Michigan State: Kylie Stannard and Ben Pirmann helped lead the Spartans to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, but Michigan State played to a 0-0 draw before losing 3-2 in penalty kicks to Maryland on Friday. Despite the loss, the Spartans (4-2-2 Big Ten, 11-4-5 overall) pieced together a superb season and earned the third overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.
They’ll play their first game on Nov. 23 against the winner of the Oakland/Kentucky matchup. The Spartans will kick off at 1 p.m. in East Lansing, Mich.
Saginaw Valley State: The Cardinals began their quest for a D-II championship on Nov. 16 in a tilt against Northwood University. Craig Neal netted two goals, and Aleksander Isaevski had two assists in Saginaw Valley State’s 5-2 victory. Michael Lamb also added a goal to the stat sheet in the 58th minute.
All three DCFC players made the start for the Cardinals, while Zach Vasold was listed as a substitute for the match. Looking ahead, SVSU (9-3-2 GLIAC, 14-4-2) will play in the Round of 16 against Quincy on Nov. 21. The start time has yet to be determined.
Western Michigan: The Broncos season ended on Nov. 14 after their upset bid fell just short in a 2-1 loss to Akron. Leading in the 70th minute, Western Michigan seemed poised for a well-earned victory, but the Zips were awarded two penalty kicks within five minutes of each other and they converted both. Sean Hazen made the start on the back line, and Connor Furgason was listed as a substitute for the match. The Broncos finish the season with a respectable 8-7-4 record.
Oakland: The Grizzlies had one memorable weekend in which they captured the Horizon League Tournament championship with a pair of 2-1 wins. On Thursday, Oakland edged out a double-overtime victory against Cleveland State before beating Wright State in the tournament final on Saturday. Joey Tinnion, Raphael Reynolds and Shawn Lawson started both games for the Grizzlies. Tinnion netted the first goal of Saturday’s match in the fifth minute, and Chase Jabbori later entered as a substitute in the second half.
With the conference title in hand, Oakland (5-0-3 Horizon, 9-6-3) earned its first NCAA Tournament birth since 2010. The Grizzlies will play at Kentucky on Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. for a chance to face off against Michigan State in the second round on Nov. 23.
Detroit: The Titans lost to Wright State on Thursday, 2-0, in the Horizon League semifinals. Matt Ybarra led the team with two shots on goal, andCameron Roberts earned a spot in the starting 11. Detroit finishes the year with a 6-2 conference record and an overall mark of 9-7-4.
Coastal Carolina: Bret Mollon and the rest of the Chanticleers (7-1-1 Big South, 15-5-1) coaching staff enjoyed a great string of success in this weekend’s Big South Tournament. Coastal Carolina beat Longwood and High Point by scores of 2-1 and 4-1, respectively, to advance to the championship match. Against Radford, the Chanticleers eked out a 1-0 victory on Sunday. With the win, Coastal Carolina earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament and will host Florida Gulf Coast in a first-round matchup on Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. The winner of that game will advance to play Clemson on Nov. 23 at a time that has yet to be determined.
