B1G Champion, Sixth-Ranked Spartans Host No. 14 Rutgers in Regular Season Finale on BTN

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The 2022 Big Ten Regular Season Champion and sixth-ranked Michigan State women's soccer team prepares for its regular season finale on Sunday, Oct. 23, as the Spartans welcome No. 14 Rutgers to DeMartin Stadium for a nationally televised contest beginning at 2 p.m. on Big Ten Network.

HEAD COACH JEFF HOSLER SAID…
"Obviously, the emotion that went into Thursday night carried over, even into Friday. That's all natural to expect things like that. You expect that kind of carryover after a huge life-changing moment. I think we did a good job with our training session on Saturday. I think our team is focused in terms of preparation and how we have to execute. The good part of it for us is that Rutgers plays a similar style as Ohio State. We've seen those ideas and have talked through them, and there is a level of comfort to that. But Rutgers is really, really good. They are very dangerous going forward, and I imagine they will be playing with an edge."

CHAMPIONSHIP CALIBER
For the first time in program history, and in only the second season under head coach Jeff Hosler, Michigan State garnered its first outright regular season Big Ten title. The Spartans had previously finished atop the league table in 1994, but the regular season standings were used only for conference tournament seeding. The 1994 B1G Tournament winner, Wisconsin, is the only officially recognized champion from that season. MSU's league title marked the first championship for Michigan State Athletics under the direction of second-year Director of Athletics, Alan Haller. The women's soccer program took home the first outright Big Ten Championship for any Spartan Athletics program since women's golf earned the 2020-21 league title.

KICKIN' IT
In Michigan State's last game out, the No. 6 Spartans notched a historic 1-0 road victory over the No. 17 Ohio State Buckeyes that clinched MSU's first outright Big Ten crown. MSU improved to 13-1-2 overall in 2022 with an 8-0-1 mark against Big Ten Conference opposition this year. With its eighth conference victory, Michigan State set a new program record in the category. The previous MSU record for single-season B1G wins was set in the 2011 campaign, when the Spartans published a 7-4 mark. Spartan leading scorer and senior forward Lauren DeBeau booked the game's only score in the 44th minute, as an OSU miscommunication led to a wide-open net for the Green & White goal.

WRESTLING WITH RUTGERS
Under the guidance of ninth-year head coach Mike O'Neill, Rutgers heads to the Banks of the Red Cedar boasting a 13-2-2 overall record and a 5-2-2 mark in Big Ten Conference play. The Scarlet Knights were the defending B1G Champions prior to MSU's historic result Thursday. Rutgers was picked to finish at the top of the conference standings in a preseason poll of the league's coaches. A defending College Cup participant, Rutgers started the year on a nine-game win streak before having it snapped by rival Penn State. Junior midfielder Sam Kroeger and junior forward Allison Lowrey are tied for the team lead in scoring (18 points) and goals registered (seven). Graduate goalkeeper Meagan McClelland manages the duties between the posts for the Scarlet Knights, allowing 13 goals against 39 saves for a save percentage of .750.

STORY OF THE SERIES: RUTGERS
Michigan State and Rutgers prepare for the 10th all-time meeting between the two programs on Sunday afternoon, as the Scarlet Knights seek to extend their perfect 9-0-0 record in the series. All but one of the nine previous contests were closely contested, with Rutgers escaping by only a one-goal margin. The Scarlet Knights needed overtime to secure wins in 2018 and spring 2021. The Spartans are 0-3 against Rutgers at home. Last season's meeting between the two squads in Piscataway, New Jersey, saw the Spartans yield a 1-0 result. Rutgers' lone goal was scored by Allison Lowrey, with an assist from Riley Tiernan.

DEMARTIN GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Click the link here to be redirected to the ticket purchasing page for Sunday afternoon's blockbuster regular season finale. General admission tickets are available now online and at the gate beginning one hour before kick. Tickets for individual adults are available for $5, while individual youth and senior tickets are available for $3. All Michigan State students will be granted free admission to the game with a valid MSU ID. Children under the age of 8 will be admitted for free. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 1-800-GO-STATE. Gates will open one hour before the start of the game.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
Sunday afternoon's Big Ten regular season finale will be broadcast to a national television audience on Big Ten Network, with Dean Linke and Jenny Manny on the call. Authenticated subscribers can access the live simulcast of each game via the Fox Sports app on their computers, mobile phones, tablets, smart TVs and other connected devices. Live stats via StatBroadcast are available here.

FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State women's soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan women's soccer team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_WSoccer.

B1G Champion, Sixth-Ranked Spartans Host No. 14 Rutgers in Regular Season Finale on BTN

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Players Mentioned

Lauren DeBeau