On Friday afternoon, Michigan and Michigan State will meet again and renew their rivalry. On the field, the two teams have had different seasons and have had different degrees of success. None of that will matter though when they take the field against their biggest rival.
Last season in East Lansing, Michigan State defeated Michigan 3-2 in a double overtime thriller. Twice Michigan came from behind to tie the game, but in the end, Abby Barker scored the final goal to pull off the upset.
Every rivalry game is emotional, and the memory of that contest will certainly be on the minds of the players. This year the narrative is somewhat similar. Michigan is ranked and Michigan State has had a few bumps in the road. The game is late in the season and both teams have seniors who have plenty of memories and want to end with a win.
This season, Michigan has been led by a group of seniors who have posted extraordinary numbers. Leading the team in scoring has been fifth year senior Leslie Smith, with 11 goals on the season. This has been her highest scoring season and she currently has 29 career goals. Also leading the team this season has been fifth year senior midfielder Ainsley McCallister, who has been a rock for the team with 16 assists this season and has started every single game. Joining McCallister on the midfield is another rock, grad student Sammy Gray, who has made 67 appearances for the Wolverines. The other two graduating players that Michigan will be saying goodbye to are Lauren Hauge and Emy Guttman, who scored a dramatic game winning goal over Northwestern recently.
While Michigan is in a three way tie for first in the Big 10, in-state rival Michigan State would love nothing more then to spoil the party. Currently Michigan State is 3-4 in conference play and a win here would help them heading into the conference tournament. The Spartans know how to fight hard, six of their eight wins this season have been come from behind victories with plenty of overtime wins and overtime heartbreak as well.
Leading them throughout this crazy season has been senior Abby Barker. The same Abby Barker who crushed the Wolverines' hopes in double overtime last season. This season, Barker has recorded 12 goals and 11 assists and has been the focal point of the Spartans offense. Michigan State has scored 40 goals this season and is averaging 2.67 goals per game. Another senior has been coming in strong for the Spartans this season, with Allie Ahern scoring seven goals on the season. With plenty of seniors playing consistently, and 11 players appearing in every single game, Michigan State will be ready for bring a strong performance against their instate rival.
Although Michigan has dominated the series recently, the game still has an air of excitement to it. Michigan has won three of the last four, but remember that the one loss was a double overtime upset thanks to a strong performance by Michigan State. This game should live up to the expectations when the players hit the field on Friday at 3:30. The game will be shown on the Big 10 Network. Look for the stars to come out when the cameras turn on, as both teams have a group of exceptional seniors who are playing in this great rivalry for the last time.
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