Spartans in action in three different events around the world.​

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State men's tennis wrapped up its opening weekend action after a solid start to the season in action not only across the country but around the world.

Davis Cup
Junior Aristotelis Thanos represented his home country of Greece in the Davis Cup Tie this weekend in Belgrade, Serbia, taking on Serbia, including World No. 4 Novak Djokovic, at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in Belgrade, Serbia.

Thanos lost to Miomir Kecmanovic, 3-6, 3-6, in Match 1 in singles action. The Spartan then paired with Petros Tsitsipas, ranked No. 77 in the ATP doubles ranking and, the younger brother of Stefanos Tsitsipas, currently ranked No. 12 in the world.

Thanos and P. Tsitsipas were topped by Djokovic and Hamad Medjedovic, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6 in Match 3, as Serbia won the Davis Cup Tie, 3-1, and will compete in the 2025 Davis Cup matches leading to the Finals, while Greeces slides to World Group I action.

Battle In The Bay Tournament
In San Francisco, California, junior Ozan Baris had a great start on the weekend. He defeated his first two competitors. In his third match of the weekend, Baris fought hard but could not find the fire to win the match falling 1-6, 6-4, [3-6].

Freshman Matthew Forbes was ready to continue his fight after a great run at the US Open juniors. In his first singles match he fell to TCU's Lui Maxted 2-6, 2-1.

In the doubles match, Baris and Forbes were matched up against San Diego's Klaassen and Danilov. The Spartan pair defeated them 8-7, [7-3]. They moved on to play against UC Berkeley's Chang and Wright, winning 8-7, 7-2. In the semifinals they took on the split team of MSU freshman teammate Danial Rakhmatullayev and TCU's Duncan Chan. Baris and Forbes fell, 8-5, to end their time in the tournament.

Rakhmatullayev started out his time in California with a singles match against UC Berkeley's Alex Chang. Rakhmatullayev fought hard but could not finish the match with a win, falling 4-6, 3-6.

Paired up with TCU's Duncan Chan, Rakhmatullayev and Chan had a good run in the doubles tournament. They won three-straight matches in a row to give them a chance in the finals. They took on UC Berkeley's Dean and Overbeck. The pair left it all out on the court but fell, 8-6, to grab second place in the tournament.

Louisville Invite
Freshman Mitchell Sheldon had a good start to his collegiate debut with Michigan State at the Louisville Invite this weekend in Louisville, Kentucky. After losing his first match of the weekend, Sheldon came back fighting and won his next two matches on Saturday. In his final match on Sunday, he continued his fight but after a tough match he fell 5-7, 6-2 [7-10].

Sheldon was also paired up with Bellarmine's Diego Martinez in a mixed-school doubles team. They competed in two doubles matches this weekend. First they took on Eastern Kentucky's Stahlbrand and Parhar winning 8-7 [9-7]. The second match was against Belmount's Woodson and Mizerski, losing 4-8 to finish up their time in the doubles tournament.

Up Next
The Spartans will head to Fayetteville, Arkansas for the M15 Fayetteville tournament on Sept. 16-19.

Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State senior men's golfer Ashton McCulloch gets the chance to play in his home province as the Spartans take part in the Canadian Collegiate Invitational, which will be held at Oviibyrd Golf Club in Foots Bay, Ontario, Canada on Monday, Sept. 16 and Tuesday, Sept. 17.

The inaugural Canadian Collegiate Invitational marks the first time that an NCAA Division I men's golf tournament will be played in Canada.

The two-day, 54-hole tournament will be conducted by Golf Canada and co-hosted by Penn State and Kent State, who are both led by Canadian head coaches in Penn State's Mark Leon and Kent State's Jon Mills. The tournament will feature NCAA Division I men's golf teams with prominent Canadian ties along with the team champions of the 2024 Canadian University/College Championship.

