Michigan State upsets No. 12 Hoosiers

The No. 7-seed Michigan State Spartans defeated the No. 2-seed Hoosiers in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday, 3-1. \nThis is the second time in two weeks the Spartans (8-11, 2-5 Big Ten) have upset the No. 12 Hoosiers (14-5, 4-2 Big Ten). The first loss came Oct. 21 in East Lansing, Mich., in a 1-0 contest.\nFriday's game at the Michigan's Phyllis Ocker Field wasn't what the Hoosiers were expecting coming into the Big Ten Tournament. Fresh off a 1-0 upset of the then-No. 7 Penn State Nittany Lions, the Hoosiers were expecting a deep tournament run.\nBut the Spartans soon erased any tournament dreams the Hoosiers had. Michigan State scored its first goal in the 26th minute and scored again in the beginning of the second half to give themselves a 2-0 advantage.\nSophomore forward Katie Kiper scored in the 66th minute to bring the Hoosiers within a goal at 2-1. But Michigan State sealed the deal in the 69th minute when Spartan substitute Gwen Riley scored her second goal of the game.\nThe Hoosiers managed just one shot in the first half and were outshot 12-5 in the match. After failing to draw a single penalty corner in the first period, IU improved its attack in the second half, drawing five.\nBut it wasn't enough for the Hoosiers, who have now lost three of their last four games. IU will now have to wait until Tuesday night to find out if its season will extend past Friday's loss.\nWith the loss to the Spartans, the Hoosiers find themselves on the brink of being left out of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Only 16 teams compete in the tournament, and the seedings and teams are largely based on regions. IU made it to the tournament for the first time in program history last season.\nThe NCAA Division I Field Hockey Committee will announce its field for the tournament Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m., nationally televised on CSTV.