Michigan State University Athletics
Sunday, August 30
11 AM
Michigan State University
4-0-1, 0-0-0
3
vs
2
Colorado
3-1-1, 0-0-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Michigan St. | 3 | 0 | 3 |
No. 3 MSU Remains Unbeaten With 3-2 Win Over #12/7 Colorado
8/30/2026 2:48:00 PM | Women's Soccer
East Lansing, Mich. – No. 3/4 Michigan State earned a second straight Sunday victory over a ranked team, posting a 3-2 victory over No. 12/7 Colorado in a rematch of the NCAA Sweet 16 matchup from 2025.
MSU and Colorado opened the season with a 1-1 draw last year in Boulder, and Michigan State earned a 2-1 win at home in that November matchup that sent the Spartans into their first-ever national quarterfinal.
Emerson Sargeant scored twice, and fifth-year keeper Bella Schopp earned her first MSU win with four saves. Kennedy Bell had a pair of assists, and Faith George had one. Reagan Kotshau and Hope Leyba had the second-half scores for Colorado.
The two teams each entered the game with identical 3-0-1 overall records, and had played to scoreless draws on Thursday – Colorado at Western Michigan, and MSU at home against Eastern Michigan. A steady morning rain had subsided by first touch, but the teams were navigating soggy conditions. All five goals were scored on the same side of the field in Sunday's game.
The Spartans took a 3-0 lead into the intermission on an own goal by the Buffs at 20:26, followed by two goals from Emerson Sargeant in the 25th and 32nd minutes. The Colorado own goal was costly, but MSU dominated that first half in its own right. The Spartans had a 13-3 edge in shot attempts (7-2 on goal) in the first 45 minutes. In addition, a goal by Kayla Briggs was taken off the board on an offsides call in the opening minute of the game, and Renee Watson had a shot off the crossbar in the 43rd minute.
The Buffs recalibrated during the halftime break and were able to generate more offensively. The goals for the visitors came in the 58th minute (Reagan Kotschau's fourth of the season) and a goal in the 77th minute as Hope Leyba finished off a pass from her twin sister, Faith, to pull CU within a score. While Colorado was able to generate more in the second half than it had in the first (nine shots to three in the opening frame), MSU still had some good looks – notably, a pair of impressive runs from Kennedy Bell . At the final whistle, the Spartans held an 18-12 edge in shots and 11-2 in corners, while the Buffs committed 12 fouls (eight in the second half) as MSU had a season-low six for the second straight game.
SCORING
21' –CU 0, MSU 1 | A crossing attempt by Faith George clipped off the keeper Jamie Campbell and off Faith Leyba into the back of the net for an own goal.
25' – CU 0, MSU 2, George executed a give-and-go with Kennedy Bell, with Bell passing it back the outside. George dribbled to the side of the box and sent a pass to the penalty spot, and Emerson Sargeant hit her target for her first goal of the season.
32' – CU 0, MSU 3, Sargeant and Bell teamed up again for a 3-0 lead. Off a corner play, the ball ricocheted out to the top of the box for Bella Najera, and her shot was stopped by keeper Jamie Campbell. Najera collected her own rebound and slid it to Bell on her left, and Bell's shot went off the left post – but right onto the foot of Sargeant, who buried her second of the game.
58' –CU 1, MSU 3 | Colorado got on the board with a goal from leading scorer Reagan Kotschau into the upper left corner. Lexi Meyer had the assist.
77' –CU 2, MSU 3 | The Leyba twins put a second on the board for the visitors. Hope Leyba finished off a crossing pass on the left side from Faith Layba.
Notables
UP NEXT
Michigan State starts a stretch of three road games on Thursday when it plays at No. 25 Notre Dame in the non-conference finale. The conference season begins the following week, the Spartans heads west for games at USC (Sept. 10 on BTN) and UCLA (Sept. 13). MSU will return home on Sept. 20 when it hosts Michigan.
Single-game tickets and season memberships for MSU Women's Soccer are available by visiting sprtns.co/WSOC26tix.
MSU and Colorado opened the season with a 1-1 draw last year in Boulder, and Michigan State earned a 2-1 win at home in that November matchup that sent the Spartans into their first-ever national quarterfinal.
Emerson Sargeant scored twice, and fifth-year keeper Bella Schopp earned her first MSU win with four saves. Kennedy Bell had a pair of assists, and Faith George had one. Reagan Kotshau and Hope Leyba had the second-half scores for Colorado.
The two teams each entered the game with identical 3-0-1 overall records, and had played to scoreless draws on Thursday – Colorado at Western Michigan, and MSU at home against Eastern Michigan. A steady morning rain had subsided by first touch, but the teams were navigating soggy conditions. All five goals were scored on the same side of the field in Sunday's game.
