Falcons Top Milwaukee in Double OT, 2-1

Tuesday, September 25

Bowling Green, OH

6:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Milwaukee

September 25, 2012 | Men's Soccer

Baraldi's penalty kick in the 103rd minute gives BG the win

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Danny Baraldi v Milwaukee - John Enright photo

Sophomore Danny Baraldi hammered home a penalty kick in the second overtime period, giving the Bowling Green State University men's soccer team a 2-1 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Tuesday night (Sept. 25). The non-conference match was held at Cochrane Field.

BGSU 2, UWM 1 - PDF Boxscore
BGSU 2, UWM 1 - HTML Stats
PHOTO GALLERY - John Enright, BGSU Athletic Communications
Scroll down for highlights from the match & comments from Eric Nichols & Danny Baraldi

With the victory, the Falcons improve to 3-4-2 on the season, while dropping the Panthers to 4-4-0.

Baraldi had a three-point game, with an assist in addition to the winning goal. He and junior Ryan Snashall teamed up to assist junior Anthony Grant's first-half marker.

Baraldi's goal was his fourth of the season. He now has nine points on the year, leading the Brown and Orange in both goals and points.

Grant's goal was his second of the year, and his second against a Horizon League opponent. He scored the only goal in the Falcons' 1-0 win at Cleveland State on Sept. 14.

Laurie Bell scored UWM's goal on Tuesday night, converting a penalty kick of his own in the second half.

The teams combined for 17 first-half shots, with the Panthers firing 11, but only four of those shots were on goal. The first three came from the visitors, including a header by Jamie Bladen with just under 10 minutes left in the half.

Junior Michael Wiest saved all three of those UWM first-half shots on goal. He stopped Bell on a 10-yard shot after the Falcons had had trouble clearing the ball out of the area midway through the period, then thwarted Aaron Horvat's 15-yard try from straightaway center with 18 minutes left before the break.

After Bladen's offering, the Falcon goalkeeper quickly sent the ball the other way, beginning the sequence that led to the home team's only shot of the opening 45 minutes. That shot, of course, was on target.

Baraldi brought the ball upfield, and Snashall made an overlapping run which took him into the penalty area on the left side. Snashall took a pass from Baraldi, and froze UWM 'keeper John Shakon on his line, playing a square pass across the box to the onrushing Grant. Grant snuck behind the UWM defense at the far post, and all the junior had to do was knock the ball into the wide-open net. He did just that, giving BG the lead with 9:35 to go before the intermission.

For the Falcons, the goal broke a scoreless drought of 290:39, since that Grant goal at CSU. It was BG's first goal at Cochrane Field in 359:09, since a Zach Lemke goal in the second half of the Michigan State match on Aug. 29.

(Negative Stat[s] Alert: Falcon fans who didn't enjoy reading the previous paragraph, or who are particularly squeamish, might want to avoid the next two paragraphs altogether.)

Grant's goal marked the first time the Falcons led in a home game since the home opener vs. Saint Bonaventure back on Aug. 25. The goal gave a BG soccer team -- men or women -- the lead at Cochrane Field for the first time since Aug. 26, when the women's team posted a 2-1 victory over IUPUI.

Since that Aug. 26 win for the BG women, the Falcon soccer teams had gone a combined 795 minutes and 25 seconds without holding a lead at Cochrane. (End of negative stats[s] alert: back to the recap.)

Just over a minute remained in the half when the Falcons won a corner kick. Baraldi's kick found sophomore Vlad Lekarev in the box near the far post, and Lekarev hit a turnaround half-volley. But, the shot bounced straight down and caromed just over the goal.

Milwaukee's Bladen got the ball in the late stages of the period, but his shot was well high, and the Falcons took a 1-0 lead into the break.

With less than two minutes gone in the second half, the Falcons got a nice effort from junior Zach Schewee, but Shakon was up to the task. Schewee took a pass from Snashall and headed down the left side of the field. He cut the ball back and hit a hard, dipping shot, but Shakon was able to get his hands up and knock it away.

The Falcons had several more chances in the next few minutes, including a long stretch of possession in which BG was able to string five or six passes together. The play culminated with junior Matt Griesinger playing a cross from the right side of the field. Grant, with a defender on him, was able to redirect the ball, but could not put the shot on frame.

With just over 12 minutes gone in the period, however, the Panthers equalized. Horvat, who led all players with six shot attempts on the night, was taken down in the box and a penalty kick was awarded. Bell converted that kick for his UWM-leading fourth goal of the year, and the match was tied.

Less than three minutes later, the Panthers had the ball in the Falcons' end of the field again. This time, the sequence ended with Declan Rodriguez shooting wide, but it appeared that the visitors had gained the momentum.

The Falcons looked to retake the lead several moments later, as Baraldi received a pass from freshman Ryan James and hit a low liner. Shakon bobbled the ball, but was able to make the stop.

With under 20 minutes left in the match, though, the Panthers threatened again. Rodriguez moved toward the 18-yard line on the right side of the field, and played a ball for Cody Banks in the center of the box. Banks, relatively unmarked, was easily able to hit a one-timer, but his shot sailed high.

Neither team could solve Wiest or Shakon in the remainder of the second half, and neither team put a shot on goal in the first 10-minute overtime period. BG's lone chance in the first 10 minutes came when James fired wide right after a give-and-go play with Baraldi.

In the second extra period, Grant was hauled down on the right side of the box with 2:45 gone, and Baraldi's penalty kick was on the mark, giving the Falcons the win.

Baraldi and Schewee had three shots apiece to tie for the team lead. The Panthers outshot the Falcons, 21-13, on the night, but each team had five shots on goal.

Wiest made four saves to earn his third win of the season, while Shakon had three stops for the visitors.

Milwaukee's previous three losses this season came to teams that are a combined 20-0-4 on the year.

The Falcons return to Mid-American Conference play this weekend, heading to Oneonta, N.Y., for a Friday (Sept. 28) match vs. Hartwick College.

BGSU NOTES
* Freshman Tyler Gay made his collegiate debut in Tuesday's match, checking into the contest immediately after the Falcons' first goal and playing the remainder of the first half.

* BGSU now leads Milwaukee, 4-3-1, in the all-time series between the schools. The Falcons and Panthers had not met since the 2001 season. BG has gone 3-1-0 in series matches played at Cochrane Field.