MSU Men's Soccer Begins Homestand, Hosting Western Michigan Tuesday

Oct. 12, 2015

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's soccer returns home for a pair of home games this week. The Spartans start the week against in-state rival Western Michigan on Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 4 p.m. at DeMartin Stadium. MSU will finish the week with Senior Day against Penn State on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. The game against the Nittany Lions will be televised on the Big Ten Network.

MSU Men's Soccer Notes

The Spartans are currently 5-4-2, after a 0-0 tie against Wisconsin on Oct. 10. MSU is undefeated in Big Ten action with a 1-0-2 record with a win against Rutgers and ties against Maryland and Wisconsin.

Western Michigan is currently 6-2-2 overall and 0-1-0 in MAC play with a loss to West Virginia.

GETTING TO KNOW THE SPARTANS
• The Spartans have historically dominated Western Michigan, holding a 30-2-8 record over their in-state foes. MSU improved to 17-1-4 against MSU at DeMartin Stadium last season, defeating the Broncos 4-0 on Oct. 15, 2014.

• A total of six freshmen, Ryan Sierakowski, Connor Corrigan, DeJuan Jones, Robbie Cort and Hunter Barone have made their Spartan debuts so far this season. Sierakowski has started all 11 matches, while Corrigan started in nine matches. Jones has appeared in all 11 games, starting three of the last four games. Sierakowski leads the team with three goals, two assists for eight points, while Jones has one goal.

• Senior goalkeeper Zach Bennett's shutout against Wisconsin Saturday was his sixth of the season and improved his career mark to 34. Bennett is now tied for first in the Big Ten in shutouts and has helped MSU reach No. 1 in the conference in goals allowed per game with 0.78.

• Zach Bennett is first in the nation among active Division I goalkeepers in career complete shutouts with 33 UC Irvine's Jack Binks was second with 31, while Eric Klenofsky Monmouth has 27. He is also fourth in saves with 277, behind Eduardo Cortes of IUPUI (333).

• Nine different Spartans have earned a point so far this season. Senior Jason Stacy, junior Jerome Cristobal, senior Zach Carroll, sophomore Ken Krolicki, senior Blake Skamiera, freshman Ryan Sierakowski and freshman DeJuan Jones have all found the back of the net.

DYNAMIC DEFENSE
• Michigan State has now given up only two goals in five road games this season for an average of 0.20 per game.

• The Spartans have given up the fewest goals in the Big Ten (9) for an average of 0.82 per game. Bennett's goals against average of 0.79 ranks first in the conference.

SCOUTING THE BRONCOS
• Western Michigan is 6-2-2 heading into Tuesday's match and fell to West Virginia in its MAC opener Oct. 9.

• The Broncos are led by senior Nick Wysong, who has four goals and four assists in nine matches this season. Brandon Bye and Carlos Suarez each have two goals and two assists for WMU, while Edu Jimenez and Greg Timmer have played well in the midfield.

• Redshirt sophomore Drew Shepherd has started eight matches in goal for Western Michigan, tallying a 5-0-1 record with a 0.15 goals against average and .947 save percentage.

JONESING FOR A GOAL
• Freshman DeJuan Jones has played in all 11 of the Spartans games this season. The East Lansing native has started three of the last four games, which were MSU wins at Rutgers and Bowling Green and a tie against Wisconsin. Jones finally found the back of the net in MSU's 1-0 win against Bowling Green scoring the only goal of the match for his first game-winning goal.

UP NEXT
• The Spartans will host a pair of games this week. Michigan State will host in-state rival Western Michigan on Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 4 p.m. MSU will conclude the week with a Big Ten matchup against Penn State on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. on the Big Ten Network. The game with the Nittany Lions will be MSU's third game on BTN at home this season.

AGAINST THE BEST
• MSU is now 0-4 against top-ranked teams since 2009 after losing a hard-fought battle to Creighton, 1-0, on Sept. 13. Prior to last week, the last time that the Spartans faced the No. 1 team in the country was Nov. 5, 2013 when MSU fell to top-ranked Notre Dame, 2-0, at DeMartin Stadium. On Sept. 3, 2012, top-ranked UConn beat Michigan State 1-0 in East Lansing. On Nov. 4, 2009, MSU also took on No. 1 Akron on the road. The Zips stopped the Spartans, 2-1, on a late penalty kick.

LOOKING AROUND THE B1G
• The Spartans are tied for first in the Big Ten in fewest goals allowed with Michigan, allowing on nine goals so far this season. MSU is first in goals against average (0.78). Freshman Ryan Sierakowski is tied for eighth in goals with three. In B1G games, Sierakowski is tied for first with seven points and three goals.

