Junior Rodcliff Hall, shown here in the Michigan game, had his first goal at BGSU vs. IPFW Wednesday night
Falcons Put on a First-Half Clinic in 3-0 Win over IPFW
August 31, 2011 | Men's Soccer
BGSU rolls up three-goal halftime lead; Falcons are 2-0-0 for first time since 1999
The Bowling Green State University men's soccer team conducted a 45-minute clinic at Cochrane Field on Wednesday evening (Aug. 31). The Falcons, clicking on all cylinders, rolled up a three-goal halftime lead and rolled along to a 3-0 win over IPFW.
FINAL STATISTICS: HTML | PDF
BGSU-IPFW PHOTO GALLERY
HALFTIME MATCH PHOTO GALLERY - Real Arts and Sciences v Other Colleges United
Scroll to the bottom of the page for interviews with Eric Nichols, Tanner Fink and Brandon Silva
With the victory, the Falcons of head coach Eric Nichols are 2-0-0 on the young season. The 2-0-0 start is BGSU's first since the 1999 season.
The Mastodons drop to 1-2-0 on the year.
Juniors Rodcliff Hall and Zach Lemke and sophomore Ryan Comiskey scored the goals for the Brown and Orange, while sophomore goalkeeper Michael Wiest and his teammates posted a shutout for the second consecutive game.
The Falcons enjoyed a 20-6 advantage in shots, including a 10-3 margin in shots on goal. Wiest made three saves en route to the win.
BGSU controlled the match from the outset, dominating the first 45 minutes of play. The Falcons had chance after chance at the offensive end of the pitch, and it seemed that BGSU players got to every ball and were a step or two ahead of their IPFW foes on every play in that opening half.
The Falcons had the first five shot attempts of the match, breaking through on the fifth. Hall gave the Brown and Orange the lead for good at the 13:20 mark.
With exactly 33 minutes gone, Comiskey rammed home a shot for a 2-0 lead, and Lemke nodded home a cross from sophomore Matt Griesinger with just under four minutes left in the opening half.
The Falcons, in fact, had numerous high-quality scoring chances on the evening. Just three minutes into the match, freshman Danny Baraldi came up with a steal and poked the ball ahead to Hall. The junior transfer slid a pass to onrushing sophomore Ryan Snashall, who fired a shot that IPFW starting goalkeeper Ryan Bristol was able to knock away with a diving effort.
The Falcons' first goal actually had a similar start to that play, as Baraldi again poked the ball away from the IPFW player who was trying to shield it from the Falcon freshman. Baraldi's pass went to Hall, who moved from left to right as he fought off a Mastodon player while working his way upfield. Hall took his time, faking a shot once or twice before freeing himself from his would-be defender and firing a shot from approximately 20 yards out. The shot, as was the case with all three BGSU goals, found the lower right corner of the net. Baraldi picked up the lone assist on the play.
The 'Dons responded quickly, working the ball downfield and firing a shot within 40 seconds of the BG goal. Jason Mills received a right-side cross and uncorked a hard shot from the center of the penalty area, but the shot was high of the mark from about 15 yards out.
Sophomores Zach Schewee and Sam Galloway teamed up to create another chance for the Brown and Orange with 18 minutes gone. Galloway took Schewee's pass and played a through-ball into the 18-yard box. Hall and Bristol both went for the pass on the left side of the box. Hall got there first and attempted to poke a shot past the IPFW 'keeper, but Bristol was able to block the ball, and a defender cleared it out of danger.
The 'Dons could not keep the ball for very long, however, as BGSU continually had possession in the offensive end. One minute later, Griesinger's right-side cross was just a little too high for Baraldi's header attempt. Several minutes later, Lemke and Hall very nearly worked some give-and-go magic on the right side of the box, but an IPFW defender was able to get a boot on the ball at the last second.
With 17 minutes left in the half, Bristol grabbed a Lemke cross, with both Comiskey and Baraldi lurking on the doorstep.
Exactly 12 minutes remained until the intermission when the Falcons doubled the lead. After an IPFW foul, Baraldi lined up for a free kick approximately 35 yards out on the left side of the pitch. Baraldi played the ball into the penalty area, where Snashall got a head on it. Snashall, facing away from the goal, headed the ball backward, and his shot was ticketed for the lower right-hand corner of the net before Bristol made an acrobatic diving stop. The 'keeper allowed a rebound, however, and Comiskey buried the ball in the back of the net for a two-goal advantage.
The visitors had a scoring chance, against the run of play, with six minutes left before the break, but Wiest made a diving stop of Colin Helmrich's shot. Several minutes later, the Falcons would score again.
