Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Welcomes Michigan State to Lakeside Field Saturday
9/23/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 23, 2011
Northwestern (3-3-1, 0-0-0) vs. Michigan State (1-5-1, 0-0-0)
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Lakeside Field
Evanston, Ill. • 7 p.m.
Gametracker: NUSports.com
In-game Twitter updates: @NU_SportsLive
Streaming Video: NUSports.com
Northwestern Game Notes (PDF)
Northwestern hosts Michigan State at Lakeside Field at 7 p.m. Saturday for the Wildcats' Big Ten Conference opener. The Wildcats won their last two contests, shutting out both UC Davis (1-0) and Xavier (2-0) to win last weekend's Lakeside Classic. The last time Northwestern posted back-to-back shutouts was Oct. 20, 2009 (1-0 vs. Loyola Chicago) and Oct. 25, 2009 (2-0 vs. Indiana).
Saturday's game is the first of a six-game Big Ten schedule for Northwestern.
Football at Futbol
Northwestern students and fans are invited to attend a pre-game fan festival beginning at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. NU students will receive a free hot dog, courtesy of Vienna Beef, and a bottle of Coke Zero, courtesy of Coca-Cola, at the student tailgate beginning at 5:45 p.m. The Coke Zero Bags Tournament begins at 6 p.m. and 12 teams will take home their very own Bags set. There will also be face painting and members of the 2011 Northwestern football team will be available for autographs up until the soccer match begins.
Ritter Tabbed Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week
After scoring two goals at the Lakeside Classic, Northwestern junior midfielder Chris Ritter (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier) was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week Monday. Ritter tallied the lone goal in Friday's 1-0 victory over UC Davis and a first-half goal on a penalty kick in the Wildcats' 2-0 win over previously undefeated Xavier. Ritter is the first NU player to earn the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor since Matt Eliason on Oct. 26, 2009.
Scouting Michigan State
Michigan State is 1-5-1 so far and has played in close contests all year. Three of MSU's games have gone into overtime, including two double-overtime games, and aside from the Spartans' 3-0 win over New Hampshire, all of their games have been decided by one goal or a tie.
Last Time vs. the Spartans
Last year, the Wildcats traveled to East Lansing and fell 2-0 to the Spartans. The two teams have split (2-2) the last four meetings, with each team winning on its home field. Northwestern defeated MSU at home in 2007 and 2009 while the Spartans recorded victories in East Lansing in 2008 and 2010.
Up Next
The Wildcats return to non-conference action and will visit in-state rival DePaul at noon on Wednesday, Sept. 28.
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