No. 12 Maryland men’s soccer trailed Michigan State by one goal, deep into the second half on Saturday night. In a game that was largely controlled by the Terps, the scoreline wasn’t telling the full story.
With time at the essence, a moment of brilliance from forward Collin Griffith helped pull the Terps level. Then, in the 83rd minute, Max Rogers’ long pass across the face of the goal bounced perfectly to Sadam Masereka, who got free at the back post for the close-range finish.
Masereka’s goal — his first for Maryland — sealed a tenacious, 2-1, victory for the Terps at Ludwig Field. After not winning a conference game last year, Maryland now sits atop the Big Ten halfway through the 2024 league campaign.
Michigan State (4-5-2, 3-2-0 Big Ten) earned the game’s first legitimate chance in the fourth minute.
Slightly against the early run of play, Shion Soga and Jake Spadafora darted forward with just one Maryland (6-1-4, 4-0-1 Big Ten) defender back.
The two Spartans initially ran side-by-side, but Soga — who didn’t have the ball — broke slightly left, causing the Terps’ defender to follow him. Soga’s clever off-ball movement gave Spadafora enough room to work a shot from the top of the box.
Spadafora attempted to beat Laurin Mack with a grass-scraping shot, but the Maryland goalkeeper dove quickly and stuck out a strong right hand to deny the Spartan forward.
Spadafora had an even better chance to get on the scoresheet when a misplayed back pass sent him through on goal in the 10th minute. With just Mack to beat, the junior aimed for the far post but couldn’t wrap his foot around the ball. Maryland evaded disaster as Spadafora’s shot shaved the post and rolled wide.
The Terps seemingly woke up following the close call, but couldn’t turn their chances into goals. Colin Griffith’s 31st-minute header was sent straight at Michigan State shot-stopper Zac Kelly and was the Terps’ only on-target effort of the half.
The two teams went to the break stuck in a 0-0 deadlock.
With the first four shots of the second half, Maryland looked to be on the cusp of scoring. But the opposite happened.
Aside from the first ten minutes, most of the match was played in Michigan State’s half of the pitch. The Spartans finally broke out and got a shot on goal in the 58th minute. Mack calmly pushed the attempt out of play, setting up a corner for the Spartans — their first since the fourth minute.
Corner-taker Jeremey Sharp sent his cross to the front post, where it was headed on by Michigan State’s Will Eby. The glancing header left Mack with no chance of making a save, as the ball floated in at the back post.
Despite the goal, Maryland remained unphased.
The Terps stayed on the front foot and it paid off in the 73rd minute, as Griffith curled a sublime equalizer into the top corner with his favored right foot.
Griffith nearly netted another in the 81st minute. Much to the dismay of the home crowd though, the effort was denied by the post.
The woodwork was much kinder to Maryland when Masereka scored to make it 2-1, just two minutes later. His final touch made solid contact with the underside of the crossbar, before deflecting beyond the goal line.
The late goal ultimately stood as Maryland’s winner, but the final minutes of the match weren’t necessarily clean. Tensions from the match’s early stages boiled over in the 88th minute, as Soga took exception to a hard tackle from defensive midfielder Chris Steinleitner.
Soga quickly got back on his feet and b-lined to Steinleitner, who was facing the opposite direction. The Spartan forward pushed him to the ground, sparking a scuffle between the two teams at midfield. Soga was shown a red card once the two teams eventually separated.
Maryland drained the final minutes off the clock to seal a crucial conference victory.
The Terps’ longest road trip of the season lies ahead, as they travel to the Pacific Northwest to face Washington on Friday.
