UIC's season came to an end in snowy East Lansing Thursday night, as Michigan State scored two early goals and went on to a 2-0 win in an NCAA Tournament first round match.  With goals in the sixth and 19^th minutes, the Spartans (11-4-4) gave themselves the upper hand and they played efficiently with the lead the rest of the match.

"My compliments go to Michigan State.  They were efficient defensively and very efficient offensively," head coach Sean Phillips said.  "Those are signs of a well-coached team who obviously took advantage of their 10 day break and had an excellent game plan.  They were able to adjust to the weather a bit better than we did early which let them dictate more of the game."

A steady, wet snow fell throughout the game, making traction difficult to obtain and affecting the quality of contact when strikers tried to make a pinpoint pass.

Noting that both teams played in the same conditions, Phillips credited MSU for capitalizing on their chances.  "They are tough to break down.  By taking advantage of those two opportunities early, they put us in a hole.  We battled, and I'm proud of our guys for battling for 90 minutes, and we had some near-chances and some near-opportunities, but Michigan State deserves credit for never allowing us to get into a rhythm that's allowed us to score goals this year.  That's why they're advancing and we wish them well at Louisville."

The Flames finish the year at 12-6-2, having won the Horizon League championship for the third straight year.  "Every season comes to an end, and only one team ends on a positive note," Phillips observed.  "This team, led by this group of seniors whose accomplishments speak for themselves, has been a joy to work with since the start of the season and even going back to January.  The staff is going to miss these seniors greatly.  At the same time, we look forward to getting back to work after a period of rest and evaluation, and putting together a 2019 version whose bar has been set very high by this outgoing group of seniors."

How it Happened

• Michigan State struck first, and they struck early.   In the sixth minute, they worked the ball down the left flank, where both of their attackers were marked by a Flame.  UIC keeper Sawyer Jackman came off his line to make a play, but Hunter Barone kept possession and passed to Ryan Sierakowski, who had a step on his man and scooted the ball into a vacated area of the net.
• The Flames' first chance to respond came in the 15^th minute.  Max Todd sent in a low cross that was tapped out by a Spartan for a corner kick.  That service went long, but was kept in the area for Cristian Sanchez to drill a shot from the top of the semicircle that buzzed the crossbar.
• The Spartans doubled their lead in the 19^th minute.  Jackman tried to clear a ball, but a Spartan got in front of it and dribbled it back in, drawing Jackman to the edge of the six yard box.  Once again a trailer, this time Hunter Barone, got open in a central spot and one-touched the pass into an open net.
• Max Todd made his first impression on the match when he dribbled free in the left corner and sent a cross into the box.  That effort just missed Oscar Gonzalez' foot, but the latter was able to find possession and send a pass to Eduardo Garcia who took a shot that seemed destined for the goal off his boot, before an MSU defender was able to deflect it.
• Markell Saddler had several moments of impressive possession throughout the first half, shielding multiple defenders from the ball and dribbling to open space.  One of those moments came in the 40^th minute as he approached Michigan State's 18-yard box and was summarily fouled.  Todd took the free kick from just left of center, 25 yards away, at a spot where he has been known to find the back of the net.  This attempt went over the wall and dangerously on target, but was saved by a leaping Jimmy Hague.
• In the first half's final minute, Josiah Ash was being bodied up from behind, so he sent a back heel pass to Jesus Perez, who had room to run in on goal and attempt to sneak a shot inside the near post.  An alert Hague poked it out for a corner kick.
• Michigan State took advantage of a restart early in the second half, working the ball inside the box and setting up a dangerous shot.  Jackman made himself big in the shooter's field of vision and was well positioned to made the save.
• The Flames' back line came up big shortly thereafter.  As MSU built another chance, Pau Mateo and Jacob Graiber held their positions on the goal line and cleared the bounding ball.  That followed an alert play by UIC's defense, which played up to draw the Spartans offside and negate a chance.
• UIC had a couple of promising opportunities as the second half approached its midway point.   Ash sent a cross through Todd and on to Perez, who couldn't connect cleanly.  On a subsequent trip down the field, Todd had one of the team's best chances of the match when he flicked a header on net that the Spartans were forced to play over the line.  The ensuing corner kick found its way to Oscar Gonzalez who had plenty of space for a shot, but sent it inches wide of the left post.
• Fighting until the end, the Flames kept applying pressure and were able to set up Nestor Garcia after connecting a number of passes.  With numbers back, as they did almost the entire second half, Michigan State kept the Flames from getting on the scoreboard.

Postgame Reaction

• Sean Phillips and Max Todd press conference
  

Facts and Figures

• Sean Phillips deployed the same Starting XI that debuted against Wright State in the Horizon League final.
• The Flames outshot their opponent (11-7), marking the 13^th time in their 20 games that they did so.  Michigan State put more attempts on goal by a 5-4 margin.
• Todd and Saddler tied for team high honors with three shots each.
• Todd, Saddler, Perez, and Garcia accounted for UIC's shots on goal.
• UIC had a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks.
• The Flames were called for 12 fouls, to Michigan State's 10.  Perez and Eduardo Garcia each were shown a yellow card, as was MSU's Giuseppe Barone.
• The Flames allowed exactly two goals for only the second time all season.  Both of those matches ended in 2-0 defeats.
• UIC was shut out for the fourth time in a season when they posted six clean sheets of their own.
• Jackman played every minute in goal this season, finishing with a 1.22 goals against average and a .740 save percentage.
• Todd led the team in goals (12) and points (26).
• Perez was the team's assist leader, with 12.
• Saddler was second on the squad in assists and points.

Up Next

• The Flames' season is over after the NCAA tournament's first round for the third straight year.