second half of Big Ten play with a 4-0 victory over visiting Minnesota. MSU improves to 10-1-2 overall, recording its 10^th win in its 13^th game of the season. It is the fastest to 10 victories in the six seasons of Jeff Hosler's tenure at MSU and third-fastest in school history. Hosler has guided the Spartans to an 80-21-22 mark, and impressive 41-8-10 record in Big Ten play.

Zero time wasted!
McPherson feeds the long pass to Bell, and the senior completes her brace just 17 seconds into the second half. 3-0 Spartans. pic.twitter.com/0bSVz8WoEN
— Michigan State Women's Soccer (@MSU_wsoccer) October 9, 2026

The Spartans scored twice in each half and Minnesota keeper Sarah Martin made a season-high nine saves, including six in the opening stanza. She made several stops that kept her team in it, as the Spartans put 13 of their 20 shot attempts on target in the game.

Henning was far less busy at her end of the field, making three saves as her team had a 65%-35% edge in possession time. She has played in six games overall and three since returning from the U20 FIFA Women's World Cup; she has not conceded a goal since the Aug. 23 game at North Carolina. She has provided MSU nearly 300 consecutive minutes of shutout action.

Emerson Sargeant had a goal and an assist, while Kayla Briggs had a pair of assists to push her season total to a career-best eight.

Briggs sets this one up right across the goal mouth, and Sargeant heads it into the back of the net. 1-0 MSU! pic.twitter.com/4rAErkRcnt
— Michigan State Women's Soccer (@MSU_wsoccer) October 8, 2026

SCORING

7' –   MSU 1, MINN 0    | Fed a pass by Bella Najera, Kayla Briggs sent the ball across the top of the area from right to left, and Emerson Sargeant headed it past Sarah Martin for the opening goal of the game.

30' –   MSU 2, MINN 0   |   Gopher keeper Martin was doing her best trying to hold the Spartans off the board, and dove to her left to redirect Kayla Briggs' shot. Defender Hannah Heinlein tried to make a move clear the rebound, but Kennedy Bell stepped in front of her and roofed it for a 2-0 MSU lead.

46' –   MSU 3, MINN 0     | Taking the opening touch, Kaleigh McPherson sent a long pass to Kennedy Bell, and Bell raced in and beat Martin into the left corner to complete her brace.

73' –   MSU 4, MINN 0     | Bell chased down a long pass from Samantha Maroni near the touch line on the right side. She passed back to the top of the penalty area to find classmate Ella Janz, and Janz found her mark for her third goal of the season.

Notables

MSU has reached its 10^th win in its 13^th game of the season. It is the fastest to 10 wins in the Jeff Hosler era, and the third-fastest in program history.
Michigan State kept pace at the top of the Big Ten standings, improving to 6-1 in league contests.
Hosler was able to go to his bench liberally in the game, using 21 field players who each played at least five minutes.
Kennedy Bell had a five-point night, and her third brace of the season. She also had two-goal efforts against both North Carolina and USC.
Bell now has 51 points in her 38 career games as a Spartan. She ranks 21st in career points and 19^th in career goals (19).
Bell led the Big Ten with 29 points and 11 goals in 25 games last season. She now has an 8-6-22 scoring line through 13 games in 2026.
Noelle Henning posted her third straight shutout since returning from the U20 FIFA Women's World Cup. She has five this season (in six games) and 13 in her career, which is eighth all-time in the Spartan annals. She has conceded just two goals this season – on the road at North Carolina in a 3-2 Spartan victory.
Henning's personal shutout streak has reached 287:39, dating back to the North Carolina game on Aug. 23.
Emerson Sargeant scored her fifth of the season seven minutes in, and added an assist on Bell's first score. She moved into 17^th place in career points (54) with her three-point effort. She is third on the team in points this season (14).
Kayla Briggs' two assists pushes her to eight on the year, surpassing the seven she had in 2025. She now has 18 points, five shy of the 23 she posted as a junior.
Ella Janz recorded her third goal of the season, her career best. She also has a career high in points (8).
Bella Najera has a point in three of the last four games. It was her 19^th career assist and 73^rd career – she now ranks ninth all-time in career scoring at MSU.
Juniors Samantha Maroni and Kaleigh McPherson each had their first assists of the season.

UP NEXT
The Spartans return to the road for Sunday's game at Purdue, which is ranked 25^th in this week's Top Drawer Soccer poll. Purdue survived a wild 6-5 win on Thursday against Michigan, a game it led 4-0 at halftime.