Saad Goal Sends Michigan Past Spartans, Into Big Ten Tournament Semis

Thursday, November 11

State College, Pa.

Noon

Michigan

12-4-3

Michigan State

11-7-1

Team	1	2	Final F
Michigan State	0	1	1
Michigan	0	2	2

Saad Goal Sends Michigan Past Spartans, Into Big Ten Tournament Semis

11/11/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer

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By: Jessica Poole

Site: State College, Pa. (Jeffrey Field)
Event: Big Ten Tournament (First Round)
Score: Michigan 2, Michigan State 1
Records: U-M (12-4-3), MSU (11-7-1)
Next U-M Game: Friday, Nov. 12 -- vs. Wisconsin - Big Ten Tournament Semifinals (State College, Pa.), 1 p.m.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Freshman forward Soony Saad (Dearborn, Mich./Dearborn) tallied his team-leading 16th goal of the season and his fourth game-winner to lead the University of Michigan men's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over in-state rival Michigan State in the opening round of the 2010 Big Ten Tournament on Thursday (Nov. 11) at Jeffrey Field. The win places the Wolverines in the semifinals for the first time since the 2008 season and the sixth time in program history.

Celebrating Soony Saad's (8) game-winner

Saad broke a nearly 18-minute 1-1 deadlock between the Wolverines and Spartans with his fourth goal on a free kick this season. The Wolverines were awarded a free kick just outside of the 18-yard box and Saad lined up with brother Hamoody Saad (Dearborn, Mich./Dearborn) to take the kick. Soony blasted the set piece into the right side of the net to give the Wolverines the game-winner and a spot in the semifinals. Aside from Saad's tally, forward Justin Meram (Shelby Township, Mich./Eisenhower) also scored for the Wolverines and Latif Alashe (Northville, Mich./Northville) picked up an assist in the win. Goalkeeper Chris Blais (Seattle, Wash./Kennedy Memorial) made one save and picked up his 23rd career victory.

The Spartans struck first in the 56th minute of action after the two teams played a scoreless first half. Michigan State's Ruben Bega scored for the Spartans to give MSU a 1-0 advantage. U-M defender Chase Tennant (Rochester, Mich./Rochester) then stymied another attack to keep the Spartans from taking a two-goal advantage.

Michigan did not waste any time getting back in the game as Meram picked up his 10th goal of the season at 61:44 to tie the game at 1-1 midway through the half. The Wolverines played with a man down after Meram's equalizer as he was issued his second yellow card of the game and sent off the field. From that moment on, the momentum shifted in favor of the Wolverines. Despite being a man down, Michigan was able to attack the Michigan State defense and create some dangerous opportunities both down the sidelines as well as straight up the middle leading to Soony Saad's game-winning goal in the 78th minute of action.

The win sets up a semifinal showdown with Wisconsin, which advanced to the semifinal with a 5-4 shootout win over Ohio State. The game will air live on the Big Ten Network on Friday (Nov. 12) at 1 p.m. at Penn State's Jeffrey Field.

GAME SUMMARY

By Periods	1	2	F
Michigan State	0	1	1
Michigan	0	2	2

Scoring, Time (Assist)
2nd -- MSU, Ruben Bega, 55:32 (Cyrus Saydee)
2nd -- U-M, Justin Meram, 61:44 (Latif Alashe)
2nd -- U-M, Soony Saad, 77:49 (unassisted)

Shots: U-M 15, MSU 10
Shots on Goal: U-M 5, MSU 2
Saves: U-M 1 (Chris Blais 1), MSU 2 (Avery Steinlege 3)
Corner Kicks: U-M 3, MSU 1
Fouls: U-M 9, MSU 14
Cards: U-M, Justin Meram, 19:48 (Yellow); MSU, Nosa Iyoha, 31:17 (Yellow); U-M, Latif Alashe, 48:59 (Yellow); U-M, Alex Wood, 56:05 (Yellow); U-M, Hamoody Saad, 57:12 (Yellow); MSU, Spencer Thompson, 57:12 (Yellow); U-M, Justin Meram, 61:44 (Red).

NOTES

• Michigan moves to 4-9-1 all-time against Michigan State. This is the first time Michigan has defeated Michigan State twice in one season in program history. The Wolverines advance to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since the 2008 season.

• Justin Meram extended his scoring streak to three consecutive games. He has tallied five goals in U-M's last five games.

• Soony Saad scored his fourth goal this season on a free kick. Soony and brother Hamoody have combined for seven goals this season on free kicks.

• Michigan moved to 5-5-1 in opening-round action in the Big Ten Tournament. The Wolverines have advanced past the opening round six times in the 11 years.

• Soony Saad has scored a goal in seven of Michigan's last eight games and recorded his 16th goal of the year in today's game. Saad has the most goals of any freshman in the nation and entering the week was second in the nation in scoring.

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Steve Burns
On the game ... "The game started and ended well for us -- and it was pretty darn good in the middle too. I'm proud of how our guys fought through the adversity to get the win. It was a strong tournament intensity performance by the entire team."

On the ebb and flow of the game ... "Michigan State is a very good team that can hurt you in transition. We are a very good team that can establish possession and pull a defense apart. I think these two styles led to high drama and it felt like two heavyweight fighters going toe-to-toe looking to both deliver the knockout. On the day, I thought we were deserving of the result and now we move on to get ready for the next one."