Bowling Green State University
BALL STATE
Ball State Stops BGSU, 2-0
September 29, 2006 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 29, 2006
Final Stats |
Photo Gallery
BGSU-Ball State Boxscore in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Visiting Ball State University scored a goal in each half to hand the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team a 2-0 loss Friday afternoon (Sept. 29). The Mid-American Conference game, a battle between league unbeatens, was held at Cochrane Field.
With the win, the visiting Cardinals improve to 8-1-2 on the season and remain undefeated in MAC play with a 3-0-0 league ledger. The Falcons drop to 5-6-0 and 2-1-0, respectively.
Emily Rein and Katelyn Alexander each found the back of the net for the Cardinals, who ended a number of lengthy BGSU streaks. For the Falcons, the afternoon marked the end of ...
* a 10-game MAC regular-season winning streak,
* a 13-game unbeaten streak against league opposition,
* a home unbeaten stretch of 11 games vs. conference foes, and
* a shutout streak of 924:16 vs. MAC teams at Cochrane Field.
The Cardinals' first goal came due to a BGSU miscue midway through the first half. An errant clearing attempt was blocked by Rein approximately 10 yards out. Rein settled the ball and fired a shot that BGSU junior goalkeeper Tiffany Hansen was able to block. However, the rebound came right back to Rein, who fired it past Hansen and into the net.
The visitors doubled the lead with just over 20 minutes remaining in the second half. A BSU corner kick was blocked by a Falcon defender in the center of the penalty area, but the ball caromed directly to Alexander, who fired it into the lower right-hand corner of the net.
While the Cardinals converted on several chances, the Falcons had several near-misses on the afternoon, but were unable to put the ball past BSU 'keeper Rachael Murphy.
The Falcons' first chance came with less than three minutes elapsed. A seemingly harmless crossing ball sailed toward Murphy in the 18-yard box. The Cardinal sophomore, however, bobbled the ball and dropped it behind her. But, she was able to recover just in time to beat Falcon soph Brianne Eisenhard to the ball by a split-second.
Gina Rossi had several chances for the Brown and Orange approximately 10 minutes later. With about 12-and-a-half minutes gone, junior Janie Babich directed a pass toward her fellow co-captain, senior Lindsay Carter. Carter's pass sent Rossi in behind the Ball State backliners, but Rossi's shot was blocked out of play by Murphy.
On the ensuing corner kick, Carter's ball found junior Karie Sahly on the right side of the six-yard box. Sahly headed the ball back toward the center, where Rossi got her head on it, but the ball sailed wide of the goal.
The Cardinals got on the board with Rein's goal at the 23:24 mark, and the visitors prevented the Falcons from getting any additional shot attempts for the remainder of the first half.
In the second half, the Brown and Orange had a chance nearly nine minutes after the intermission. Freshman Colleen Kordan broke up a BSU rush and played a ball to classmate Stacey Lucas, who was streaking down the right side of the field. Lucas fired a cross that went through the area, but Danielle Cygan, marked closely by a Cardinal defender, just missed getting a foot on it.
Ball State had a dangerous chance with just under 21 minutes remaining in the half, as an Alexander cross hit off of a Cardinal teammate and sailed wide of the mark. That play culminated in the corner kick that led to the second goal of the match for the visitors.
With just over 16 minutes left in the game, Carter's cross from the right side of the field sailed past the 'danger area,' but junior Corbie Yee settled the ball on the left side of the penalty box, took a few dribbles to get around a defender and fired. Yee's shot, however, went over the goal.
With 12 minutes remaining, Carter's shot from the left side of the box spun wide, but Cygan tracked it down on the right side of the field. She won a challenge to maintain possession of the ball, brought it toward goal and slid a pass to freshman Faith Juillerat in the center of the field. Juillerat's one-timer was saved by a diving Murphy just inches shy of the goal line, and was the last shot on goal by either team on the day.
The Cardinals held a slim 10-8 advantage in total shot attempts in the game, and BSU had seven shots on goal to the Falcons' two. Murphy made two stops on the day, while Hansen had five saves at the other end of the field. The Falcons had a 6-2 margin in second-half shot attempts, but could put just one of those tries on goal.
with much regret that I have to look back on today's game and say that we really got what we deserved," said Falcon head coach Andy Richards. "We did not compete today with the amount of energy or determination that we normally have, and we did not take advantage of the chances that we had.
"I don't think it was a lack of preparation or effort. We worked hard to get ready for the game this week, and the team certainly tried (to win today). We just did not manage to create the kind of energy that you need in order to win in this conference. And, when you don't finish chances, that will lead to a disappointing result.
"It was a very tight game. They had chances, we had chances. They took advantage of their chances when they came, we did not. We are disappointed, but we look forward to trying to put things right on Sunday."
The Falcons return to the pitch Sunday afternoon (Oct. 1), concluding a four-game homestand with a 1:00 p.m. match vs. Miami.
NOTES
* The Falcons, as mentioned, fell from the ranks of the MAC's unbeaten with the loss ... BGSU's 2-0 start in conference play was only the Falcons' third in the 10-year history of the program.
* The loss snapped a 10-game regular-season winning streak vs. MAC opponents ... BGSU's last loss to a conference team came one day shy of a year ago, to Ball State ... the Cardinals picked up a 3-0 win in Muncie, Ind., on Sept. 30, 2005 ... following that match, the Falcons won eight-straight MAC games to end the regular season, and BG had won the first two MAC matches this fall.
* Friday's loss also broke an overall 13-match unbeaten streak (11-0-2) vs. MAC opponents for the Falcons ... BGSU, as mentioned, had those eight consecutive wins to end the '05 regular season, and the Falcons went 1-0-2 in the conference tournament, before winning vs. Northern Illinois and Western Michigan in this year's opening weekend of MAC action.
* BGSU had not lost at home to a MAC school since Ball State's last visit, on Oct. 10, 2004 ... on that date, the Cards posted a 2-1 win ... since that time, the Falcons had gone 8-0-3 vs. MAC opponents at Cochrane Field.
* Ball State's initial goal on Friday was the first by a MAC team at Cochrane since Oct. 24, 2004 (a 2-2 tie vs. Western Michigan in the final home game of the '04 season) ... BGSU's MAC home shutout streak ended at 924:16.
* The Falcons had posted nine consecutive home shutouts vs. MAC opponents before BSU scored on Friday ... BGSU had scored 16 unanswered goals vs. league foes at home.
* The Falcons had a record of 5-4 in September, after going 0-2 in August ... last season, BGSU also went 0-2 in the month of August and 5-4 in September.
* At the end of September in 2005, BGSU's overall record stood at 5-6-0, and the Falcons were 1-2-0 after a loss to Ball State ... that team, of course, rallied to win the MAC's regular-season and tournament titles ... this year, BG ends September with a 5-6 overall mark, but a 2-1 league ledger ... just like in '05, the Falcons will begin the month of October with a game vs. Miami.
* Friday's game was the 200th in program history ... BGSU is now 85-99-16 all-time.
* Eleven of this season's 12 games have been shutouts, with the Falcons on the winning side in five of those games.