The individual winner will receive an exemption into the 2025 RBC Canadian Open, with the top-five receiving exemptions into the 2025 Canadian Men's Amateur Championship.
GOLF CANADA COLLEGIATE
Dates: Monday, Sept. 16 – Tuesday, Sept. 17
Course: Oviinbyrd Golf Club / Foots Bay, Ontario, Canada
Par/Yardage: 72 / 7,157
Format: Stroke play, 54 holes / Play five, count four
Live Stats: Golf Genius
Schedule – Monday – 18 holes – tee times starting at 8 a.m.
Tuesday – 18 holes with tee times beginning at 8 a.m.

MSU LINEUP
No. 1 – Ashton McCulloch
No. 2 – Caleb Bond
No. 3 – Lorenzo Pinili
No. 4 – Julian Menser
No. 5 – Joseph Canitano
IND – Drew Miller

OVIINBYRD GOLF CLUB
Öviinbyrd Golf Club is one of Canada's premier golf courses, designed by Thomas McBroom and opened in 2004 in Muskoka, Ont. The 7,118-yard layout is set amongst the forests and exposed granite of the Canadian shield in Ontario's famous cottage country and will create a challenging and memorable experience for the players. Öviinbyrd's recently renovated practice facility features world class training conditions and state-of-the-art technology and will benefit players participating in both the NCAA event and the Team Canada – NextGen selection camp.

THE FIELD
Kent State (co-host), Miami (Ohio), Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Notre Dame, Penn State (co-host), Rutgers, University of British Columbia, Washington State

RESULTS
Live scoring for the event is available through Golf Genius

LAST TIME OUT
Senior Ashton McCulloch finished in fourth place overall to lead Michigan State to a fourth-place finish among 15 teams at the third annual Folds of Honor Collegiate, held last week American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven, Mich. … The Spartans finished the three-day, 54-hole tournament at 9-over par 861 (287-284-290), including a 6-over par 290 in Wednesday's final round … McCulloch shot an even-par 71 in the third round and finished in a tie for fourth place alone at 6-under par 207 (67-69-71) … McCulloch had five birdies on the front nine, including four-straight, and finished his round with six … Junior Caleb Bond shot a 4-over par 75 in the third round and tied for 18th place at 5-over par 218 (73-70-75) … Freshman Julian Menser closed out his first collegiate tournament with a 2-over par 73 on Wednesday and finished in a tie for 40th place at 10-over par 223 (73-77-73) … Sophomore Lorenzo Pinili tied for 41st place at 11-over par 224 (74-70-80), posting an 8-over par 80 in the third round … Freshman Juan Velasquez posted his best round of the tournament in Wednesday's final round, finishing at even-par 71. He finished in a tie for 45th place at 14-over par 227 (81-75-71).

A SORT OF HOMECOMING
While Foots Bay, Ontario is four hours home McCulloch's hometown of Kingston, Ontario, this tournament provides a unique opportunity for the senior to play in his native country and province of Ontario … McCulloch was the winner of the 2023 Canadian Amateur and finished as the runner-up this year … He has represented Canada on the international stage and played in the RBC Canadian Open this summer.

LUBAHN'S THOUGHTS
"This is a pretty special trip and event for us, and especially for Ashton. We talk about memory-makers for the guys who play for us and we had one last week with a great start at the Folds of Honor. This is going to be a very special moment for Ashton and his family. As his coach, I'm looking forward to it and I know his teammates are excited for this event."

Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Coming off a weekend of practice and preparation, Michigan State volleyball is back in action early this week for a pair of non-conference matches. The Spartans get started at Eastern Michigan on Monday, September 16 for a 6:00 p.m. match in Ypsilanti, Michigan at the Gervin GameAbove Center. MSU returns to the Breslin Student Events Center for its final home non-conference match on Tuesday, September 17, taking on Purdue Fort Wayne at 6:00 p.m.

Monday night's match at Eastern Michigan will stream on ESPN+, while Tuesday night in East Lansing will be broadcast on B1G+. Fans can listen in live through MSUSpartans.com or via the Michigan State Athletics app where John Kreger will call the matches in his 20th season of MSU volleyball coverage.

