Bowling Green State University Athletics
Wednesday, September 18
East Lansing, MI
5:00 PM
Bowling Green State University
at
Michigan State
Falcons Begin Season-Long Five-Game Road Swing at MSU, Akron
September 17, 2013 | Men's Soccer
BGSU NOTES & STATISTICS - PDF
MSU Men's Soccer | Akron Men's Soccer
Then, on Saturday (Sept. 21), the Brown and Orange will open Mid-American Conference play on the road vs. the defending league champion, the University of Akron. That match begins at 1:00 p.m. at FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field.
THE STARTING XI (11 things you should know about the Falcons)
• The Falcons are 1-2-2 on the young season, after battling Ohio State to a scoreless, double-overtime draw at a raucous Cochrane Field on Friday night (Sept. 13). BGSU opened the regular season with a 5-0 win over Malone (Aug. 30), then faced three consecutive nationally-ranked foes. The Falcons tied Michigan, 1-1, at Cochrane on Sept. 2, then dropped games to Marquette (3-0; Sept. 6) and host Milwaukee (2-0; Sept. 8) at the latter school's Panther Invitational.
• The attendance at the OSU match was 3,126. BGSU men's soccer records are incomplete prior to the 1997 season, but Friday's crowd was by far the largest for a BG home game in that time. The second-highest attendance in that 16-year span had come in the Falcons' prior home match, the U-M contest on Sept. 2. That match drew a crowd of 2,273.
• Last Friday's OSU match marked the Falcons' only home contest in a month's time. Beginning with the Marquette match on Sept. 6, the Brown and Orange play away from home seven times in an eight-game span.
• BGSU's five-game road swing is the team's longest in two years. Head coach Eric Nichols and Company went 3-1-1 on the last five-match swing, with wins over Duquesne, Pittsburgh and Detroit, a tie at Lipscomb and a loss at Belmont in mid-September of 2011.
• The Falcons held a whopping 35-12 advantage in total shot attempts vs. the Buckeyes, putting nine shots on goal to OSU's two. BG set season highs in both shots and shots on goal. In fact, the total of 35 shots attempted was the most by the Falcons in 17 years, since BG had 40 shot attempts on Nov. 3, 1996, in an 8-0 win over Western Michigan at Cochrane.
• Senior goalkeeper Michael Wiest earned the shutout vs. Ohio State on Friday night. The clean sheet was his second of the season and the 15th of his BGSU career. Four of those shutouts have come against the Big Ten, as Wiest has blanked Michigan twice and Michigan State and OSU once each.
• Redshirt freshman Max Auden made his first collegiate start on Friday night. The OSU game marked just his second career appearance. After playing a total of 13 minutes in the Malone match, Auden played all 110 minutes vs. the Buckeyes.
• The Falcons have six goals on the season, scored by six different players. Seniors Ryan Comiskey, Joey D'Agostino, Anthony Grant, Brandon Silva and Ryan Snashall and sophomore Ryan James each have found the back of the net.
• BGSU has a total of five assists, with five different players recording one each. Three players – Comiskey, Grant and James – each have a goal and an assist, and are tied for the team scoring lead with three points apiece.
• Seven Falcons have started all five of BGSU's matches to date. That list includes D'Agostino, Grant, Schewee, Silva and Wiest, along with senior Sean Sikich and sophomore Jake Genrich.
• Wiest leads the MAC in saves per game (3.80) and shutouts per game (0.40) this year to date. He is tied for first in the league in total saves (19) and shutouts (two), and ranks second in saves pct. (.760) and third in goals-against average (1.10).
ABOUT THE FALCONS
The Falcons are 1-2-2 on the young season. After a 5-0 win over Malone and a 1-1 tie against Michigan at Cochrane Field, BG suffered a pair of shutout losses to Marquette and host Milwaukee at the latter school's Panther Invitational. The Brown and Orange returned home and battled Ohio State to a scoreless draw on Friday (Sept. 13). Six different players have scored one goal apiece, while five different Falcons each have one assist on the year.
In goal, senior Michael Wiest has started all five matches this season to date. He has 19 saves, two shutouts and a goals-against average of 1.10. Wiest and fellow senior Sean Sikich each have played all 490 minutes this season, while senior Zach Schewee has been on the pitch for 485 minutes and senior Brandon Silva 477.
