BGSU Drops Final Home Game On Senior Day

Sunday, October 25

Bowling Green, Ohio

1:00 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

6-11-1, 2-8-0MAC

Western Michigan

11-3-3, 8-1-1MAC

Team	1	2	Final F
Western Michigan	1	1	2
Bowling Green	1	0	1

Photo by: BGSU Strategic Communications

October 25, 2015 | Women's Soccer

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By: By Alexx Klein, BGSU Athletic Communications

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Postgame Interview: Lindsay Basalyga

Bowling Green, Ohio – Sophomore Skylar Fleak scored her fourth goal of the season Sunday afternoon as the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team fell to Western Michigan 2-1 on senior day at Cochrane Stadium.

The loss drops the Falcons to 6-11-1 overall, while Western Michigan moves to 11-3-3 overall with the win with one conference game remaining in the 2015 season.

"I definitely think we competed today," said head coach Lindsay Basalyga. "We had some really quality chances in the attacking third of the field, but ultimately we had some key defensive breakdowns and individual battles that really opened us up."

On Senior Day at Cochrane Stadium, the Falcons' two seniors – Alexis Smith and Haley Parkinson – were recognized in ceremonies prior to kickoff. In the match, Parkinson tallied one of Bowling Green's four shots on goal in the 44th minute of the contest. Smith recorded her first ever start in a BGSU uniform, entering the match with six saves this season and adding a career-high nine in 90 total minutes of action.

Fleak registered the first shot of the match in the sixth minute, but the Falcons wouldn't have another shot attempt until the 29th minute. It was all Western Michigan early in the first half, pressuring Smith and the BGSU defense. The Broncos took a shot in the eighth minute, but it was blocked by a WMU player in front of the goal, and the ensuing rebound shot was saved by Smith.

Four minutes later, Western Michigan's Emma Kahn found the back of the BGSU net to put the Broncos up 1-0 in the 12th minute. WMU rattled off five straight shots over the following six minutes, seeing one blocked, two go offline and two attempts on-frame. Smith's two saves during that span came on shots from WMU's Tiffany Buckler. Her leaping save in the 18th minute on Buckler's header attempt kept the score 1-0 and gave the Falcons a boost of energy.

"[Alexis] did really well. She had a really huge save early in the first half that really gave our team some confidence. For somebody who hasn't started a game and seen many minutes, she did a really good job. We've been honoring our seniors the entire year. I really believe we wouldn't be where we are today if it wasn't for these two. They've meant a lot and have been really unselfish throughout this process and I think they've been great role models for the rest of the team," said Basalyga.

The Falcons countered with four straight shots of their own, including Fleak's equalizer goal in the 32nd minute to tie the game 1-1. The sophomore dribbled from the middle of the box to the left side and put her shot passed a WMU defender and Bronco's goalkeeper Stephanie Heber. Kara Ross was credited with the assist on the play.

Western Michigan's Kahn and Alex Ruffer connected again, scoring the team's go-ahead goal 11 minutes into the second period.

The young Falcon squad remained aggressive as freshman Alexis Fricke attempted to tie the match in the 62nd minute, but Heber ran out for the save. Sophomore Mikaela Couch and junior Alexa Cheripko both saw their shots blocked by the Western Michigan defense in the 64th and 67th minutes, respectively.

Still down a goal and with time running out, sophomore Madison Schupbach and freshman Juli Knapp each attempted a shot late in the game, but neither were able to convert. Knapp's shot in the 86th minute would be the last of the game for Bowling Green.

The Falcons gave up a season high 33 shots to the Broncos, while recording 11 of their own. WMU also held a 6-0 advantage in corner kicks on the day.

"We just have to keep competing. They have certainly moved the soccer along with how we want to play on the attacking side of the ball and how we want to play on the defensive side of the ball. More importantly, they have set the stage for our culture. We have one last opportunity to really compete," added Basalyga.

BGSU closes the regular season on the road at Eastern Michigan this Thursday at 3 pm.