Preview: Maryland women’s soccer looks to snap skid against Michigan State

After enduring another painful Big Ten loss to Wisconsin, Maryland women’s soccer (2-4-5) returns home to host Michigan State (8-1-3) as the Terps look to end their three game losing streak.

The Terps enter still looking to recapture the same fire that helped them win their Big Ten opener against Michigan. While each of its conference losses were against formidable opponents, Maryland has proved it can hang with the best, hanging even with then-No. 4 Rutgers for 87 minutes.

In its most recent match, Maryland traveled to Madison to take on No. 23 Wisconsin. The Badgers controlled the start of the match but it was the Terps who capitalized on their first drive of the game. Mia Isaac dished the ball to Alina Stahl, who buried a goal at the 9:44 mark to put Maryland on top early. 

Isaac registered her first assist of the season on the goal, and the score was Stahl’s fourth. Stahl leads the team in goals and her two assists give her a team-high 10 points.

The Terps kept their foot on the gas in the minutes that followed as the goal ignited the Maryland offense to create more opportunities downfield. Wisconsin’s defense held up, creating a back-and-forth end to the half. 

Wisconsin striked first in the second half with two goals in a ten-minute span to take a 2-1 lead. Neither side found the back of the net again, marking the second time in three games the Terps let up multiple goals and lost after scoring first.

Maryland and its opponents have scored the same amount of goals this season as the Terps have remained close in every match. The Terps’ zero goal margin ranks second-worst in the conference, ahead of only Indiana.

Unfortunately for Maryland, Michigan State enters riding a hot streak of its own. The Spartans haven’t lost since September 4, going 4-0-2 in that span.

Michigan State’s most recent win came against No. 6 Penn State at State College, the first time the Spartans had bested the Nittany Lions on the road in program history.

The match saw the teams go shot-for-shot, with both teams failing to break through in the first 45 minutes. The Spartans shot five times compared to the Nittany Lions’ seven, with Michigan State goalkeeper Lauren Kozal showcasing her 0.5 goals-per-game average.

Michigan State opened the scoring in the second half when Justina Gaynor scored her third goal of the season 56 minutes in, and Jordyn Wicks connected for her fourth score twelve minutes later off an Emerson Sargeant assist.

The Nittany Lions scored a late goal and attempted two more shots before time expired to keep the Spartans on their toes, but it wasn’t enough to stop Michigan State from stealing one on the road in the programs’ 30th matchup.

The win against a ranked opponent was especially impressive as it let the Spartans flex their depth. 

Camryn Evans and Lauren DeBeau lead Michigan State with six goals each as the leaders on the Spartans offense. The Spartans offense as a collective is arguably the most aggressive in the conference as they rank first in shots (210) and shots on goal (94).

Maryland holds a lifetime record of 2-2-3 against the Spartans.

Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Sunday and will take place at the DeMartin Soccer Complex in East Lansing.