Lansing Sun

Michigan State University celebrated a significant victory over Ohio State University with a 4-1 win on Saturday, completing a series sweep. This win marked Adam Nightingale's 50th victory as the head coach of the Spartans, making him the fastest to reach this milestone in the program's history.

The Spartans now hold a record of 7-1-0 for the season and 2-0-0 in Big Ten play. The team handed Ohio State their first two losses of the season, marking another successful start to their conference campaign. Michigan State has started this season better than any since 2007-08.

In Saturday's game, MSU overcame an early deficit caused by a power-play goal from Ohio State's Damien Carfagna. The Spartans responded with goals from Gavin O'Connell and Shane Vansaghi just over a minute apart in the second period. Isaac Howard extended MSU's lead in the third period before Daniel Russell sealed the game with an empty-net goal.

Ohio State goalkeeper Logan Terness made 36 saves during the match, while Trey Augustine stopped 29 shots for Michigan State. Despite holding an early lead in shots on goal, Ohio State was unable to maintain their advantage.

MSU continues its homestand next weekend against Notre Dame for another two-game series.

The weekend victories not only highlight Adam Nightingale’s coaching achievements but also extend Michigan State’s home sellout streak to 23 consecutive games against Big Ten opponents since January 2023.

Gavin O'Connell scored his first goal of the season and assisted on Howard's third-period goal. Isaac Howard recorded his fourth multiple-point game of the season, tying for team lead in assists with Maxim Štrbák. Daniel Russell secured his sixth goal of the season during this match.

The Spartans have extinguished most power plays against them recently and maintained strong performances throughout both games against Ohio State.