Vikings, Purple Eagles Up Next for Falcons

The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team, believe it or not, reaches the midpoint of the non-conference schedule this weekend. The Falcons of head coach Andy Richards will head to the rock 'n' roll capital of the world for a Friday night (Sept. 2) game vs. Cleveland State University, with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at CSU's Krenzler Field.

Then, the Brown and Orange will return home for a Sunday (Sept. 4) match vs. Niagara University. That contest will begin at 1:00 p.m. at Cochrane Field. Admission to all BGSU home soccer matches is free.

FALCONS at CLEVELAND STATE
Friday, Sept. 2, 2011 • 7:00 p.m.
VENUE: Krenzler Field; Cleveland, Ohio
RECORDS:
• BGSU: 0-3-0 (4-12-4, 2-6-3 MAC in 2010)
• CSU: 2-1-0 (9-8-2, 5-3-0 Horizon League in 2010)
SERIES*: BGSU leads, 3-0-0 | STREAK: BGSU - 3
LAST MEETING: at BGSU 2, CSU 1 (Sept. 12, 2010)
LAST MEETING IN CLEVELAND^: BGSU 5, at CSU 1 (Oct. 1, 2004)
COACHES:
• BGSU: Andy Richards (Sheffield City Polytechnic [England], '89), 102-111-26 in 12th year at BGSU and overall; 55-55-15 in MAC matches
• CSU: Derrek Falor (Western Washington, '92), 38-108-8 in eighth year at CSU; 94-155-18 in 14th year overall
LIVE STREAMING: Available through the Horizon League Network (link at BGSUFalcons.com)
LIVE STATS: Available at CSUVikings.com or right here at BGSUFalcons.com
^ match actually held in Strongsville, Ohio

FALCONS vs. NIAGARA
Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011 • 1:00 p.m.
VENUE: Cochrane Field; Bowling Green, Ohio
RECORDS (heading into Friday's matches):
• BGSU: 0-3-0 (4-12-4, 2-6-3 MAC in 2010)
• Niagara: 0-2-0 (10-6-1, 5-4-0 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in 2010) – NU plays at Toledo on Friday
SERIES*: BGSU leads, 1-0-1
LAST MEETING: BGSU 0, at Niagara 0 (2-OT) (Sept. 3, 2010)
LAST MEETING AT BGSU: at BGSU 2, Niagara 0 (Sept. 12, 1999)
COACHES:
• BGSU: Andy Richards (Sheffield City Polytechnic [England], '89), 102-111-26 in 12th year at BGSU and overall; 55-55-15 in MAC matches
• Niagara: Peter Veltri (Bethany, '93), 122-97-14 in 13th year at NU
LIVE STATS: Available right here at BGSUFalcons.com
* Note: Series information can be found on pages 47-49 of the 2011 BGSU online media guide, which is available in both PDF and flip interactive formats here at BGSUFalcons.com

LIVE STATISTICS
Again in 2011, all BGSU home women's soccer matches, and most away contests, will have live statistics available on the web. If you can't make it to the field, simply log on to BGSUFalcons.com at game time. The live stats links can be found on the front page of the site (in the 'schedule' section) or by clicking on the women's soccer schedule and choosing the corresponding match.

LIVE STREAMING
Friday's match at Cleveland State is scheduled to be video streamed online via the Horizon League network. A link to the video feed will be available at BGSUFalcons.com, both on the front page of the site and on the women's soccer schedule page.

ON THE HORIZON...
The Cleveland State match will be the Falcons' third against a Horizon League team in the first four games of the season. In all, BGSU plays five HL foes this fall, taking on Loyola (Ill.), Detroit, CSU, Youngstown State and Valparaiso.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
The Falcons will enter the weekend with a record of 0-3-0. BGSU began the season with a trip to Illinois, dropping a 1-0 decision to Loyola (Ill.) in the season opener on Aug. 19 and falling at Illinois State, 5-2, two days later (Aug. 21). On Sunday (Aug. 28), the Brown and Orange fell to Detroit, 3-0, in the home opener.

