Bowling Green State University Athletics
BGSU's 2003 Schedule Announced
March 27, 2003 | Women's Soccer
March 27, 2003
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Bowling Green State University women's soccer head coach Andy Richards and his assistant, Ashlee Orr, have announced the team's schedule for the 2003 season. The Falcons are slated to play a total of 21 regular-season matches, including 10 at Cochrane Field. BGSU will open the season on August 30-31, travelling to Hawai'i for matches against Arizona State and the host Rainbow Wahine.
Complete Schedule Announcement in PDF Format
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"In my opinion, this has to be the strongest schedule this program has ever faced," said Richards, entering his fourth season as the Falcons' head coach. "We are playing six teams who were in the NCAA Tournament last year. That's a good indication of the strength of schedule that we have put together."
Five of the Falcons' nine non-conference matches are against NCAA Tournament squads, including the home opener vs. Eastern Illinois (Sept. 5).
In addition to the Hawai'i trip and the EIU match, the Falcons' non-league slate also includes home games against Cincinnati (Sept. 14), Wright State (Sept. 21) and Ohio State (Oct. 31), as well as road tilts vs. Detroit (Sept. 17), Valparaiso (Sept. 26) and Michigan State (Oct. 15). Arizona State, Cincinnati, OSU and MSU all advanced to the NCAA Tournament, as did EIU and MAC champion Miami.
The 12-match Mid-American Conference slate begins early, with a Sept. 7 home contest vs. Eastern Michigan. BGSU will also host Central Michigan (Sept. 12), Akron (Sept. 19), Toledo (Sept. 28), Buffalo (Oct. 17) and Kent State (Oct. 19) in conference action, while taking to the road to face Ball State (Oct. 3), Miami (Oct. 5), Western Michigan (Oct. 10), Northern Illinois (Oct. 12), Ohio (Oct. 24) and Marshall (Oct. 26). The Falcons, who advanced to the semifinal round of last year's MAC Tournament, will face each of the other three semifinalists -- BSU, Miami and OU -- on the road.
"There is never an easy game, and when I look at our schedule for 2003, I don't see any game that's a 'gimme'," said Richards. "Even some of the teams that we've had some success against in the past, we're playing on the road. Our stretch of five consecutive road games in October will be very tough, especially the back-to-back games against the teams that finished first and second (Miami and Ball State) in the MAC last year."
The 2003 MAC Tournament begins Nov. 4, with quarterfinal-round action at the sites of the four higher-seeded teams. The four survivors will head to the site of the highest remaining seed for the semifinals (Nov. 7) and championship (Nov. 9). The MAC Tournament winner earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
"This is a tough schedule, and it will give us a good indication of where we're at as a program," said Richards. "In our fourth year (as a coaching staff), I think we're making some headway, and now is the time to test ourselves.
"This would not have been a good schedule a couple of years ago; it would have been too much for us. But, with the existing talent on our team, and with the talent we've got coming in, I think this is going to be a great test to see if we're ready to go to the NCAA Tournament."
The Falcons finished the 2002 season with an overall record of 12-8-2, setting a school record for wins. BGSU, picked to finish ninth in the MAC in the preseason coaches poll, placed fourth with a 7-4-1 league mark and advanced to the league tourney semifinals before falling to the eventual champion.
The complete 2003 schedule follows...
2003 BGSU WOMEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
August 30 Sat. vs. Arizona State # 7:00 31 Sun. at Hawai'i 5:00September 5 Fri. EASTERN ILLINOIS 3:00 7 Sun. EASTERN MICHIGAN * Noon 12 Fri. CENTRAL MICHIGAN * 4:00 14 Sun. CINCINNATI 1:00 17 Wed. at Detroit 4:00 19 Fri. AKRON * 4:00 21 Sun. WRIGHT STATE 3:00 26 Fri. at Valparaiso 4:30 28 Sun. TOLEDO * 1:00
October 3 Fri. at Ball State * 3:00 5 Sun. at Miami * 1:00 10 Fri. at Western Michigan * 3:00 12 Sun. at Northern Illinois * Noon 15 Wed. at Michigan State 4:00 17 Fri. BUFFALO * 4:00 19 Sun. KENT STATE * 2:30 24 Fri. at Ohio * 4:00 26 Sun. at Marshall * Noon 31 Fri. OHIO STATE 2:30
November 4 Tue. MAC Tournament QFs (campus sites) 7 Fri. MAC Tournament SFs (site of highest-remaining seed) 9 Sun. MAC Tournament Champ. (semifinal site)
all times p.m. and local to site HOME matches held at Cochrane Field * Mid-American Conference match # at Honolulu, Hawai'i
