Bowling Green State University Athletics
Meister, Falcons Head to NCAAs
November 08, 2005 | Women's Soccer
Nov. 8, 2005
By JACK CARLE, Sentinel Sports Editor - It didn't really matter that Bowling Green's NCAA matchup was flashed on the screen by ESPNEWS when the commentators where talking about a different part of the women's soccer bracket Monday.
The Falcons, 14-6-2, are in the NCAA tournament for the second straight year and know the task ahead of them Friday against Michigan State, 11-5-5, as the next chapter in the development of the program unfolds.
The BG-MSU game is at 5 p.m. at Notre Dame while the host school faces Valparaiso at 7:30.
"Last year was such a novelty for us. You see all those other great schools up there, schools with great tradition, not only in soccer, but other sports. It's wonderful to see Bowling Green up there," BG head coach Andy Richards said. "I had a feeling we would play a Big Ten team. When they flipped it up quickly, it almost took us by surprise. There wasn't this big buildup."
Last year when the NCAA tournament announcement was made, Bowling Green's Samantha Meister was facing surgery for a broken leg suffered in the final regular season match.
She could only sit and watch as her teammates rolled through the Mid-American Conference tournament to claim the first NCAA berth in school history. Meister then had surgery the day before the NCAA tournament game at Ohio State.
"It was kind of like a dream. I was watching the team play, I wish I could have done more," Meister said about the OSU game.
This year is a different story as Meister, a senior, is healthy and playing at a high level. She has a plate and the screws to hold the bone together still in her leg.
"Just knowing that this is probably one of the last few times I'll be playing, really kept pushing me to keep going and going harder and not wanting to stop because I don't know what my life will be without soccer," she said.
She was on crutches for six weeks after the surgery and then began her rehabilitation with her goals in mind.
"I went in the pool, swam. I lifted really hard and got on it (the injured leg) as soon as I could because I knew I had lost a lot," she said. Meister said she knew she was back to normal when she was able to complete the team's fitness test in mid-August.
The leg didn't slow her down this season as she was selected the MAC player of the year in voting by the coaches. Meister had eight goals and six assists during the regular season.
Knowing that she's going to play in Friday's match, Meister was able to appreciate the NCAA selection show this time around.
"It's exciting. I'm ready to show everybody what we've got," Meister said.
In addition to wanting to help her team return to the NCAA tournament, Meister was motivated in her rehabilitation by the fact this was the last go-round with the other eight seniors on the team.
"We've got nine girls who have played together for four years and you're going to know where they are going to be on the field," Meister said. "Then we had some awesome players come in, so I knew we were going to do it this year. All nine of us are driven to keep going."
BG dropped a 1-0 decision at MSU earlier this season. The two teams have met every year since soccer started at BG in 1997 with MSU holding a 7-1-1 advantage in the series. BG's current senior class lost 4-0 to the Spartans in their first collegiate game.
"There is little tradition going on and we have some familiarity with them," Richards said. "It's a game our team can get excited about.
"It's tremendous to be playing on that field against Michigan State. It's ground-breaking stuff for this program."
Friday's winners then play Sunday, also at Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish are the defending national champions.
