Battle for the I-75 Cup is Tuesday Night

FALCONS vs. WRIGHT STATE
Tuesday, September 13 – 7:00 p.m.
Cochrane Stadium | Bowling Green, Ohio
Live Stats: BGSUFalcons.com | Twitter: @BGSUmenssoccer

FOLLOW THE FALCONS...
Links to any live audio/video/stats will be available on the men's soccer schedule page at BGSUFalcons.com on match day

BGSU MEN'S SOCCER LINKS
This Week's Notes (prior to Saturday's WIU match) - PDF | 2016 Season Releases/Notes
2016 BGSU Men's Soccer Media Guide | Schedule | Roster
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UP NEXT IN FALCON SOCCER
The Bowling Green State University men's soccer team, coming off of a loss for the first time in 2016, will look to bounce back on Tuesday night (Sept. 13). Head coach Eric Nichols and the Falcons host Wright State University in the teams' annual battle for the I-75 Cup, with first touch set for 7:00 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium.

FREE ADMISSION / FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Again this season, admission to all Falcon men's and women's soccer home regular-season matches is free. For those who can't make it to Cochrane Stadium, live stats are scheduled to be available for each home contest via BGSUFalcons.com. Twitter updates for all men's soccer action in 2016, both home and away, will be available via @BGSUmenssoccer. And, plans are in the works to broadcast several home matches on ESPN3.com. All of the pertinent information can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com on the day of the match.

• Tuesday's WSU match is scheduled to be broadcast by the Bowling Green Student Radio Organization (BGRSO).

THE I-75 CUP
The Falcons and Wright State, as mentioned, will be playing for possession of the I-75 Cup in Tuesday night's match. The cup, which goes to the winner of the BGSU-WSU match each year, was instituted by Falcon coach Eric Nichols and his counterpart, Bryan Davis. BG is 5-1-0 vs. the Raiders since the two coaches came up with the idea for the cup prior to the 2010 season.

JINKS GUARDS THE GOAL
A special halftime event is planned for Tuesday night, as head football coach Mike Jinks will get the nod in goal, while other BGSU coaches attempt to put a penalty kick past him. Jinks and the football Falcons host Middle Tennessee State on Saturday (Sept. 17) at 12:00 p.m..

A FEW THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE FALCONS
• The Falcons are 4-1-0 on the season. BG opened the year with a 4-0 win over IUPUI at Cochrane Stadium on Aug. 26. Then, the Falcons rallied from an early deficit for a 3-1 win over visiting Appalachian State on Aug. 28 before downing Marshall by a 3-0 count on Sept.2.

• On Wednesday (Sept. 7), freshman Chris Brennan's goal with just four seconds left in the second overtime gave the Brown and Orange a 1-0 victory at Cleveland State.

• But, on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 10) in Macomb, Ill., host Western Illinois rallied for a 2-1 win over the Falcons. Senior Joe Sullivan scored BG's lone goal in the 16th minute, but the Leathernecks tied the score in the 39th minute, then scored what would prove to be the winner in the 57th minute.

• The Falcons are 3-0-0 when scoring two or more goals this season. BGSU is 11-0-1 in such matches since the start of the 2015 season, and the Falcons are now 41-4-5 when scoring at least two goals in the Eric Nichols Era.

• BGSU scored 10 goals in the first three matches of the season, with at least three goals in each of those games. It marked the first time the Falcons had scored at least three goals in three-straight games in almost two decades. The 1997 team scored three or more goals in a whopping seven consecutive matches from Oct. 12 to Nov. 6. That '97 club advanced to the NCAA Championships.

• Seven different players have scored at least one goal for the Falcons this season to date. Brennan and Sullivan lead the way with three goals apiece, while senior Pat Flynn has scored two.

• Flynn and Sullivan have seven points apiece to tie for team scoring honors, while Brennan has six points and freshman Robert Miller III five. Senior Jacob Roth leads the Falcons with four assists on the year.

