MSU Men’s Soccer Travels to No. 16 IU for B1G Opener

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State men’s soccer concludes its two-game road trip at No. 16 Indiana on Friday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m. at Bill Armstrong Stadium. This is the Big Ten opener for the Spartans, while the Hoosiers are 0-1-0 heading into their B1G home opener.

The Spartans are 2-4-1 after a 4-1 loss to No. 4 Washington in Seattle on Sept. 16. Indiana is 3-2-1 after falling to No. 22 Ohio State in Columbus last week.

Michigan State is the final Big Ten squad to open league play.

PACKING THE HOUSE

Michigan State historically is among the nation’s best in packing DeMartin Stadium. This season, MSU is seventh in the nation in attendance, averaging 2,247 fans per game. The Spartans are third in the Big Ten behind Maryland (2,543) and Indiana (2,286). MSU’s largest crowd of the season was the 2,716 fans that packed DeMartin to watch MSU beat Chicago State 4-1 on Sept. 12.

LOOKING AT INDIANA    

Indiana is 3-2-1 this season after losing its Big Ten opener to No. 22 Ohio State, 2-1, in Columbus.

After the loss to No. 22 Ohio State, the Hoosiers fell to 2-2-0 against ranked opponents after defeating No. 9 Akron and No. 20 Butler in the two matches prior.

IU’s Ryan Wittenbrink is seventh in the Big Ten in goals scored with three. Goalkeeper JT Harms is fourth in the league in goals against average (1.36).

SERIES HISTORY AGAINST THE HOOSIERS

Indiana holds a dominating 43-16-6 series lead over Michigan State, including leading 20-7-5 in Bloomington. In the series, the Hoosiers have won the last four meetings and are unbeaten in the last eight outings.

Michigan State’ last win against Indiana was a 3-2 win in Bloomington in 2014. 

Last season in East Lansing, the Hoosiers came away with a 1-0 win. Patrick McDonald’s goal in side the box in the 48th minute was the decider.

 

BIG TEN OPENER

MSU opens B1G play at No. 16 Indiana on Sept. 23. The Spartans are 6-1-2 in their last nine Big Ten openers. After taking on Rutgers in the Big Ten opener the last four seasons, MSU tied Wisconsin 1-1 last season in Madison. 

This is the first time that Michigan State has faced Indiana in the Big Ten opener since a 0-0 overtime tie in Bloomington on Sept. 25. In 2004, the Hoosiers came out on top in the Big Ten opener in East Lansing, 3-1.

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