Three players have played all 270 minutes this season to date. That group included redshirt junior goalkeeper Becca Ison as well as senior captain Alyssa Zuccaro and sophomore Alyssa Carmack. Freshman Kaylee Draper has been on the field for 264 of the 270 minutes, while redshirt freshman Kylie Briem has played 257. Those five players each have started all three matches, as have senior Megan Amann and redshirt sophomore Jenny Fowler.

Draper and sophomore Ashley Miller are tied for the team scoring lead with two points apiece. Each player scored in the Falcons' match at ISU. Junior Sarah VonderBrink has one point, having assisted on Miller's goal.

In net, Ison currently has a total of 22 saves to lead the MAC, and she also paces conference 'keepers in saves per game, with 7.33. Ison made a career-high 11 stops in the ISU contest, and had eight more saves vs. Detroit.

Head coach Andy Richards and his staff, assistants Kellie Evans and Jimmy Walker, welcomed back a total of 17 letterwinners, including seven starters, from last year's club. BGSU's returning players combined for nearly 67 percent of the team's goals and almost 73% of the assists a year ago. Four of the Falcons' top-five scorers return from the 2010 campaign, including Zuccaro, who led the team in scoring. Zuccaro had one-third of the team's goals, with eight, and also led the Brown and Orange with six assists. Her total of 22 points was the highest by a BGSU player since the 2005 season.

Zuccaro currently has career totals of 40 points on 15 goals and 10 assists. She ranks eighth on the school career list for goals, and is ninth in career points on that BG chart.

Sophomore Madeline Wideman had 11 points in her inaugural season at BGSU, tying for second on the team in scoring. Nine of those 11 points came in MAC matches, with that total trailing only Zuccaro's 14 points.

Amann and VonderBrink each had seven points last season. Amann's five assists last fall upped her career total to 18, tying her for fourth in BGSU history.

LAST WEEKEND
The Falcons suffered a 3-0 loss to Detroit on Sunday (Aug. 28), in the home opener at Cochrane Field. A goal by UDM's Sarah Dzuris late in the first half held up as the winner, and the Titans got a pair of second-half goals from Nina Carter and Kaitlyn Quarrell. Abby McCollum assisted on all three goals. Redshirt junior Becca Ison made eight saves in net, including four stops in each half.

ISON IMPRESSES
Sometimes, statistics can be deceiving. For example, a glance at the BGSU season stats might make one think that redshirt junior goalkeeper Becca Ison has struggled this year. Nothing could be farther from the truth, as Ison has played very well in all three matches.

Ison entered the season with career totals of 18 saves and just over 306 minutes played. Already this fall, she has played 270 minutes and has made a MAC-leading 22 saves.

Ison played 90 minutes of a match for the first time in her collegiate career in the season opener at Loyola (Aug. 19). The Ramblers' only goal was an own goal, as a free kick glanced off of the head of a BGSU defender and into the net. Ison's three saves included a pair of spectacular stops within the first 15 minutes of the match.

At Illinois State (Aug. 21), 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). Ison's save total included eight in the second half alone. She made several acrobatic saves in each half vs. the Redbirds. And, Ison made eight more stops, including several difficult saves, against Detroit on Sunday.

FALCON COACH ANDY RICHARDS
BGSU head coach Andy Richards, now in his 12th season at the helm, has proven himself to be one of the most successful mentors in MAC women's soccer history. He has guided the Falcons to an overall record of 102-111-26, and a record of 55-55-15 in MAC regular-season play. Richards picked up the 100th victory of his collegiate head-coaching career in the Falcons' 3-2 win at Indiana State last season (Sept. 19).

Richards' teams perennially play one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the MAC. In his first decade-plus in BG, he has led the Falcons to the MAC Tournament on eight occasions, with the team advancing to the semifinals seven times. BGSU is 10-5-5 in MAC Tournament matches during his tenure, and no coach has more trips to the league tourney title game than Richards' five. Two of those appearances – in 2004 and 2005 – resulted in MAC Tournament titles and trips to the NCAA Championships. Richards and the Falcons also won the '05 regular-season crown.

A native of Warwick, England, Richards earned his Bachelor of Education degree from Sheffield City Polytechnic in 1989. He received his Master of Education degree from Oregon State in 1997.