The Falcons' third goal began when Snashall played the ball out wide to Griesinger. The sophomore defender's right-side diagonal ball sailed into the box where Lemke, with a nod of his head, redirected it past Bristol.
BG had one more scoring chance before the half, as Baraldi redirected a Comiskey cross on target. But, Bristol was able to make his fourth and final save of the night with 49 seconds on the clock.
Brandon Cloutier took over the goalkeeping duties in the second half, and kept the Falcons off the scoreboard, just barely. The Falcons' first shot attempt of the period saw Schewee uncork a blast that rang off the crossbar. Less than two minutes later, a Snashall shot forced Cloutier to make a diving save.
Ten minutes into the period, Galloway's second and third effort allowed him to keep possession of the ball as the Falcons moved toward the IPFW goal once again, but Cloutier knocked Galloway's shot out of bounds for a corner kick.
Midway through the half, Baraldi blasted a long shot. It was all Cloutier could do to deflect the ball over the line for another corner.
With 23 minutes left, the 'Dons had their lone shot on goal of the half. A cross by Mitch Falkenstern sailed into the box, and Helmrich, stationed about six yards away from the goal line, got his head on the ball. Helmrich headed it straight down, but the ball was struck with enough force that it took a high bounce and sailed toward the upper half of the goal. Wiest, however, easily gathered it in for his lone save of the half.
In the final minute of the match, the Falcons were able to string together five or six passes, with juniors Chris McLean and Joey D'Agostino and senior Chris Jurtovski involved in the buildup. McLean took Jurtovski's pass on the left side of the penalty area and slid a ball to Comiskey, but the sophomore's shot went over the bar with 30 seconds remaining.
Bristol had four saves in his 45 minutes of work for the 'Dons, while Cloutier made three stops in the second half. The Falcons had a 9-2 advantage on corner kicks.
BGSU will conclude a three-match homestand with a Saturday evening (Sept. 3) contest vs. Cleveland State University. That match will begin at 5:00 p.m. at Cochrane.
FALCON TEAM NOTES
* BGSU, as mentioned, has started a season at 2-0-0 for the first time since 1999 ... BGSU has been unbeaten after two matches on three occasions during that span ... the Falcons started both the 2003 and '07 seasons with 1-0-1 records, and last year's BG club was 0-0-2 after two games.
* The Falcons have matched the home win total for all of last season ... the 2010 club went 2-4-0 at home, with wins over Wright State and Buffalo and losses to Akron, Lipscomb, Western Michigan and Michigan State ... this year, BG has two wins at Cochrane Field prior to the end of August.
* BGSU has not had more than two home wins in a season since the 2007 club went 4-3-2 at Cochrane ... the 2008 team went 2-4-0 at home, while the '09 Falcons were 2-4-2.
* The last time BGSU scored three goals in a game was last Sept. 22, a 3-0 win over Wright State at Cochrane ... the Falcons have not scored more than three goals in a match since a 4-3 win at Buffalo on Oct. 16, 2009.
* The Falcons scored three first-half goals in Wednesday night's win ... BGSU scored a total of four first-half goals in all of last season, a total of 18 matches.
* BGSU had not scored three goals in a half since that 4-3 victory at Buffalo two years ago ... in that game, the Brown and Orange scored three times in the second half.
* The last time the Falcons had scored three first-half goals in a game was on Nov. 2, 2007 ... in that match, BG took a 3-0 halftime lead over Northern Illinois en route to a 3-1 win.
* BGSU has posted back-to-back shutouts for the first time in eight years, since the 2003 team blanked Cincinnati and UW-Green Bay to open the season.
FALCON PLAYER NOTES
* Junior Rodcliff Hall scored the first goal of his Falcon career ... Hall is in his first season at BGSU after playing two years at Owens CC.
* Freshman Danny Baraldi and sophomore Ryan Snashall each had their first two-assist games ... for Baraldi, the assists were the first and second of his brief career ... Snashall had one assist last season.
* Sophomore Matt Griesinger picked up his first career point with an assist on junior Zach Lemke's goal.
* Sophomore Ryan Comiskey and Lemke each scored their first goal of the season ... Comiskey now has three career goals, having scored vs. Michigan and Florida Atlantic last fall ... Lemke's goal was the second of his career, as he scored the winner in last year's Buffalo match.
* Sophomore Michael Wiest earned his second collegiate shutout in his second career start ... Wiest has played a total of 209:16 in his career, and has not allowed a goal.
* A total of 20 players saw action for the Falcons on Wednesday night ... two of those 20 players, freshmen Jon Kumher and Nico Oliverio, made their respective collegiate debuts.
