Thursday, August 15
South Bend, Ind.
7 PM
Michigan State University
at
Notre Dame
Photo by: Derek Blalock
No. 13 Women's Soccer Opens 2024 Season at No. 15 Notre Dame Thursday
8/14/2024 9:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - 13th-ranked Michigan State women's soccer kicks off the 2024 season with a 7 p.m. match at No. 15 Notre Dame Thursday at Notre Dame's Alumni Stadium.
Thursday's season opener will stream on ACC Network Extra, with live stats available on MSUSpartans.com.
KICKING OFF 2024
The Spartans are coming off of another historic season under fourth-year head coach Jeff Hosler, who led MSU to its second-straight Big Ten title and first-ever NCAA Sweet 16 appearance in 2023. MSU ended the season with a 14-5-3 (7-1-2 B1G) record and a No. 12 postseason ranking from the United Soccer Coaches. Hosler enters his fourth season at the helm in East Lansing with an impressive 41-13-9 record with the Green & White. Assistant coaches Gabe Romo and Megan Link also enter their fourth season with the Spartans, while Allison Mack, who spent four years as an assistant at North Dakota State, joins the Spartan coaching staff as an assistant coach.
MSU is led by a trio of All-B1G honorees from 2023 - graduate midfielder Justina Gaynor, junior forward Emerson Sargeant and sophomore midfielder Bella Najera. Gaynor and Najera were named last season's Big Ten Midfielder of the Year and Freshman of the Year, respectively. Gaynor was also named a United Soccer Coaches Player to Watch alongside Providence grad transfer Meg Hughes for 2024, while Gaynor, Najera and graduate midfielder Regan Dalton were named Big Ten Players to Watch. Overall, 18 players return from MSU's 2023 team, while 13 players who started in at least one game last season return. The Spartans add 14 newcomers - 10 freshmen and four transfers.
MSU earned national rankings in both the United Soccer Coaches (No. 13) and TopDrawerSoccer preseason polls (No. 16), marking the second-straight season the Spartans earned spots in preseason polls. MSU was picked to finish third in the league standings behind UCLA and Penn State in the preseason Big Ten Coaches Poll.
SCOUTING NOTRE DAME
The Fighting Irish are led by head coach Nate Norman, who enters his seventh season in South Bend in 2024. Norman holds a 68-38-11 record at Notre Dame. Notre Dame posted a 12-4-4 overall record (7-1-2 ACC) in 2023 and finished second in the ACC while advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Graduate midfielder/forward Ellie Ospeck is Notre Dame's top returning scorer from 2023. She scored 17 points from five goals and seven assists last season. Sophomore goalkeeper Atlee Olofson, who started in goal during the ACC season, held a save percentage of .763 and made 45 saves last season.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Thursday's match will be the 16th all-time between the Spartans and Fighting Irish. Notre Dame holds a 13-2-0 edge in the series, including a 6-1 record in South Bend. MSU and Notre Dame last met last season on Sept. 3 in East Lansing, with Notre Dame earning a 2-1 win. Current senior forward scored the lone goal for the Spartans in that game. The Spartans' only wins in the series came in the first two meetings - Nov. 4, 1988, 3-0, in East Lansing, and Sept. 22, 1989, 3-0, in South Bend.
UP NEXT
MSU hosts Arkansas in its home opener on Thursday, Aug. 22 at DeMartin Stadium for a 7 p.m. kickoff. The game will air nationally on the Big Ten Network.
Thursday's season opener will stream on ACC Network Extra, with live stats available on MSUSpartans.com.
KICKING OFF 2024
The Spartans are coming off of another historic season under fourth-year head coach Jeff Hosler, who led MSU to its second-straight Big Ten title and first-ever NCAA Sweet 16 appearance in 2023. MSU ended the season with a 14-5-3 (7-1-2 B1G) record and a No. 12 postseason ranking from the United Soccer Coaches. Hosler enters his fourth season at the helm in East Lansing with an impressive 41-13-9 record with the Green & White. Assistant coaches Gabe Romo and Megan Link also enter their fourth season with the Spartans, while Allison Mack, who spent four years as an assistant at North Dakota State, joins the Spartan coaching staff as an assistant coach.
MSU is led by a trio of All-B1G honorees from 2023 - graduate midfielder Justina Gaynor, junior forward Emerson Sargeant and sophomore midfielder Bella Najera. Gaynor and Najera were named last season's Big Ten Midfielder of the Year and Freshman of the Year, respectively. Gaynor was also named a United Soccer Coaches Player to Watch alongside Providence grad transfer Meg Hughes for 2024, while Gaynor, Najera and graduate midfielder Regan Dalton were named Big Ten Players to Watch. Overall, 18 players return from MSU's 2023 team, while 13 players who started in at least one game last season return. The Spartans add 14 newcomers - 10 freshmen and four transfers.
MSU earned national rankings in both the United Soccer Coaches (No. 13) and TopDrawerSoccer preseason polls (No. 16), marking the second-straight season the Spartans earned spots in preseason polls. MSU was picked to finish third in the league standings behind UCLA and Penn State in the preseason Big Ten Coaches Poll.
SCOUTING NOTRE DAME
The Fighting Irish are led by head coach Nate Norman, who enters his seventh season in South Bend in 2024. Norman holds a 68-38-11 record at Notre Dame. Notre Dame posted a 12-4-4 overall record (7-1-2 ACC) in 2023 and finished second in the ACC while advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Graduate midfielder/forward Ellie Ospeck is Notre Dame's top returning scorer from 2023. She scored 17 points from five goals and seven assists last season. Sophomore goalkeeper Atlee Olofson, who started in goal during the ACC season, held a save percentage of .763 and made 45 saves last season.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Thursday's match will be the 16th all-time between the Spartans and Fighting Irish. Notre Dame holds a 13-2-0 edge in the series, including a 6-1 record in South Bend. MSU and Notre Dame last met last season on Sept. 3 in East Lansing, with Notre Dame earning a 2-1 win. Current senior forward scored the lone goal for the Spartans in that game. The Spartans' only wins in the series came in the first two meetings - Nov. 4, 1988, 3-0, in East Lansing, and Sept. 22, 1989, 3-0, in South Bend.
UP NEXT
MSU hosts Arkansas in its home opener on Thursday, Aug. 22 at DeMartin Stadium for a 7 p.m. kickoff. The game will air nationally on the Big Ten Network.
Players Mentioned
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