The Spartans took a 3-0 lead into the intermission on an own goal by the Buffs at 20:26, followed by two goals from Emerson Sargeant in the 25th and 32nd minutes. The Colorado own goal was costly, but MSU dominated that first half in its own right. The Spartans had a 13-3 edge in shot attempts (7-2 on goal) in the first 45 minutes. In addition, a goal by Kayla Briggs was taken off the board on an offsides call in the opening minute of the game, and Renee Watson had a shot off the crossbar in the 43rd minute.
The Buffs recalibrated during the halftime break and were able to generate more offensively. The goals for the visitors came in the 58th minute (Reagan Kotschau's fourth of the season) and a goal in the 77th minute as Hope Leyba finished off a pass from her twin sister, Faith, to pull CU within a score. While Colorado was able to generate more in the second half than it had in the first (nine shots to three in the opening frame), MSU still had some good looks – notably, a pair of impressive runs from Kennedy Bell . At the final whistle, the Spartans held an 18-12 edge in shots and 11-2 in corners, while the Buffs committed 12 fouls (eight in the second half) as MSU had a season-low six for the second straight game.
SCORING
21' –CU 0, MSU 1 | A crossing attempt by Faith George clipped off the keeper Jamie Campbell and off Faith Leyba into the back of the net for an own goal.
25' – CU 0, MSU 2, George executed a give-and-go with Kennedy Bell, with Bell passing it back the outside. George dribbled to the side of the box and sent a pass to the penalty spot, and Emerson Sargeant hit her target for her first goal of the season.
32' – CU 0, MSU 3, Sargeant and Bell teamed up again for a 3-0 lead. Off a corner play, the ball ricocheted out to the top of the box for Bella Najera, and her shot was stopped by keeper Jamie Campbell. Najera collected her own rebound and slid it to Bell on her left, and Bell's shot went off the left post – but right onto the foot of Sargeant, who buried her second of the game.
58' –CU 1, MSU 3 | Colorado got on the board with a goal from leading scorer Reagan Kotschau into the upper left corner. Lexi Meyer had the assist.
77' –CU 2, MSU 3 | The Leyba twins put a second on the board for the visitors. Hope Leyba finished off a crossing pass on the left side from Faith Layba.
Notables
- After a 3-2 road victory at No. 7/8 North Carolina last Sunday, MSU is now 3-0 against teams that are ranked in the top 25 poll or receiving votes this season.
- Sunday's game was a matchup of two teams in the top 12 of each national poll and featured six players on the Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch list: Spartans Kennedy Bell, Kayla Briggs, and Emerson Sargeant as well as Colorado twins Faith and Hope Leyba and junior Jace Holley.
- Emerson Sargeant had her first two goals of the season in the first half, coming about seven minutes apart. It was her third career brace, and the first since scoring her second as a golden goal in the 2025 Big Ten Tournament semifinal against UCLA.
- Bella Schopp finished with four saves and two goals against in her second start of the season for the Spartans.
- Bell had assists on both of Sargeant's goals. Faith George had the primary on Sargeant's first, and Sargeant put back a rebound off of Bell's shot for the second.
- Bell's assists were her first two of the season, while George also earned her second in an MSU uniform.
- Colorado stuck with its season cadence of switching keepers at halftime. Jamie Campbell played the first half and had three saves, and freshman Brooke Goerish played the final 45 with one stop.
UP NEXT
Michigan State starts a stretch of three road games on Thursday when it plays at No. 25 Notre Dame in the non-conference finale. The conference season begins the following week, the Spartans heads west for games at USC (Sept. 10 on BTN) and UCLA (Sept. 13). MSU will return home on Sept. 20 when it hosts Michigan.
Single-game tickets and season memberships for MSU Women's Soccer are available by visiting sprtns.co/WSOC26tix.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Soccer
M
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
F/M
/ Women's Soccer
M
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
D/F
/ Women's SoccerTeam Stats
COL
MSU
Goals
2
3
Shots
12
18
Shots on Goal
6
6
Saves
4
4
Corners
2
11
Fouls
12
6
Scoring Plays
0
Failed clear into own goal by COL #44
20:26
Emerson Sargeant (2)
Assisted By: Faith George , Kennedy Bell
GOAL by MSU Sargeant, Emerson Assist by George, Faith and Bell, Kennedy.
24:53
Emerson Sargeant (2)
Assisted By: Kennedy Bell
GOAL by MSU Sargeant, Emerson Assist by Bell, Kennedy.
32:00
Reagan Kotschau (4)
Assisted By: Lexi Meyer
GOAL by COL Kotschau, Reagan Assist by Meyer, Lexi.
57:09
Hope Leyba (2)
Assisted By: Faith Leyba , Emma Thielbahr
GOAL by COL Leyba, Hope Assist by Leyba, Faith and Thielbahr, Emma.
76:21
Game Leaders
Shots
5
SOG
2
Goals
2
Assists
0
fwd
Shots
4
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
2
def
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
mid
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Monday, August 10
Friday, November 28
Tuesday, November 25
Sunday, November 23