FALCONS PICKED TO FINISH FIFTH IN EAST
The Falcons have been picked to finish fifth in the MAC's East Division standings in 2011, according to the preseason coaches poll, released Aug. 15. The 2011 season marks the second year that a divisional format has been utilized for MAC women's soccer. Last year, the Brown and Orange tied for fourth in the East.

THE OPPONENTS
Cleveland State will enter Friday's match with a record of 2-1-0 on the young season. The Vikings bounced back from a season-opening 3-2 loss to Kent State to pick up wins over Duquesne (2-1) and Robert Morris (3-2). The DU match was the lone home contest to date. Valerie Stahl and Lynsay Strahorn each have scored two of the Vikings' seven goals to date. Goalkeeper Sarah Wood started two matches, but suffered a season-ending knee injury. Abby Crotteau stepped in and got the win in the RMU match, but Becky Williams is listed as the probable starter for the BGSU game in CSU's weekly release. Last year, coach Derrek Falor's Vikings set school records for wins, both overall and in Horizon League play, with marks of 9-8-2 and 5-3-0, respectively. The school's athletics web site is CSUVikings.com.

Niagara is 0-2-0 on the year, heading into a Friday match at Toledo. The Purple Eagles opened the season last weekend, suffering road losses to Robert Morris (5-1) and Saint Francis (Pa.) (2-0). Breanna Catipovic scored the team's lone goal. Head coach Peter Veltri's team went 10-6-1 overall and finished with a 5-4-0 mark in MAAC play. Veltri welcomed back 17 players from that team. The school's athletics web site is www.purpleeagles.com

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Cleveland State, 3-0-0, in the all-time series between the teams. The Falcons won both ends of a home-and-home series in 2004 and 2005, CSU's first two years as a program. Those two games included the only prior meeting in Northeast Ohio, a 5-1 BGSU win nearly seven years ago in Strongsville (Oct. 1, 2004). Last year (Sept. 12, 2010), the teams met at Cochrane Field, with Katie Stephenson and Sarah VonderBrink scoring BGSU's goals in a 2-1 win.
THE BGSU-CLEVELAND STATE SERIES
(BGSU leads, 3-0-0)
Oct. 1, 2004 -- BGSU 5, at Cleveland State 1
Sept. 16, 2005 -- at BGSU 6, Cleveland State 0
Sept. 12, 2010 -- at BGSU 2, Cleveland State 1

The Falcons lead Niagara, 1-0-1, in that series, with a home win and a road tie. The teams' initial meeting came over a decade ago (Sept. 12, 1999) and saw BGSU post a 2-0 win at Cochrane Field. The Falcons had no fewer than 46 shot attempts in that game, a total that still stands as the school record. Despite a 46-4 advantage in shots, BGSU did not break the scoreless tie until the 82:02 mark of the match. Last year (Sept. 3, 2010), the teams battled to a scoreless draw in double overtime in Western New York. Laura Arnold and Alexa Arsenault combined for the shutout in goal.
THE BGSU-NIAGARA SERIES
(BGSU leads, 1-0-1)
Sept. 12, 1999 -- at BGSU 2, Niagara 0
Sept. 3, 2010 -- BGSU 0, at Niagara 0 (2-OT)

EXTRA TIME (A FEW FINAL FALCON NOTES)
Four Falcons made their first appearances of the season in Sunday's Detroit match ... for freshmen Lindsey Adshade and Sidney Huth, it marked the first playing time of their respective collegiate careers ... seniors Courtney Beinlich and Brittany Hopkins also saw action for the first time this fall • freshman Hailey Yondo made the first start of her collegiate career against the Titans • another freshman, Kaylee Draper, was in the starting lineup for the third time in as many matches since coming to BGSU ... Draper is the lone first-year Falcon to start every match this season.

THE 2011 CAPTAIN
Senior Alyssa Zuccaro is the captain of the 2011 women's soccer Falcons.

UP NEXT
After the Niagara match, the Falcons will hit the road for the next two contests. BGSU will head to East Lansing, Mich., to face Michigan State next Friday (Sept. 9), then will meet Youngstown State on the road two days later (Sept. 11). The MSU match begins at 2:30 p.m., while the YSU match is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. kickoff.

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