EAST LANSING - The No. 12 Michigan State men's soccer program is in the midst of a grueling Big Ten schedule, but came into Oct. 13's rivalry contest against Michigan fresh off a 2-1 road victory over No. 7 Maryland.
In front of a packed DeMartin Field crowd, the Spartans and Wolverines battled to a 1-1 draw, which saw MSU retain the "Big Bear" rivalry trophy, which the team has held onto since the 2021-2022 season.
UM leveled the game in the 85th minute with a penalty kick goal after the Spartans took the lead in the second half.
"This was a typical 'Big Bear' game, and I told the guys before that it was going to take a full 90 minutes, and I thought for about the first 75 minutes we were clearly the better team and created stuff," MSU coach Damon Rensing said. "But, we needed to manage the final 10 minutes a little bit better. I thought it was more so on the ball and in some decision-making, but it was a great battle
"Obviously, you want to win when you play that well, so we're disappointed," Rensing added. "Our goal right now is that we're towards the top of the Big Ten and we want to put ourselves in a position to challenge for it. I can't be disappointed with the effort, but I think the result within itself is disappointing, and I think the process and what we'll got though will make us better."
Liberty transfer Leo Conneh notched his third goal of the season in the 69th minute to open the scoring after sophomore midfielder Peter Soudan fed him with a lead pass through the UM back line. Conneh used his speed to get around the Wolverine defender before striking a shot off the right post and into the goal.
Defense into offense! Leo Conneh gets the Spartans on the board in the 69th minute! pic.twitter.com/TmsCVCk3aH
— Michigan State Men's Soccer (@MSU_MSoccer) October 14, 2026
MSU controlled play for most of the first half, outshooting the Wolverines 8-2 in the first 45 minutes and recorded seven corners in the first half to UM's one.
"It's important going forward that we keep being brave, keep playing confident, and keep attacking the goal," Conneh said. "Our student section tonight was, wow, they were incredible and gave us a boost in a lot of points in the game. It was an intense game with a lot of pride, and we knew we were going to have to give it our all. There's a little disappointment, but I thought we had great fight."
While the opportunities to find a second insurance goal came for the Spartans, UM goalkeeper Isaiah Goldson made a handful of terrific saves to keep it 1-0. MSU defender Connor O'Keefe committed a foul in the box late in the game, and UM's Michael Ramirez was able to beat MSU goalkeeper jake Grekowicz from the spot.
MSU (8-2-2) continues its tough stretch of conference play with a trip to Columbus to face Ohio State on Friday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m.
Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU and UM men's soccer draw, Spartans retain 'Big Bear' trophy