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[dropcap]O[/dropcap]ver the summer, Shawn Claud Lawson lit up the crowd with Detroit City FC for the NPSL Goal of the Year. Wednesday night, it was an assist for Oakland that helped electrify the fans.
The midfielder shook his defender and served up a sharp pass to Matt Rickard, who circled, dribbled left and fired from eight yards out off the right goalpost and into net, breaking a scoreless match in the 84th minute and opening the doors to Oakland’s 2-0 upset of No. 10Michigan State on DCFC Night in Rochester.
The tide appeared to be turning to the Spartans (9-3-2) in the second half until Rickard’s strike rattled off the far post and erupt what was certainly the largest contingent of fans for an Oakland home match so far this season.
“We certainly had possession and had the territory almost the entire second half,” Michigan State coach Damon Rensing said. “But we created some re-starts and didn’t take advantage of those, and really didn’t create enough chances for as much as we had possession. When you do that, and you leave the game 0-0, you leave it to chance.”
They received certain confirmation of Oakland’s first win over a ranked opponent since 2010 (No. 14 Drake) just five minutes later. Gavin Hoy’s touch bringing down a ball entering the right side of the box was adequate, and combined with the misjudgment of defender Ryan Keener, he easily slotted a ball with his right foot past Michigan State goalkeeper Zach Bennett to double the lead.
The win marked the sixth-straight shutout for netminder Wes Mink (three saves) and Oakland (7-5-1), tying the longest streak since the school joined Division I.
“A great finish by Matt, but I think leading up to that, a great defensive effort by the team,” Oakland coach Eric Pogue said. “We needed to wait for our chance. When you open up against a team like Michigan State, they’re going to punish you.”
It also marked just the second time the Spartans have allowed multiple goals in a match this season, the other coming against Ohio State in a 3-2 loss. Bennett came into the contest with nine shutouts, statistically the best keeper in the Big 10 in multiple categories.
Possession remained rather balanced in the early going, but Oakland did well to get themselves into dangerous positions several times. Michigan State’s first quality chance came in the 34th minute when a header from Adam Montague fell to the feet of Jason Stacy, but the ensuing attempt was directed far high and wide right.
Moments later in the 37th, the home side had an opportunity of their own when Hoy supplied a cross to forward Gerald Ben, but his rising shot from inside the 18 soared no more than a foot over the crossbar.
Again, Michigan State appeared to find its footing and impose themselves in the second half. Midfielder Michael Marcantognini was able to shake Brendan Woodfull in the 68th minute and played a sharp ball in from the right side of the box. The ball almost took took a costly course, ending up deflecting off the back of Oakland’s Cody Archibald and out of play.
Oakland’s leading scorer in 2013, Joey Tinnion, almost produced a moment of brilliance in the 77th minute, working around the marking of Andrew Herr and unleashing a volley from just inside the box that almost didn’t clear the left post.
Michigan State would survive another scare in the 81st minute. Jacob Vanderlaan had the time to square up and deploy a cross from over 35 yards out to Lawson, who directed a header back to the near side that Bennett was agile enough to clamp to safety.
Oakland will ride their winning streak into another non-conference matchup at Michigan next Wednesday. The Spartans look to rebound on Sunday when they host Northwestern.
Visit Press Row Sports for an exclusive interview with Grizzlies forward Matt Rickard.
