Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons at Michigan: A Running Diary
September 23, 2009 | Men's Soccer
4:30 p.m. – The bus has just crossed over the
4:47 p.m. – U-M is the first of two consecutive nationally-ranked opponents that the Falcons will face – both on the road – this week. Due to the midweek game, I finished my weekly release on Monday (Sept. 21), before all of the latest polls were released. In this week's rankings, Michigan is ranked 15th in the TopDrawerSoccer.com poll, 16th by Soccer Times, 18th by Soccer America, 19th by College Soccer News and 22nd in the NSCAA poll. Akron, by the way, is ranked number one in the nation in every single one of those polls. The Zips, BGSU's next opponent, are idle until Saturday's game in Akron.
4:54 p.m. – To get in the proper frame of mind for the game, I am listening to the songs from the 2008 BGSU men's soccer warmup CD on my iPod on the bus. Will this help the Falcons in any way tonight? Only time will tell.
5:03 p.m. – The team has arrived at the field, and I will hopefully be set up in their press area in the near future. I should take this opportunity to mention that there is not a press box. So, if it begins to rain, that could spell trouble for this diary, as precipitation would be hazardous to my laptop. Back in a little while ...
6:17 p.m. – Michigan's starting 11 will be Adam Keller, Julian Robles, Adam Shaw, Chase Tennant, Mauro Fuzetti, Cam Cameron, Jeffrey Quijano, Brian Klemczak, Latif Alashe, Daniel Gray and Chris Blais in goal.
6:24 p.m. – For the Falcons, it will be Jeff Smoker in net, Tyler Deal, Tanner Fink, Thomas McLean and Jake Custer in the back, Joey D'Agostino, Jacob Lawrence and Hunter Van Houten at midfield, and Chuko Evwaraye, Byard Ebling and Max Weston up front. D'Agostino (
6:40 p.m. – Those who know me know that I can't resist sharing my thoughts on music, whether I like it or hate it. When the Falcons arrived at the field, there was an alarming amount of music by Madonna being played. I don't think it's 80s Night, but we also were treated to “Opposites Attract” by Paula Abdul, Haddaway's “What is Love” and even Will Smith's “Summertime.” Now, however, we've settled into what would probably be considered a typical soccer warmup CD. So there you go.
6:45 p.m. -- Another song that was played during the pregame warmups is a favorite of BGSU's athletic communications GA, Ryan Gasser. I believe the song is called "Return of the Mack" (MAC?). To be honest, I'm not sure that Ryan likes the song -- he may hate it. But, I kind of like it. What is the point of this paragraph? I have no idea.
6:48 p.m. – As the public-address announcer reads a few pregame announcements, the teams are continuing to warm up on the field. For those who have been to
7:00 p.m. – And we are underway!
7:02 p.m. – The Falcons get the first shot of the game, as D'Agostino's shot from around the 18-yard box is hit hard, but directly at U-M goalkeeper Blais.
7:09 p.m. – Thomas McLean and a
7:10 p.m. – It appears that Garrett Bireline will take Thomas McLean's place on the field. The Falcons' leading scorer, Cameron Hepple, and Chris McLean are sitting out tonight's match with injuries.
7:14 p.m. – GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLL!!!! Max Weston scores his first collegiate goal with 35:25 left in the half. He took a pass from Jacob Lawrence, and hit a low shot from the right side of the pitch. It eluded the dive of Blais and nestled nicely inside the far (left) post. Lawrence and Evwaraye picked up assists. BGSU 1, U-M 0
7:17 p.m. – The Falcon bench is fired up right now, and BG is looking to ride the momentum of Weston's goal.
7:31 p.m. – With just under 19 minutes left in the first half, it's still one-nil, Falcons. Smoker just made a nice diving stop on Mauro Fuzetti, but the scoring chances are coming a little more often for the Wolverines now.
7:32 p.m. – Dusko Topolic and Gavin Dozier are checking into the lineup, replacing Custer and Ebling, respectively. We've got a BG goal kick with 17 minutes left in the half.
7:36 p.m. – Dozier and Evwaraye just worked a give-and-go play that resulted in a hard shot by Dozier. But, Blais was able to make a nice diving stop in traffic. We've got about 14 minutes left in the half.
7:45 p.m. – GOAL - The Wolverines tie the score late in the first half, as Justin Meram goes far post. Chase Tennant assists on the goal, which comes with 5:30 left before halftime. BGSU 1, U-M 1
7:49 p.m. -- Ahmad Smith replaces Weston in the Falcon 11. We have about two minutes left in the half.
7:54 p.m. -- We've reached halftime, and are tied, 1-1. The Falcons had the momentum for much of the opening half, and BG has played well. But, U-M finished the half strong after the Meram goal.
