Michigan State rallies past Minnesota in Big Ten women's soccer quarterfinal, 2-1
EAST LANSING — It wasn't easy, but the Michigan State women's soccer team is advancing to the Big Ten tournament semifinals.
The Spartans, the Big Ten's regular-season champions and the tournament's top seed, trailed at halftime, 1-0, before rallying for a pair of second-half goals in a 2-1 victory over Minnesota at DeMartin Soccer Stadium on Sunday.
The Spartans, who allowed the fewest amount of goals in the Big Ten season, found themselves trailing by a goal less than five minutes into the game and still trailed the Golden Gophers 1-0 at halftime.
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MSU coach Jeff Hosler emphasized that his team needed to be sharper in the second half, and it was the players that came off the bench who made the difference.
"I think Zivana (Labovic) and Mia (Hansen) really gave us huge lifts in the way they played," Hosler said. "We have a saying that you don't have to get ready if you stay ready, and Z (Labovic) exemplifies that."
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The biggest help off the bench came from sophomore Jordyn Wickes, who entered and scored both goals for MSU in the second half. One of the goals was assisted by Labovic, who came off the bench towards the later part of the first half.
"In a day where some of our elite players maybe had their worst game of the season, others picked them up," Hosler said. "I think that shows a lot about the maturity of this group, the confidence they have and what this team is all about."
Wickes is second in scoring with seven goals and two assists, only behind Lauren DeBeau, who leads MSU with 10 goals and three assists.
Throughout the season, MSU has frequently utilized its bench more than their opponents and Sunday was no different. The Minnesota Gophers used five subs compared to MSU's eight. As a result, the Spartans have had 14 different players score goals.
"Everybody obviously wants to be that starter," Wickes said. "There's definitely things I learned by sitting there and watching Camryn Evans and Lauren DeBeau kill it up top before I walk in, but there's a lot of confidence and a lot of people behind me."
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The win was MSU's first in the Big Ten tournament since 2011 when the Spartans advanced out of its first game on penalties before falling to eventual champion Illinois.
The Spartans, who are ranked No. 6 in the nation, will next travel to Columbus, Ohio, for a semifinal matchup at 2 p.m. Thursday against No. 4-seed Nebraska, which shut out fifth-seeded Ohio State 4-0 in its quarterfinal. The Spartans and Cornhuskers haven't met since 2021 when they played to a 2-2 tie.
Veronica Bolanos is a news assistant at the Lansing State Journal. Contact her at VBolanos@lsj.com or 517.267.0460. Follow her on Twitter @BVeronica19.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU women's soccer advances to the Big Ten tournament semifinals.
