EAST LANSING, Mich. – After a scoreless first half, four second-half goals led to a 2-2 draw for Michigan State women’s soccer against No. 15 Xavier Sunday afternoon at DeMartin Stadium.
Playing their third top-15 opponent of the season, the Spartans move to 3-0-2 with the result, while Xavier moves to 5-0-1.
Sophomore midfielder Bella Najera and junior defender Maggie Illig notched goals for the Spartans. Najera’s goal was her second of the season, while Illig earned her first of the season and third of her career. Graduate midfielder Justina Gaynor assisted on both Spartan goals and graduate forward Mackenzie Anthony tallied an assist on Illig’s goal for her fifth point of the season.
Xavier held a narrow 12-11 edge in the shot count, including a 9-5 shots on goal advantage. MSU goalkeeper Kaitlyn Parks made a season-high eight saves in a strong 90-minute showing in goal to earn the tying decision.
The Spartans came out strong with a dominant display on the attacking end through the first 15 minutes. Graduate forward Meg Hughes forced a Xavier save in the 14th minute before a trio of Spartan shots went high. The Musketeers failed to get a shot off in the first 18 minutes thanks to a strong defensive performance by the Spartans but began to heat up in the following 10 minutes, forcing three saves by Parks.
Despite the Spartans controlling most of the possession throughout the remainder of the half, neither team was able to generate any threatening chances, leaving the game scoreless as the teams…
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