SPARTANS IN THE PROS
• Former Michigan State men's soccer players Fatai Alashe and Jay Chapman were both named to the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying teams for the United State and Canada, respectively.

Both the U.S. and Canadian teams will be competing in the 2015 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship, which will be held Oct. 1-13, as both countries will look to secure a berth to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Alashe is the first former Spartan men's soccer player to wear the U.S. National Team crest in an Olympic qualifier since MSU legend Buzz Demling in the early 1970s, playing on the 1972 Olympic team. Demling ended with five total caps with the U.S. National Team, last earning one in 1975. Several other MSU men's soccer players have played for the national team prior to Demling, but none since. Alashe's former teammate Jay Chapman, who now plays for Toronto FC, will compete for Team Canada. Chapman has played in 10 matches this season for Toronto FC, starting one.

THE ZACH ATTACK
• Senior defender Zach Carroll scored the game-winning goal for MSU against West Virginia on Sept. 7. He has two of the four game-winning goals this season for MSU. It was his seventh career goal and third career game-winner in a Spartan uniform. Carroll, a preseason Big Ten Player to Watch nominee, was also part of a strong back line that has six shutouts this season.

• Senior goalkeeper Zach Bennett is third all-time in career saves at MSU with 277. He is now 10 saves away from T.J. Lieckfelt (1997-00) who had 287 during his Spartan career. Reid Friedrichs (1993-96), a teammate of head coach Damon Rensing, is the all-time save leader with 363.

• With a win against Niagara on Sept. 4, senior goalkeeper Zach Bennett took over the Michigan State record for career wins. In his four seasons in net for the Spartans, he has 40 wins, passing Reid Friedrichs, who had 36, for the school record.

RENSING SAYS
• "First, it is just about recovery. Western played on Friday and had an extra days rest. We had a tough Big Ten game against Wisconsin. So, we just have to recover and collect ourselves and go back and try to get a result against a very good Western Michigan team," MSU head coach Damon Rensing said.

EARLY HONORS
• Three Spartan seniors were named Big Ten preseason Players to watch. Forward Jason Stacy, defender Zach Carroll and goalkeeper Zach Bennett were honored by the conference. Stacy is the top returning scorer for the Spartans with four goals and seven assists for 15 points. Carroll was part of the tough MSU defense that allowed only 19 goals last season, while Bennett set the MSU record for single-season shutouts with 12 in 2014.

• Seniors Zach Bennett, Zach Carroll and Jason Stacy were both named to of the top 20 players in the Big Ten by www.topdrawersoccer.com. Bennett was picked sixth, while Carroll was selected seventh. Stacy was selected No. 19. The top player in the conference was Indiana's Tanner Thompson. • Michigan State men's soccer was picked fourth in the Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll. The Spartans ended the 2014 campaign with a 12-5-6 overall record and 4-2-2 mark in Big Ten play. Defending Big Ten champion Maryland was picked first, concluding the 2014 campaign with a 13-6-3 record (5-2-1 conference record), and claiming the Big Ten Tournament title. Indiana checked in at No. 2 in the preseason poll, followed by Penn State at No. 3. The Spartans were No. 4, while Ohio State came in at No. 5. Northwestern was picked No. 6 followed by Michigan (No. 7), Rutgers (No. 8) and Wisconsin (No. 9).

HEAD COACH Damon Rensing
• In seven years, head coach Damon Rensing has compiled an impressive 74-48-29 record (.586). Rensing was named MSU's head coach designate on Aug. 14, 2008 after Baum decided to make 2008 his final season as head coach.

In his first six years as head coach, the Spartans have made five NCAA tournament campaigns, including a run to the Elite Eight in 2013 and 2014. The Spartans ended the 2014 season with a 12-5-6 record overall and were 4-2-2 in Big Ten action.

This season, Rensing added Cale Wassermann to his staff. Wassermann comes to East Lansing after four successful seasons as the head coach at Saginaw Valley State University. In 2014, Saginaw Valley State reached the Division II NCAA Tournament Round of 16, ending the season with a 14-5-2 record. Assistant coach and former Spartan Ben Pirmann returns the MSU bench for fifth season. Paul Gilbert is also back for his second season as a volunteer assistant coach, working with the goalkeepers.

FOLLOWING THE SPARTANS
• There are lots of great ways to follow the soccer program - as well as all 25 of MSU's varsity sports - other than gameday. Videos, previews, and game recaps can be found at www.MSUSpartans.com, while coverage of the team on twitter can be found at @MSUMSoccer and @MSU_Athletics. On facebook, "like" us at www.facebook.com/MSUmsoccer.