Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
OHIO
Second-Half Goals Lead Ohio Past Falcons, 2-0
September 17, 2004 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 17, 2004
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Visiting Ohio University netted a pair of second-half goals to down the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team by a 2-0 count Friday afternoon (Sept. 17). The Mid-American Conference match was held at Cochrane Field.
The win was the Bobcats' first of the season. Ohio, picked to finish second in the league in the preseason coaches poll, improves to 1-4-2 overall and 1-0-2 in the MAC. The Falcons, tabbed for a fifth-place tie in the poll, drop to 0-1 in league action and 1-6-0 overall.
The Falcons tied a school record with 17 corner kicks in the match.
After a back-and-forth first few minutes, the Falcons had the offensive edge for the remainder of the first half, but could not capitalize. The home team had eight shot attempts to the Bobcats' five in the first half, and BGSU had an eye-popping total of 12 corner kicks in the first 45 minutes, to the visitors' total of one.
Junior Samantha Meister had a scoring chance approximately 10 minutes into the match, as she and Ohio goalkeeper Michelle Meglaughlin went up for a crossing ball on the goal line. Both players leaped for the ball, which caromed straight up and out of danger.
Meister had another chance, taking a pass from classmate Britt Anderson seven minutes later, but her one-time shot was blocked by Meglaughlin and caromed out of bounds for one of the Falcons' many corners. Junior Ashley Wentzel took the kick, and sent a ball in the direction of Anderson, who headed the ball just over the bar.
With approximately 17 minutes left before the half, senior Nikki Pucillo had a try off another BG corner. Pucillo's hard shot sailed through traffic, but right at Meglaughlin, who knocked the ball down and grabbed in on one bounce.
With four minutes left in the half, Anderson unleashed a blast, but Meglaughlin was able to leap and tip the ball over the crossbar. Then, with under 10 seconds remaining, junior Julie Trundle's corner kick curved and bounced off the crossbar. Three of BG's 12 first-half corners came in the final minute of the half.
In the early going of the second half, BG again possessed the ball for the majority of the time. OU's first scoring chance, however, resulted in a goal.
With just over five minutes elapsed in the half, Kelly Prandi's pass sent Tiffany Horvath in all alone on Falcon 'keeper Ali Shingler. Shingler was forced to come off her line, and Horvath was able to make a move to get around Shingler before rolling the ball into the open net.
After Horvath's goal, the Bobcats had more scoring chances as the Falcons pressed for the equalizer, including a shot by Gina Siedentopf that hit the post with 18 minutes left. The match, however, remained 1-0 until the final three minutes. That goal came when Shingler and OU's Natalie Grein went for a 50-50 ball near the top of the 18-yard box. Shingler got to the ball, but her sliding kick deflected off of Grein and over Shingler's head. Grein was able to score into the open net at the 87:12 mark.
Meglaughlin earned the shutout win for the visitors, making a total of six saves. Shingler had seven stops for the Falcons. For the match, Ohio had a 15-12 advantage in shots, including a 9-6 edge in shots on goal.
The Falcons, as mentioned, had a school record-tying 17 corner kicks to the Bobcats' seven. The match featured a total of five cards, including a red card to Anderson with only 1:20 left in the contest. She will sit out BGSU's Sunday match vs. Marshall University.
That contest between the Falcons and the Thundering Herd will begin at 1:00 p.m. at Cochrane Field, and is part of a doubleheader which will see the BGSU men's team take on Western Illinois University at 3:30 p.m.
NOTES
QUOTING HEAD COACH ANDY RICHARDS
"If you saw today's match, you basically saw each of our last six matches. With the exception of the first half of the Pittsburgh match (Aug. 29), when we didn't play very well, it has been the same old story. We start off playing great, but can not finish our chances and get a lead, and it enables the other team to stay in the game."
"We are doing everything but scoring goals. Unfortunately, of course, scoring goals is exactly the thing you need to do to win. Whether it is good defending, bad luck or poor execution, we just have not been able to put the ball in the net."
"We had some good individual performances today. Molly Bremen had a great match. Molly, in my mind, was the player of the game today. That's not to say that others played poorly; we had a number of good performances today. But, Molly really stood out in my mind."
"Of course I am frustrated by losing, as we want to win every game. More than anything, though, I am amazed at this (non-scoring) run. I have never been a part of such a streak. I don't have all of the answers, but I just feel that somehow, this is going to break for us, and when it does, the floodgates will burst wide open."
"Like I said, I don't have all the answers. What I do know, though, is that we need to keep working hard. When you are given a challenge, you must keep going, keep working and persevere. Sometimes, when it seems like the situation is as bleak as can be, that is the moment when it all changes for the better. Things are going to break for us. I am looking forward to that happening, and I just wish it would happen sooner rather than later."