7:57 p.m. -- Some halftime stats:
Shots - Michigan 7, BGSU 4
Shots on Goal - BGSU 3, Michigan 2
Saves - Blais (U-M) 2, Smoker (BGSU) 1
Corner kicks - Michigan 2, BGSU 1
Fouls - BGSU 7, Michigan 5.
8:02 p.m. -- I meant to mention this after Weston's goal, but forgot in all the excitement ... Michigan had given up only four goals in the previous six games, all wins. The Wolverines entered tonight's game at 6-1-0 on the year, including a 3-0-0 mark here in Ann Arbor. Also, you are probably aware that live stats of this game are available.
8:07 p.m. -- We're about ready to start the second half. For the Falcons, we've got a lineup of Smoker, D'Agostino, Weston, Bireline, Ebling, Deal, Fink, Evwaraye, Van Houten, Custer and Lawrence. Off to take a few pictures...
8:12 p.m. -- GOAL - U-M has taken the lead, as Meram scores his second of the night. It was a pretty goal, as he headed home a right-side cross. U-M 2, BGSU 1
8:12 p.m. -- GOAL - And, just that fast, the Wolverines have scored again. This one came from Hamoody Saad. It's 3-1, U-M, five minutes into the half. U-M 3, BGSU 1
8:13 p.m. -- If my math is correct, those two goals came just 28 seconds apart.
8:16 p.m. -- A long ball by Van Houten nearly put Ebling through, but Blais was able to beat him to the ball by a fraction of a second, and was able to cover up.
8:21 p.m. -- The Wolverines have had the possession-time advantage this half. GOAL - And, as I typed that last sentence, Meram scored again, giving him a hat trick and his team a 4-1 lead with 32 minutes left in the second half. Dozier is back in the game, and Topolic and Jurtovski are set to check in for the Falcons. U-M 4, BGSU 1
8:26 p.m. -- GOAL - U-M has increased the lead to 5-1 with 28:31 left. Mauro Fuzetti scored an unassisted goal to give the hosts a four-goal lead. U-M 5, BGSU 1
8:33 p.m. -- Smoker just made a great save on a U-M semi-breakaway. Unfortunately, the save will not show up in the final statistics, as offsides had been whistled just before the shot. We are midway through the second half.
8:35 p.m.-- Multiple substitutions for the Wolverines, including in goal, as Tim Bergsma takes over for Blais.
8:37 p.m. -- The Falcons had a little bit of an offensive flurry, but could not get a shot on goal. BG had several corner kicks, but a Jurtovski cross was just out of a teammate's reach after the first. After the second, Lawrence got his head on the ball in the box, but could not get much strength behind the shot as he was jostled by a U-M defender in traffic.
8:39 p.m. -- Colin Armstrong is into the game, replacing Topolic. Just over 15 minutes on the clock.
8:44 p.m. -- Smith and Topolic are back into the game for the Falcons, and Zach Lemke has also checked into the match. U-M's Alex Wood just whistled a long shot just wide of the net with about 10 minutes remaining.
8:48 p.m. -- Dozier's corner kick found the head of Tanner Fink in the box, but the U-M 'keeper was able to grab the header. We are down to six minutes left.
8:50 p.m. -- With 4:31 on the clock, Smoker dives to smother a hard shot by U-M's Cam Cameron. The shot was deflected by a BG defender, adding to Smoker's degree of difficulty on the play.
8:51 p.m. -- Two more stops for Smoker, on a hard initial shot and a rebound header.
8:55 p.m. -- And we have reached full time. Final score: U-M 5, BGSU 1. Check back later this evening for a game recap and final stats here at BGSUFalcons.com.
10:30 p.m. -- The bus is pulling into the parking lot at Perry Stadium East. Thanks to the team and coaching staff for letting me tag along. Call me a crazy, but some good things happened in tonight's match, despite the loss. BGSU played a nationally-ranked team even for 45 minutes, without several starters, and the team's record is somewhat misleading due to the difficulty of the schedule. Obviouslly, that schedule doesn't get any easier, with a trip to #1 Akron just three days from now. But, I think good things are in store for this team in the near future under head coach Eric Nichols and assistants Paul Habrecht and Eric Pfeifer. I can be accused of many things -- long, rambling paragraphs; poor grammar and sentence structure; a bad attitude and sour disposition much of the time, etc. -- but, I rarely make overly positive statements without having a reason to do so. Did I mention I am prone to long, rambling paragraphs? OK, time to wrap this up. Thanks for humoring me by reading this, and we'll see you at the next match. Roll Along!
