This is the second meeting of the season between the two teams.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - No. 5-seeded Michigan State men's soccer will take on No. 4-seeded Washington in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. ET. The quarterfinals and semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament will be held at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois.
The Spartans ended the regular season with a 5-7-4 overall record and an even 4-4-2 mark in Big Ten action. Last time out, MSU fell to Rutgers, 1-0, in the home finale on Nov. 3.
Dean Linke and Patrick Doody will be on the call for the Big Ten Plus.
TOURNEY TIDBITS
Michigan State is the No. 5 seed in the tournament, facing No. 4-seeded Washington. This is the Huskies inaugural appearance in the B1G Tournament. Last season as the No. 3 seed, the Spartans fell to No. 6 Ohio State, 1-0 at DeMartin Stadium in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament
After a scoreless first half, OSU netted the match's lone goal in the 54th minute and withstood a late MSU rally. Michigan State is seeking its first Big Ten Tournament win since 2016.
WINDY CITY MAGIC
The game against the No. 4-seeded Huskies is MSU's first in Illinois since winning the 2012 Big Ten Tournament in Evanston. In that game, the Spartans defeated Michigan, 2-1 in overtime. The 97th minutes golden goal from Sean Conerty gave the Spartans their third Big Ten Tournament title.
LOOKING AT THE HUSKIES
Washington heads into the Big Ten Tournament on a hot streak, winning four-straight games. UW has moved up to No. 19 in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll. The Huskies earned the No. 4 seed on the last day of the season with a 1-0 road win over UCLA on Nov. 3.
Charlie Kosakoff and Peter Kingston are tied for seventh in the Big Ten in points scored with 14 points. Kosakoff is tied for eighth in the league with five goals scored. Jadon Bowton has played 17 games in goal for the Huskies. He has allowed only 17 goals for a 1.00 GAA.
SERIES HISTORY
Michigan State won its first-ever game against Washington on Sept. 13. Behind a goal from Jonathan Stout, the Spartans captured a 1-0 win at DeMartin Stadium. The Huskies still lead the overall series 2-1-1. The teams met in Seattle in 2022 when the Huskies came out on top 4-1. In 2019 in East Lansing, UW edged MSU, 1-0. In the 2014 NCAA Tournament in East Lansing, the teams tied 2-2 with MSU advancing on penalty kicks, 4-3.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Buckeyes were the first No. 1 team that MSU has faced since falling to No. 1 Creighton on Sept. 13, 2015.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State men's soccer was nipped by Rutgers, 1-0, on Spartan Senior Celebration Day, presented by HAP, on a Sunday afternoon at DeMartin Stadium.
Rutgers scored in the 83rd minute to take the lead, but Michigan State had several late chances including a penalty kick with 43 seconds left that went wide to deny the draw and spoil the Spartans' Senior Day festivities.
After the match, Michigan State men's soccer celebrated Zack Babiak, Efosa Emovon, Levin Gerhardt, Sean Kerrigan and Shion Soga in their final regular-season matches at DeMartin Stadium in the Green & White.
FINDING THE W
The Spartans are looking for their first win since a 2-0 win over Wisconsin on Oct. 11. Since that game, MSU has gone 0-2-2.
FINDING HIS GROOVE
Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout leads the team in scoring with four goals and two assist for 10 points. He now has points in four of the Spartans' last nine games. Stout has now reached double figures in scoring all three seasons that he has been at Michigan State with 12 as a freshman and 10 as a sophomore.
Sophomore forward Richie Ludwig, senior midfielder Sean Kerrigan, junior midfielder Jack Guggemos, sophomore defender Will Eby and freshman forward Mohamed Saad have also found the back of the net this season. Junior midfielder Cristiano Bruletti scored his first goal as a Spartan against Indiana on Oct. 18 on a penalty kick.
WRACKING UP THE CLEAN SHEETS
Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Zac Kelly has earned six shutouts this season, including five in Big Ten play. He now has 11 career shutouts in two complete seasons for the Spartans. He has a 1.14 GAA this season and a 1.04 career GAA. The six shutouts were the most since Jimmy Hague had nine in 2018.
PUTTING UP THE POINTS
Against No. 1 Ohio State, senior midfielder Seam Kerrigan added a goal and an assist in the tie against the Buckeyes. Kerrigan is second on the team in scoring behind Jonathan Stout with four goals and one assist for nine points. He is first on the team in shots on goal with 13. In his two seasons at MSU, he has scored 10 goals with one assist for 21 points. For his career, he has 35 goals with 12 assists for 82 points.
FRESHMAN FRENZY
Freshman defender Brandon Munson has made the most of his brief time as a Spartan. He has played in all 14 games, starting 12. Against Washington on Sept. 13, his bicycle kick back save prevented the Huskies from scoring and was the No. 1 play on ESPN SportsCenter. Fellow freshman forward Mohamed Saad has also played in all 13 games, starting five. He has scored one goal this season against Oregon State. Munson has missed the last two games with injury.
PACKING THE STANDS
Michigan State is 11h in the nation in attendance this season, averaging 1,805 fans per game this season. That stands third in the Big Ten behind Indiana (2,774), which is third and Maryland (2,237), which is sixth.
GETTING IN THE LINEUP
Through 16 games this season, MSU has used 10 different starting lineups. In the first 16 games, three Spartans have started every in Zac Kelly, Cristiano Bruletti and Josh Adam. Kelly and Adam are the only Spartans with over 1,400 minutes played. Cristiano Bruletti (1,266) and Will Eby (1,226)stand second and third, respectively in minutes played.
PLAY THE BEST TO BE THE BEST
Michigan State's tie against No. 1 Ohio State was the Spartans' sixth game against a ranked team. MSU is 2-2-2 against ranked teams this season with a wins against No. 15 UCLA and No. 25 Wisconsin. MSU has losses against No. 12/7 Maryland and No. 5 Oregon State. To open the season, the Spartans tied No. 25 SIUE, 1-1. Washington is currently ranked No. 19 in the United Soccer Coaches poll.
HERMANN TROPHY
Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout was named to the Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) Hermann Trophy Watch List. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. Stout is the first Spartan to make the list since Giuseppe Barone and Patrick Nielsen were named to the Hermann Watch List in 2019.
Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.
