HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — Ben Daugherty (Sr., Dexter, Mich.) scored six times as Big Ten Division Champion/No. 2-ranked Michigan State University Spartans 5-2 and 11-6 leads by the conclusion of the first and second quarters on the way to a 16-11 victory over Rocky Mountain Division Champion/No. 6 University of Colorado in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship.
The win advances MSU into the semifinals where the Spartans will take on Sierra Pacific Division Champion/No. 3 University of California at 5:10 p.m. on Saturday, November 13, with a berth in the National Collegiate Club Championship title game at stake. Colorado will face McKendree – which dropped a 16-4 game to McKendree in the quarterfinals – at 4:00 p.m. for a spot in the Fifth Place game.
- Michigan State trailed only once in the game as Benjamin Budic (So., San Diego, Calif.) sliced in a shot 37 second into the game to put Colorado ahead 1-0 with 6:23 left in the first quarter.
- Jack Sikkema (Sr., Rockford, Mich.) and Ian Worst (So., Hudsonville, Mich.) put MSU ahead at 2-1 with back-to-back goals at 5:19 and 5:05, respectively, prior to James Watson (Jr., Newport Beach, Calif.) balancing the scoreboard with a man-up strike at 2:27.
- The Spartans closed out the first quarter with back-to-back-to-back goals as Zach Sneathen (Sr., East Lansing, Mich.) buried a man-up opportunity at 1:20 before Daugherty (38 seconds) and Sikkema (11 seconds) finishing even-strength bids to build MSU’s lead to 5-2.
- Daugherty made it a four-goal game at 6-2 with 6:41 until halftime before Budic dumped in a power-play bid at the 3:38 mark to move the Buffaloes back to within three at 6-3.
- Leading 11-6 at halftime, Michigan State kept pace with Colorado in the second half as both teams put away pairs in the third quarter prior to tossing in trios in the fourth quarter for the 16-11 final score.
- For MSU, Daugherty (six), Sneathen (four), Worst (three) and Sikkema (two) notched multi-goal games with Ewan Woolcock (Sr., Okemos, Mich.) chipping in a solo marker.
- Budic and Reid Schioldager (Jr., Orinda, Calif.) led Colorado with four goals. Watson racked up a pair and Patrick Tippens (Sr., Highland Park, Ill.) notched a solo score to account for the remainder of the Buffaloes’ offense.
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| Michigan State University |
5 | 6 | 2 | 3 | – | 16 |
| University of Colorado | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 | – | 11 |
| Colorado Goals: | Benjamin Budic (4); Reid Schioldager (4); James Watson (2); Patrick Riley Tippens | |||||
| Michigan State Goals: | Ben Daugherty (6); Zach Sneathen (4); Ian Worst (3); Jack Sikkema (2); Ewan Woolcock | |||||
| Exclusions: | Colorado – 10 ; Michigan State – 14 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | Colorado – 5-for-14 ; Michigan State – 5-for-10 | |||||
| Sprints: | Colorado – 1-for-4 (4th) ; Michigan State – 3-for-4 (1st, 2nd, 3rd) | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | None | |||||
| Officials: | Tim Watson; Steve Sargalski | |||||
The University of Colorado’s Jason Bollella (#5) defends Michigan State University’s Jack Sikkema (#7)
University of Colorado’s Reid Schioldager (#9) fires a pass as Michigan State University’s Jack Sikkema (#7) closes in
The University of Colorado’s James Watson (#6) defends Michigan State University’s Ben Daugherty (#12)