ABOUT EASTERN MICHIGAN​

Eastern Michigan is 4-6 overall and is coming off a 2-1 weekend at the Comfort Inn-Vitational in Morehead, Kentucky. The Eagles defeated Evansville (3-2) and Morehead State (3-1), but fell to Duquesne (3-2) in their final match of the weekend. EMU previously defeated IU Indianapolis and Valparaiso.

Sophomore Kaili Doctor leads the team with 118 kills and has finished in double figures in eight of 10 matches while hitting .256. Doctor posted 23 kills against Evansville on Friday, Sept. 13. Doctor's 3.25 points per set and 2.81 kills per set also lead the team. Junior Kendal Bonney is hitting a team-high .289 on 2.54 points per set. Sophomore Ella Voorhees (198 assists) and graduate Maddie Stayer (157 assists) split the setting responsibilities. Sophomore Ava Siefke leads the Eagles with 18 service aces.

Senior libero Hannah Blaney averages 3.68 digs per set. Graduate Angel Baylark leads EMU with 1.43 blocks per set, with freshman Hatteras Welker posting 1.17 blocks per set.

SERIES HISTORY​

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Eastern Michigan

- Michigan State is 28-8-1 against EMU all-time and is 7-5 when playing on the road. The Spartans last played in Ypsilanti in 2007, a 3-0 win on Sept. 11, 2007.

- MSU last meet the Eagles on Aug. 27, 2022, winning 3-2 at the Spartan Invitational. Aliyah Moore led all players in the match with 16 kills, with Nalani Iosia tallying 13 digs.

Purdue Fort Wayne

- Michigan State is 3-0 all-time against Purdue Fort Wayne including 1-0 at home, taking down the Mastodons, 3-2, on Sept. 7, 2012.

- The Spartans last faced Purdue Fort Wayne on Sept. 13, 2013, winning by way of a 3-0 sweep at the Butler Invitational.

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ABOUT PURDUE FORT WAYNE​

Purdue Fort Wayne is 4-5 overall with a win over Cornell (3-2) this past weekend at the Popcorn Classic hosted by Valparaiso. The Mastodons were defeated by Valpo (3-0) and Miami (Ohio) (3-0). Purdue Fort Wayne also owns victories over Stonehill (3-0), Siena (3-1) and Holy Cross (3-2) in 2024.

Redshirt sophomore Panna Ratkai is the reigning Horizon League Player of the Year and leads the team with 169 kills on 4.83 kills per set and 5.33 points per set, hitting .215 on a whipping 451 attempts. Fifth year Abby Stratford's 78 kills on 209 attempts both rank second on the team. Senior Taya Haffner's 324 assists on 9.53 assists per set paces all Mastodon setters.

Junior LonDynn Betts averages 4.23 digs per set for a team-high 148 digs. Junior Jena Medearis' 0.71 blocks per set is a team best.

SPARTANS MAKING AN IMPACT​

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• This season Michigan State volleyball has partnered with Team IMPACT, which matches collegiate sports teams with children facing serious illness or disability to create a long-term, life-changing experience for everyone involved.

• MSU is matched with Taytum, a nine-year-old from Mason, Mich. with down syndrome.

• Taytum will be around the Spartans all season long, attending games, practices and team events, making a significant impact on the program.

PLAYER NOT A PIECE ​

• Since 2023, MSU volleyball is partnered with renowned mindset and peak performance coach Seth Makowsky, adding another wrinkle to the program's mental training regimen.

• Makowsky uses chess as a vehicle to help top performers throughout the world get better at what they do, with his client list including NFL quarterbacks, MVP baseball players, Olympians, Fortune 500 CEO's and NCAA champions.

• Makowsky's training is geared towards transforming how athletes think and make decisions in real time, helping the team make quicker decisions, implement game plan and in-game adjustments faster and communicate in match under pressure.

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Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.

Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith has named the team’s Players of the Game following the Spartans’ 40-0 win over Prairie View A&M.

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Offense: redshirt junior running back Nate Carter
Defense: redshirt junior cornerback Charles Brantley
Special teams: redshirt senior linebacker Sam Edwards
Offensive lineman: fifth-year senior Luke Newman
Defensive lineman: sixth-year senior Khris Bogle