After a split of a two-game road trip, No. 7 Maryland men’s soccer had a big opportunity to add another ranked win to their resume as they hosted No. 19 Michigan State on Friday. 

Instead, Maryland lost its second of the last three matches and its first regular-season loss at home since 2024.

The Terps fell 2-1 to Michigan State for their first loss to the Spartans since 2018. The defeat is Maryland’s third on the year, more than it had in all of 2025. 

The Spartans broke the tie in the 66th minute and it was a back-breaker for the Terps. Defender Will Eby put a cross into the box that found the feet of Andrew Darakdijan, sinking the Terps and giving Michigan State a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

The Terps were playing on just two days’ rest. 

“We never gave up, we fought to the final whistle,” head coach Sasho Cirovski said.

But before that, Maryland looked to stop Michigan State’s momentum. 

The Spartans struck first. A cross by Richie Ludwig found the back of a Maryland player, which bounced into the back of the net, giving Michigan State a 1-0 lead off the Terps second own goal of the season.

Although Maryland kept the pressure on early, mainly attacking from wide areas and putting balls into the box, it couldn’t find the back of the net. Attacks from out wide played a big role in the Terps offense; they had six corners.

That was until the 35th minute, when the Terps finally broke through.

After a quick one-two step by Dennis Kalanzi and Albi Ndrenika, a through ball was played in from the right side towards Said El Eyssami, who smashed it past the keeper to level the match.

Michigan State midfielder Luke Spadafore earned a yellow card for a jersey pull on Ndrenika. In the build-up to Maryland’s goal, another yellow was assessed shortly after to Michigan State forward Richie Ludwig.

While both teams had a few chances near the end of the half, neither squad would manage another goal, and they entered halftime knotted up. The corner flags saw quite a lot of use in the first half, as both teams combined for ten corner kicks in a game mostly played out wide. 

Unfortunately, while the Terps would have a few more chances, including a big chance for forward Rodrigo Neri with less than five minutes remaining, they were unable to find an equalizer and ultimately fell to the Spartans 2-1.

A big reason why Michigan State had so many chances was their dominance on corner kicks. The Spartans had ten corners in this one, compared to the Terps six. Michigan State’s first goal came off of a corner as well.

One important thread across the whole match was the number of mistakes the Terps made in build-up play, as they were unable to keep control of the ball, giving Michigan State plenty of chances, which it capitalized on.

“We coughed up the ball too many times in the midfield today, especially in the second half,” Cirovski said. “Very sloppy.”