Head coach Eric Nichols and his staff returned a total of 13 letterwinners, including nine starters, from last year's club. The 2012 Falcons finished with an overall record of 8-9-3 and a MAC mark of 3-3-1. BGSU tied for fourth in the league regular-season standings last fall, and qualified for the MAC Tournament.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State enters Wednesday's BGSU match with a record of 3-1-0. The Spartans have posted wins over Western Michigan and Oregon State at home and Marquette on the road, and the lone setback was a 2-1 home loss to Valparaiso. All three wins have come via shutout. Goalkeeper Zach Bennett was named the Big Ten Conference's Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, after helping MSU to a 2-0 win at Marquette over the weekend. Bennett has started all four matches, and leads the conference in goals-against average (0.50). He also has nine saves and three shutouts. Sean Conerty and Kevin Cope each have scored two goals for MSU this year to date, while Jay Chapman has a team-high three assists. Head coach Damon Rensing's team was picked to finish second in the Big Ten in the league's preseason coaches poll. Last year's club went 12-10-1 overall and won the Big Ten Conference Tournament championship to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. A total of 21 players returned from that team.
A LOOK AT THE ZIPS
Akron has an overall record of 4-2-0 heading into Saturday's BGSU match, and the Zips are ranked seventh in the nation in this week's College Soccer Madness poll (many other polls have yet to be released this week). The Zips split a pair of home matches over the weekend, with a 1-0 loss to VCU and a 2-1, double-OT win over San Diego State. UA's other wins have come vs. the College of Charleston, Furman and Rutgers, with the team's first loss coming at St. John's. UA is 1-1-0 at home this season to date. Five of the team's first six matches have been decided by one goal, with three of those requiring overtime. Eric Stevenson paces the Zips with three goals and eight points this season. Stevenson scored both UA goals against SDSU. In goal, Fernando Pina has 14 saves, two shutouts and a GAA of just 0.77. Last year, Akron went 18-1-3 overall and a perfect 7-0-0 in MAC action. The Zips won the league's regular-season and tournament titles, and UA advanced to the NCAA's Round of 16 for the fifth consecutive year. Jared Embick is in his first season as head coach after a six-year stint as associate head coach for the Zips.
THE SERIES
The Falcons trail Michigan State, 18-16-6, in the all-time series between the teams, and MSU won a 2-1 decision at Cochrane Field last season (Aug. 29, 2012). In BG's last visit to East Lansing, the teams played to a 0-0, double-OT deadlock in the rain (Oct. 19, 2011), with Michael Wiest making five saves to earn the shutout. BGSU is 10-9-2 in home matches and 6-9-4 in road contests vs. the Spartans. Prior to the tie in 2011, MSU had won nine consecutive matches. BGSU's last win over the Green and White came 12 years ago, a 3-1 victory in East Lansing on Sept. 17, 2001.
BGSU trails Akron, 42-8-3, in that series, and the Zips have won the last 14 meetings. In 2012, UA posted a pair of 2-0 wins, including a regular-season victory at Cochrane Field (Sept. 22, 2012) and a MAC Tournament semifinal-round win in the Rubber City (Nov. 9, 2012). The Falcons' last win over the Zips came 11 years ago, a 1-0 triumph at Cochrane (Oct. 27, 2002), and BG's last road win vs. UA came in October of 1997.
FALCONS TABBED FOR FOURTH
The Falcons have been picked to finish fourth in the Mid-American Conference race in 2013. The preseason coaches poll is the result of voting by the conference's seven head coaches. Akron, the defending regular-season and tournament champion, was picked to capture both titles again this fall. Last season, the Falcons were picked to finish sixth, but wound up in a tie for fourth.
UP NEXT FOR THE FALCONS
Following the Akron match, BGSU's lengthy road swing continues with games at Marshall (Sept. 27), Northern Kentucky (Sept. 29) and Buffalo (Oct. 4). The Falcons return home to face Detroit on Tuesday, Oct. 8.
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Thursday, October 30
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Thursday, October 23
Off The Pitch: Ryko Bodurov (Oct. 16, 2025)
Friday, October 17
Eric Nichols Post-Match Interview (Oct. 10, 2025)
Saturday, October 11