Pitt
Michigan State
No. 7 Pitt Primed For Nationally Televised Showdown With Michigan State
8/24/2025 5:26:00 PM | Men's Soccer
PITTSBURGH – The seventh-ranked Pitt men's soccer team returns to Ambrose Urbanic Field to take on Big Ten foe Michigan State Monday evening. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
The match will be nationally televised on ACC Network with Joe Malfa and Paddy Foss on the call.
Need to Know - Match 2
No. 7 Pitt vs. Michigan State
Monday, Aug. 25, 2025 – 7 p.m. – ACC Network
Pittsburgh, Pa. – Ambrose Urbanic Field
The Opening Kick
- No. 7 Pitt earned a gritty 1-0 win over Quinnipiac Thursday despite playing without reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-American Casper Svendby.
- As a unit, Pitt limited Quinnipiac to just five shot attempts – with only two coming on goal.
- Additionally, the Panthers controlled possession 62 percent.
- Head coach Jay Vidovich utilized his depth Thursday as a total of 18 players saw minutes, marking the most since last season's 4-1 win over Virginia (Oct. 25, 2024).
- Pitt, which fell to eventual national champion Vermont in the national quarterfinals a season ago, returns five starters from last season's squad.
- In addition to returning most of its starting back line, the Panthers welcome several transfers, including Tomas Bedouret (Oregon State), Anders Bordoy (Memphis), Marco Silva (Marshall) and Josh Hardin(Akron).
The Series
- Monday will mark the seventh all-time meeting between Pitt and Michigan State.
- The Panthers are 0-6 against the Spartans; however, Monday will mark the first meeting between the two programs since 1967.
Scouting the Spartans
- Michigan State, picked to finish seventh in the Big Ten, is coming off a 2-0 victory over UC Riverside in its 2025 season-opener.
- The Spartans compiled a 5-7-4 record last season, including a 4-4-2 mark in Big Ten play.
- Michigan State is returning four of its top seven goal scorers from last year, including junior forward Richie Ludwig.
Last Time Out
Behind a ninth minute header from junior midfielder Santiago Ferreira, Pitt knocked off Quinnipiac, 1-0, to open the 2025 campaign Thursday evening at Ambrose Urbanic Field. With the victory, the Panthers improved to 5-0-1 in season-openers over the past six seasons, while improving to 2-0-0 all-time against Quinnipiac.
The Panthers' breakthrough came at the 8:28 mark as freshman defender Gavin Wetzel played a through ball to Hardin– who took a touch and sent a cross from the right wing into the box. Ferreira, a native of Cali, Colombia, made a well-timed run – ending up on the receiving end of Hardin's cross and headed home his second-career goal to give Pitt a 1-0 lead
Despite the Bobcats' defensive-minded approach, the Panthers used a blend of progression and possession to dominate much of the remainder of the contest on the ball, ultimately holding on for the 1-0 victory.
Trio of Panthers Crack TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Top 100 Players List
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No. 3 |
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No. 33 |
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No. 87 |
Back Line Remains Intact
The Panthers return three (Svendby, Gilman and Soerensen) starting defenders from a back line that recorded seven clean sheets and a program record .90 GAA a year ago.
Recent Success
Over the past five years, Pitt has been amongst the best programs nationally under Vidovich.
3 ACC Titles
35 All-ACC Players
3 All-Americans
Up Next
Following Monday's matchup with Michigan State, Pitt will begin a two-match road swing – traveling to No. 25 Georgetown (Aug. 29) and No. 9 Clemson (Sept 5).
