- November 09, 2025
- By Maryland Athletics Staff
The Maryland men’s soccer team, ranked No. 1 in the country, defeated Michigan State 4-3 on Friday at home in East Lansing to capture the Terps’ 50th Big Ten championship across all sports.
The victory capped an undefeated regular season for the Terps (12-0-3, 8-0-2 Big Ten) and clinched Maryland’s No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. UMD will host the semifinals at Ludwig Field at 7 p.m. Wednesday, live on BTN.
This is men's soccer's seventh Big Ten title, including three Big Ten Tournament crowns. Maryland also won conference titles in 2014, 2016 and 2022, along with tournament titles in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Maryland Athletics' 50th conference title since joining the Big Ten in 2014 ranks third- among conference members in that time, behind only Michigan and Ohio State.
Maryland finished with an undefeated regular season for the first time since 2016, when the Terps went 15-0-2.
“To be undefeated in 2025 is a remarkable achievement,” said head coach Sasho Cirovski. “This is incredibly rewarding, and I couldn’t be more proud of our team’s resilience, their persistence and their overall quality during the regular season.”
Forward Sadam Masereka scored a trio of goals in the first half to record Maryland's first hat trick since Eryk Williamson in 2017, as the top-ranked Terps took control and never looked back against Michigan State (5-8-3, 2-5-3 Big Ten).
The team took all of the suspense out of its historic night early as the leading scorer continued to deliver. Masereka buried his first goal of the night past MSU's Zac Kelly in the 22nd minute.
A shot from Joseph Umberto Picotto, who picked up three assists on Friday, rebounded and found Masereka's foot in the 26th minute. He blasted his eighth goal of the season into the wide-open net to double Maryland's lead. Stephane Njike added a goal and two assists in the game.
Seven minutes later, Masereka put the Terps' win on ice with his third goal of the night. The Spartans netted a trio of goals, but a late Njike score helped Maryland hold on for the 4-3 win and the milestone conference championship.
"We came in with the tactic of winning that game,” said Masereka. “We knew what was on the line."