Redbirds Roar Back for 5-2 Win over Falcons

Sunday, August 21

Normal, Ill.

1:00 PM CT

Bowling Green State University

0-2-0

Illinois State

1-1-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Bowling Green	2	0	2
Illinois State	0	5	5

Ashley Miller scored her first collegiate goal in the Illinois State match ...

August 21, 2011 | Women's Soccer

Box Score

Miller, Draper each score their first collegiate goal for BGSU

By: NORMAL, Ill. (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Trailing by two goals at the half, host Illinois State University roared back with a second-half scoring explosion en route to a 5-2 win over the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team Sunday afternoon (Aug. 21), The non-conference match was held at Adelaide Street Field.

BGSU-ISU Boxscore - PDF
Scroll to the bottom of the page for a postmatch interview with head coach Andy Richards

With the win, the Redbirds improve to 1-1 on the young season, while the Falcons fall to 0-2 on the year.

The Falcons had taken a 2-0 lead late in the first half, on goals by sophomore Ashley Miller and freshman Kaylee Draper less than five minutes apart. But, ISU's Kyla Cross scored a pair of goals just 2:04 apart early in the second period.

Rachel Tejada, who assisted on both of Cross's goals, scored a goal of her own to give the hosts the lead for good. Anna Stinson and Aimee Wronski each found the back of the net to close out the scoring for the Redbirds.

Despite the scoreline, Falcon goalkeeper Becca Ison had a solid game. The redshirt junior made a career-high 11 saves, including several acrobatic stops in each half.

BGSU women's soccer 2011 - photo by Michael Nemeth

ISU held a 27-9 advantage in shot attempts, including a whopping 19-2 advantage in the second period. Aryn Newsom made three saves in net for the hosts, giving up both BGSU goals, while Mara Kremenovic earned the win in relief, playing the entire second half and making one stop.

The hosts nearly got on the scoreboard in the first minute of the match, as Wronski took a centering pass and slid a shot toward goal from approximately 15 yards out. But, her shot rolled just wide of the post.

After another shot attempt by the Redbirds several minutes later, BGSU would have the next five shots of the match, forcing Newsom to make three saves during that stretch. The last of those shots was a low shot by senior captain Alyssa Zuccaro, which Newsom was able to redirect wide with a diving stop midway through the period.

With 16 minutes left before halftime, Tejada nearly put the hosts on the board, but her one-timer went just over the crossbar. After a corner kick several minutes later, the Redbirds had several shots blocked by the BGSU defense. And, a few minutes after that, the Falcons struck at the other end of the field.

Junior Sarah VonderBrink slid a pass to her left, finding the onrushing Miller. Miller took a touch as she headed into the penalty area, and deposited the ball into the lower right-hand corner of the net as Newsom was powerless to stop it. VonderBrink drew the lone assist on the play, which came with 8:49 left in the half.

Then, less than five minutes later, Draper netted her first goal, firing a long shot from the left side. Newsom got a hand on the shot, but could not stop the blast as it sailed into the upper half of the net. Draper's unassisted goal doubled BGSU's lead with 4:17 left before the intermission.

Ison made a point-blank save on a shot by Cross witih three minutes left in the period, and a follow-up try was blocked. BG took a two-goal lead into halftime.

The second half was all ISU, however, as the Redbirds scored four times within a span of just 17:28. Cross got her team on the scoreboard at the 50:39 mark. After a shot by Tejada was blocked by a Falcon defender, the ball caromed to Cross, who was stationed on the left side of the 18-yard box. Her shot sailed into the top of the net.

Then, just 2:04 later, Tejada assisted a goal by Cross again. As Tejada came uncontested into the penalty area, Ison left her line to cut down the angle. Tejada was able to push the ball past the BG 'keeper, then played a short right-side cross to Cross, who finished into the vacated net.

Tejada scored a goal of her own with 27:27 left in the match, and it proved to be the winner. Her well-placed shot found the far (right) corner of the net.

The hosts had several chances to increase the lead, but Ison made a leaping save of a shot by Cross, then thwarted a header by Kelly Rosenthal from point-blank range. Then, Ison made another diving stop against Stinson, for her third difficult save in a span of less than two minutes. But, Stinson and the Redbirds took a two-goal lead with just under 22 minutes left in the half.

Sophomore Madeline Wideman nearly pulled a goal back for the Falcons with 12-and-a-half minutes remaining. Freshman Ashley Garr played a ball to Zuccaro, who slid a pass left to the onrushing Wideman. Wideman's high shot forced Kremenovic to make a leaping save, as the ISU goalkeeper deflected the shot over the crossbar at the last second.

ISU had 14 corner kicks on the afternoon, and the last one resulted in the final goal of the match. Stinson's corner kick found the head of Wronski, who converted with just 3:19 on the clock to close the scoring.

Cross and Tejada had four points apiece in the match, while Stinson had three.

The Falcons now return to Northwest Ohio to prepare for the home opener against the University of Detroit Mercy next Sunday (Aug. 28). Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Cochrane Field.

FALCON NOTES
* Redshirt junior goalkeeper Becca Ison, as mentioned, had a solid performance in goal on Sunday ... Ison had a career-high 11 saves, nearly double her previous career-best total of six stops (vs. Indiana State in her collegiate debut on Aug. 28, 2009) ... her save total on Sunday included eight in the second half alone ... Ison made several diving saves in each half at Illinois State.

* Ison's first complete match of her career came in Friday's (Aug. 19) match at Loyola, and she also played all 90 minutes on Sunday at ISU ... Ison's total of 180 minutes played this season represents a career high ... she played a total of 158:51 in the 2009 season and 147:18 last fall, and has surpassed those totals prior to the start of the fall semester at BGSU this year.

* Freshman Kaylee Draper scored her first collegiate goal in Sunday's match ... Draper had nearly scored in Friday's match at Loyola, hitting the post with a first-half shot.

* Sophomore Ashley Miller had the first goal of her career on Sunday at ISU as well ... Miller, who played in 16 matches a year ago, had one shot on goal in all of 2010, but put her lone shot in Sunday's match past ISU 'keeper Aryn Newsom.

* Junior Sarah VonderBrink assisted on Miller's goal ... VonderBrink now has career totals of four assists and 10 points.

* Draper was in the starting lineup for the second time in as many matches ... another freshman, Kenzie Schlemitz, was in the lineup on Sunday, making the first start of her collegiate career.

* BGSU scored two goals in the first half for the first time since last Oct. 15 vs. Akron ... Sunday marked the first time the Falcons scored two first-half goals on the road in nearly three years, since a match at IPFW on Sept. 5, 2008.