* Four BGSU players played all 90 minutes in Wednesday's win ... that group included Wiest, central defenders Alex Bechtol and Tanner Fink, and midfielder Brandon Silva ... 18 Falcons posted double-digit totals in minutes played vs. IPFW.
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FINAL STATISTICS: HTML | PDF
BGSU-IPFW PHOTO GALLERY
HALFTIME MATCH PHOTO GALLERY - Real Arts and Sciences v Other Colleges United
Scroll to the bottom of the page for interviews with Eric Nichols, Tanner Fink and Brandon Silva
With the victory, the Falcons of head coach Eric Nichols are 2-0-0 on the young season. The 2-0-0 start is BGSU's first since the 1999 season.
The Mastodons drop to 1-2-0 on the year.
Juniors Rodcliff Hall and Zach Lemke and sophomore Ryan Comiskey scored the goals for the Brown and Orange, while sophomore goalkeeper Michael Wiest and his teammates posted a shutout for the second consecutive game.
The Falcons enjoyed a 20-6 advantage in shots, including a 10-3 margin in shots on goal. Wiest made three saves en route to the win.
BGSU controlled the match from the outset, dominating the first 45 minutes of play. The Falcons had chance after chance at the offensive end of the pitch, and it seemed that BGSU players got to every ball and were a step or two ahead of their IPFW foes on every play in that opening half.
The Falcons had the first five shot attempts of the match, breaking through on the fifth. Hall gave the Brown and Orange the lead for good at the 13:20 mark.
With exactly 33 minutes gone, Comiskey rammed home a shot for a 2-0 lead, and Lemke nodded home a cross from sophomore Matt Griesinger with just under four minutes left in the opening half.
The Falcons, in fact, had numerous high-quality scoring chances on the evening. Just three minutes into the match, freshman Danny Baraldi came up with a steal and poked the ball ahead to Hall. The junior transfer slid a pass to onrushing sophomore Ryan Snashall, who fired a shot that IPFW starting goalkeeper Ryan Bristol was able to knock away with a diving effort.
The Falcons' first goal actually had a similar start to that play, as Baraldi again poked the ball away from the IPFW player who was trying to shield it from the Falcon freshman. Baraldi's pass went to Hall, who moved from left to right as he fought off a Mastodon player while working his way upfield. Hall took his time, faking a shot once or twice before freeing himself from his would-be defender and firing a shot from approximately 20 yards out. The shot, as was the case with all three BGSU goals, found the lower right corner of the net. Baraldi picked up the lone assist on the play.
The 'Dons responded quickly, working the ball downfield and firing a shot within 40 seconds of the BG goal. Jason Mills received a right-side cross and uncorked a hard shot from the center of the penalty area, but the shot was high of the mark from about 15 yards out.
Sophomores Zach Schewee and Sam Galloway teamed up to create another chance for the Brown and Orange with 18 minutes gone. Galloway took Schewee's pass and played a through-ball into the 18-yard box. Hall and Bristol both went for the pass on the left side of the box. Hall got there first and attempted to poke a shot past the IPFW 'keeper, but Bristol was able to block the ball, and a defender cleared it out of danger.
The 'Dons could not keep the ball for very long, however, as BGSU continually had possession in the offensive end. One minute later, Griesinger's right-side cross was just a little too high for Baraldi's header attempt. Several minutes later, Lemke and Hall very nearly worked some give-and-go magic on the right side of the box, but an IPFW defender was able to get a boot on the ball at the last second.
With 17 minutes left in the half, Bristol grabbed a Lemke cross, with both Comiskey and Baraldi lurking on the doorstep.
Exactly 12 minutes remained until the intermission when the Falcons doubled the lead. After an IPFW foul, Baraldi lined up for a free kick approximately 35 yards out on the left side of the pitch. Baraldi played the ball into the penalty area, where Snashall got a head on it. Snashall, facing away from the goal, headed the ball backward, and his shot was ticketed for the lower right-hand corner of the net before Bristol made an acrobatic diving stop. The 'keeper allowed a rebound, however, and Comiskey buried the ball in the back of the net for a two-goal advantage.
The visitors had a scoring chance, against the run of play, with six minutes left before the break, but Wiest made a diving stop of Colin Helmrich's shot. Several minutes later, the Falcons would score again.
The Falcons' third goal began when Snashall played the ball out wide to Griesinger. The sophomore defender's right-side diagonal ball sailed into the box where Lemke, with a nod of his head, redirected it past Bristol.
