Nov. 23, 2007

EAST LANSING, Mich. - After spending the past 31 years as the head men's soccer coach at Michigan State, Joe Baum has seen a lot of good soccer teams. And coming into this season, he had a strong suspicion that this year's MSU team would be a good one.

"We felt earlier in the year that we had the potential to make it this far," Baum said. "We have a lot of talented, veteran players. "Our fear was injuries, and we suffered a couple of big ones. But we're actually healthier now than we've been all season. We've been practicing great and I guarantee we'll be ready to play."

The Spartans have delivered on their lofty early-season expectations. After starting the year 10-1-2 and at one point climbing to No. 16 in the national rankings, Michigan State stands 11-5-4 and has advanced to the NCAA Championship. MSU will host instate rival and Summit League champion Oakland (11-6-3) on Saturday at noon at Old College Field.

The Spartans are led by Mason native Doug DeMartin. The junior forward leads the Big Ten with 11 goals and was a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection. He also leads the conference in shots and game-winning goals.

"He's a bona fide All-Big Ten forward," Baum said. "He's earned that through his play. Even when he doesn't score, he gives us a great field game. He was a unanimous pick for All-Big Ten this year, and he was definitely deserving."

"I was looking to score more goals coming into this year," DeMartin said. "It's been great that I've been able to do that, and it's even better that we've had such a great team this year. Scoring goals doesn't mean anything if you're not winning games."

This season has been one of the most memorable in Baum's tenure. MSU defeated No. 3 Notre Dame (1-0) and No. 21 Michigan (5-0) during the same week and hosted the Big Ten Championship. On Sept. 9 at Vermont, Baum picked up his 300th career win, becoming just the second Big Ten coach in history to reach the plateau.

"His 300th win was a great milestone," DeMartin said. "Coach comes to work everyday and gets excited. He wants to win more than anybody, and he does a great job of getting us prepared.

"Oakland is a solid team. They have some new players now that they didn't have in the previous match," DeMartin said. "The field conditions will be key. No matter what, it's going to be a battle. We'd like to get an early goal, but if we can't, we'll just have to keep playing hard."

MSU has already defeated Oakland once this season, taking a 2-1 decision at Old College Field on Oct. 17. All-Big Ten defenders Rauwshan McKenzie and Nosa Iyoha each scored to give the Spartans a large lead early. Oakland rallied for a goal in the second half but couldn't find the equalizer. Historically, the Grizzlies have seen success against the Spartans. OU is 18-7-3 in 28 meetings against Michigan State and has won four of the past six meetings. These are the fact that lead Baum to believe Saturday's NCAA match will be one for the ages.

"When we play Oakland, it's usually a one-goal game," Baum said. "It'll be tightly-contested. Whoever steps up and makes a big play in the second half will probably win. "

After 31 years, he should know.