Lansing Sun

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - 13th-ranked Michigan State women's soccer team will begin the 2024 season with a match against No. 15 Notre Dame on Thursday at 7 p.m. The game will take place at Notre Dame's Alumni Stadium and will be streamed on ACC Network Extra, with live stats available on MSUSpartans.com.

The Spartans are entering this season after a notable year under fourth-year head coach Jeff Hosler. Last season, Hosler led the team to its second consecutive Big Ten title and its first NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. The Spartans concluded the previous season with a record of 14-5-3 (7-1-2 B1G) and achieved a No. 12 postseason ranking from the United Soccer Coaches. Hosler's tenure in East Lansing has been marked by an impressive record of 41-13-9.

Assistant coaches Gabe Romo and Megan Link are also returning for their fourth seasons, while Allison Mack joins the coaching staff as an assistant after four years at North Dakota State.

Michigan State's squad includes three All-Big Ten honorees from last year: graduate midfielder Justina Gaynor, junior forward Emerson Sargeant, and sophomore midfielder Bella Najera. Gaynor was named Big Ten Midfielder of the Year, while Najera earned Freshman of the Year honors last season. Both players were recognized as United Soccer Coaches Players to Watch for this season alongside Providence graduate transfer Meg Hughes. Additionally, Gaynor, Najera, and graduate midfielder Regan Dalton were named Big Ten Players to Watch.

The team returns 18 players from last year's roster, including 13 who started in at least one game. They also welcome 14 newcomers—10 freshmen and four transfers.

MSU has been ranked No. 13 by United Soccer Coaches and No. 16 by TopDrawerSoccer in preseason polls for the second consecutive year and is projected to finish third in the Big Ten standings behind UCLA and Penn State according to the preseason Big Ten Coaches Poll.

Notre Dame enters this match under head coach Nate Norman who is in his seventh season with a record of 68-38-11 at Notre Dame. Last season, Notre Dame finished with a record of 12-4-4 (7-1-2 ACC), finishing second in the ACC and advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

Graduate midfielder/forward Ellie Ospeck is Notre Dame’s top returning scorer from last year with five goals and seven assists totaling 17 points. Sophomore goalkeeper Atlee Olofson had a save percentage of .763 with 45 saves during last season’s ACC play.

Thursday's match marks the sixteenth meeting between Michigan State and Notre Dame; Notre Dame leads the series with a record of 13-2-0 overall and holds a dominant home record against MSU at South Bend (6-1). The teams last met on September 3rd in East Lansing where Notre Dame secured a narrow victory (2-1).

Following this opener, Michigan State will host Arkansas for their home opener on Thursday, August 22nd at DeMartin Stadium which will be nationally broadcasted on Big Ten Network.