Michigan State's Ryan McKay fields a ball for an out against Ohio State during the fifth inning on Friday, April 18, 2025, at McLane Stadium in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Spartans Drop Series Opener With Bitter Rival

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Tom Cavanaugh | Last updated Apr 26, 2025 12:00 PM ET

The Michigan State Spartans (23-17, 9-10) lost Game 1 of their three-game series with bitter rival, Michigan (25-17, 9-10), on Friday. After a rain delay paused the contest for a few hours, the Spartans were unable to keep pace, falling to their in-state rival, 8-2.

The Spartans found themselves down, 6-0, after the first four innings as Michigan posted three runs in the second and fourth innings. They would add two runs late, finishing with eight runs on 12 hits, only striking out five times and leaving six runners on base.

Michigan State redshirt sophomore starter Tate Farquhar was banged up, allowing six runs on seven hits through four innings of work with four strikeouts. Farquhar earned the loss while redshirt junior reliever Ryan Szczepaniak allowed the final two runs on five hits in two innings of work.

After winning the season series last year, 3-1, the Wolverines have now taken the first two games of this year's four-game series. Michigan State seeks to salvage a split with wins in the final two contests of the series this weekend.

The Spartans' best offensive day came from sophomore outfielder Parker Picot, going 3-for-4 with a double and RBI triple in the ninth inning. The only other run that Michigan State would score came in the fifth inning by way of senior outfielder JT Sokolove's RBI single to score Picot.

The two rivals are now tied for seventh place in the Big Ten standings at 9-10. Whoever wins the next two games of this series is going to take a pivotal lead in the standings. Despite being tied for seventh, there are eight teams with much better conference records.

It is most likely that neither program will make the Big Ten Tournament in Omaha, Nebraska, barring a winning streak from either club. With how mundane both offenses have been against the top Big Ten talent this season, their seasons will likely end when the regular season concludes in early May.

Game 2 of the three-game set takes place in Ann Arbor on Saturday at 2:02 p.m. ET, 11:02 p.m. PT. Coverage of the game will be provided by Big Ten Plus.

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This article first appeared on Michigan State Spartans on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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