Michigan State has two regular-season road games remaining.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's soccer returns to the road to take on Indiana on Friday, Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
MSU improved to 5-5-2 overall and 4-2-0 in Big Ten action after a 2-0 win then- No. 25 Wisconsin last week. Indiana stands 6-3-5 overall this season and 4-1-2 in league contests. On Tuesday, the Hoosiers defeated No. 18 Michigan, 5-0.
Ben Haller and Cruz Martin are on the call for B1G+.
BRACING FOR OFFENSE
With his brace against No. 25 Wisconsin, senior midfielder Sean Kerrigan led the Spartans to a 2-0 win over the Badgers on Oct. 11. It was the first time this season that the Spartans had scored multiple goals in a game. Kerrigan is now second on the team in scoring with three goals. He is first on the team in shots on goal with 11.
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 six 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.
LOOKING AT THE HOOSIERS
Indiana holds a 6-3-5 overall record and stands 4-1-2 in the Big Ten. With 13 points, the Hoosiers are now second in the Big Ten standings just two points behind first-place Maryland. Indiana has won three-straight games, out-scoring its opponent 8-2 during that span.
Tommy Mihalic is third in the Big Ten in points scored with 17 off of eight goals and one assist. In league contests, Quinton Elliot and Samuel Sarver are tied for the team lead in scoring with seven points each. Elliot has three goals and one assist, while Sarver has one goal and five assists. All-Big Ten goalkeeper JT Harms has played all 14 games this season for Indiana. He has allowed only 17 goals in 14 games for a 1.21 GAA.
SERIES HISTORY
Indiana leads the overall series lead against Michigan State 43-17-7. In Bloomington, the Hoosiers are on top 20-17-6 In East Lansing, the IU leads the series 17-7-1. Indiana holds the edge on neutral ground, 6-3. The last time the two teams met in Bloomington on Sept. 23, 2022, where they battled to a 1-1 double overtime tie.
Last season in East Lansing, the No. 18/22 posted its first win over Indiana since 2014 with a 2-1 Victory for MSU on Sept. 22, 2023. Junior midfielder Sean Kerrigan, a native of Sligo, Ireland and with his parents visiting from Ireland in attendance, roofed a penalty kick goal in the 77th minute for a 2-1 Spartan advantage.
DID YOU KNOW?
Michigan State currently has a 4-2 Big Ten record. With one more league win, MSU will have the most conference wins since going 5-0-3 in 2017.
LAST TIME OUT
Senior midfielder Sean Kerrigan's two first-half goals helped the Michigan State men's soccer team take down No. 25 Wisconsin 2-0 Friday night DeMartin Stadium on Salute to Service Day.
The Spartans have now won three of their last four games to even out their record to 5-5-2. This is the first time since the COVID-19 shortened 2021 Spring season that MSU has won at least four Big Ten games. It is the first since 2018 that the Spartans have won four conference games during a normally played season. In 2018, Michigan State went 4-2-2 in the Big Ten and eventually advanced to the College Cup.
IN CONFERENCE ACTION
The Spartans may not be lighting up the scoreboard in Big Ten play, but they have allowed only four goals in six games. Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Zac Kelly has played all 540 minutes in league play for a 0.67 GAA, which is lowest in the conference. He has made 20 saves in B1G games. Junior midfielder Jonathan Stout is tied for fifth in the league in goals scored in B1G games with three.
UP NEXT
After taking on Indiana on the road, MSU will return home for the 25th annual Battle for the Big Bear against Michigan on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m.
Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.