BG had one more scoring chance before the half, as Baraldi redirected a Comiskey cross on target. But, Bristol was able to make his fourth and final save of the night with 49 seconds on the clock.
Brandon Cloutier took over the goalkeeping duties in the second half, and kept the Falcons off the scoreboard, just barely. The Falcons' first shot attempt of the period saw Schewee uncork a blast that rang off the crossbar. Less than two minutes later, a Snashall shot forced Cloutier to make a diving save.
Ten minutes into the period, Galloway's second and third effort allowed him to keep possession of the ball as the Falcons moved toward the IPFW goal once again, but Cloutier knocked Galloway's shot out of bounds for a corner kick.
Midway through the half, Baraldi blasted a long shot. It was all Cloutier could do to deflect the ball over the line for another corner.
With 23 minutes left, the 'Dons had their lone shot on goal of the half. A cross by Mitch Falkenstern sailed into the box, and Helmrich, stationed about six yards away from the goal line, got his head on the ball. Helmrich headed it straight down, but the ball was struck with enough force that it took a high bounce and sailed toward the upper half of the goal. Wiest, however, easily gathered it in for his lone save of the half.
In the final minute of the match, the Falcons were able to string together five or six passes, with juniors Chris McLean and Joey D'Agostino and senior Chris Jurtovski involved in the buildup. McLean took Jurtovski's pass on the left side of the penalty area and slid a ball to Comiskey, but the sophomore's shot went over the bar with 30 seconds remaining.
Bristol had four saves in his 45 minutes of work for the 'Dons, while Cloutier made three stops in the second half. The Falcons had a 9-2 advantage on corner kicks.
BGSU will conclude a three-match homestand with a Saturday evening (Sept. 3) contest vs. Cleveland State University. That match will begin at 5:00 p.m. at Cochrane.
FALCON TEAM NOTES
* BGSU, as mentioned, has started a season at 2-0-0 for the first time since 1999 ... BGSU has been unbeaten after two matches on three occasions during that span ... the Falcons started both the 2003 and '07 seasons with 1-0-1 records, and last year's BG club was 0-0-2 after two games.
* The Falcons have matched the home win total for all of last season ... the 2010 club went 2-4-0 at home, with wins over Wright State and Buffalo and losses to Akron, Lipscomb, Western Michigan and Michigan State ... this year, BG has two wins at Cochrane Field prior to the end of August.
* BGSU has not had more than two home wins in a season since the 2007 club went 4-3-2 at Cochrane ... the 2008 team went 2-4-0 at home, while the '09 Falcons were 2-4-2.
* The last time BGSU scored three goals in a game was last Sept. 22, a 3-0 win over Wright State at Cochrane ... the Falcons have not scored more than three goals in a match since a 4-3 win at Buffalo on Oct. 16, 2009.
* The Falcons scored three first-half goals in Wednesday night's win ... BGSU scored a total of four first-half goals in all of last season, a total of 18 matches.
* BGSU had not scored three goals in a half since that 4-3 victory at Buffalo two years ago ... in that game, the Brown and Orange scored three times in the second half.
* The last time the Falcons had scored three first-half goals in a game was on Nov. 2, 2007 ... in that match, BG took a 3-0 halftime lead over Northern Illinois en route to a 3-1 win.
* BGSU has posted back-to-back shutouts for the first time in eight years, since the 2003 team blanked Cincinnati and UW-Green Bay to open the season.
FALCON PLAYER NOTES
* Junior Rodcliff Hall scored the first goal of his Falcon career ... Hall is in his first season at BGSU after playing two years at Owens CC.
* Freshman Danny Baraldi and sophomore Ryan Snashall each had their first two-assist games ... for Baraldi, the assists were the first and second of his brief career ... Snashall had one assist last season.
* Sophomore Matt Griesinger picked up his first career point with an assist on junior Zach Lemke's goal.
* Sophomore Ryan Comiskey and Lemke each scored their first goal of the season ... Comiskey now has three career goals, having scored vs. Michigan and Florida Atlantic last fall ... Lemke's goal was the second of his career, as he scored the winner in last year's Buffalo match.
* Sophomore Michael Wiest earned his second collegiate shutout in his second career start ... Wiest has played a total of 209:16 in his career, and has not allowed a goal.
* A total of 20 players saw action for the Falcons on Wednesday night ... two of those 20 players, freshmen Jon Kumher and Nico Oliverio, made their respective collegiate debuts.
* Four BGSU players played all 90 minutes in Wednesday's win ... that group included Wiest, central defenders Alex Bechtol and Tanner Fink, and midfielder Brandon Silva ... 18 Falcons posted double-digit totals in minutes played vs. IPFW.
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