• Roth, a native of Cleveland, had the assist on Brennan's game-winning goal against Cleveland State Wednesday night. It marked the second time in as many trips to his hometown that Roth had been involved in the winning goal in overtime. In 2014, Roth scored on a free kick as the Falcons won another 1-0 decision.

• Freshman Anthony Mwembia has played all 469-plus minutes in goal this season to date. He has three shutouts in five matches, and has a goals-against average of just 0.57 and a saves percentage of .880.

FALCONS AMONG THE LEADERS
• The Falcons are well represented in the latest NCAA statistics. As a team, BGSU leads the nation in total assists, and the Falcons are second in the country in assists per game.

• BG is also second in the nation in total points, and the Falcons are fourth in points per game and ninth in both shots per game and shots on goal per game. In fact, BGSU is ranked among the nation's top-20 teams in 11 different statistical categories.

• Individually, senior Jacob Roth is eighth in the country in total assists and 14th in assists per game. Freshman Anthony Mwembia is 14th in the nation in saves percentage and 27th in goals-against average.

'FLYNN & SULLY' SOUNDS LIKE THE NAME OF A BUDDY COP SHOW THAT WE'D DEFINITELY WATCH
• A pair of seniors from Naperville, Ill., Pat Flynn and Joe Sullivan, ranked 1-2 on the Falcons in scoring a year ago. And, they have picked up right where they left off.

• Flynn, as mentioned, has seven points on the year, with two assists vs. IUPUI, two goals against Appalachian State and another assist in the Marshall match. The multiple-assist match was the first of his career, and he now has seven multi-goal contests as a Falcon.

• Flynn, in just 41 games at BGSU, has totals of 25 goals and 61 points, and he has moved into the top 10 on both career lists. Flynn is now tied with Dennis Mepham (1976-79) for ninth place on the BGSU career goals list, and has moved past Mepham (59 points) into sole possession of 10th place on the school's career points list. Both lists can be found on page 7 of these notes.

• Sullivan is tied with Flynn for the team lead with seven points. He has picked up at least one point in four of the season's first five games. Sullivan scored BG's second goal in the IUPUI match, recorded the primary assist on Flynn's first goal against ASU and scored the game's first goal vs. both Marshall and Western Illinois.

• Sullivan now has a career total of 46 points, with 16 goals and 14 assists.

• Since Flynn arrived at BGSU prior to the start of the 2014 season, the Falcons have scored a total of 79 goals. Flynn and Sullivan have combined to score 39 of those 79 goals.

• Flynn has assisted on seven of Sullivan's 14 goals during that time, while Sullivan has registered an assist on seven of Flynn's goals.

FLYNN AMONG THE ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS
Senior Pat Flynn is ranked among the NCAA's active career leaders. Flynn is third among active players in points per game, with 1.49, and he is fifth in goals per game, with 0.61.

FALCONS PICKED TO PLACE FIFTH IN MAC
The Falcons have been picked to finish fifth in the MAC race in 2016, according to the preseason coaches poll. Akron was tabbed to win the MAC's regular-season crown, and the Zips were the unanimous choice to capture the conference tournament crown as well. The complete 2016 poll follows.
2016 MAC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
# - Team (FPV) Pts.
1 – Akron (5) 29
2 – Western Mich. (1) 17
3 – West Virginia 16
4 – Buffalo 15
5 – Bowling Green 11
6 – Northern Ill. 2
Votes to win 2016 MAC Tournament – UA 6

SCOUTING WRIGHT STATE
Wright State has a record of 3-2-0 on the year after dropping a 1-0 decision to Green Bay Saturday in the Horizon League opener for both teams. WSU has posted road wins over Portland and Cincinnati and a home victory over Duquesne. The team's first loss of the year came on the road against Oregon State. On Saturday night, the Raiders outshot Green Bay, 15-3. Peguy Ngatcha leads the team with nine points, and has four of the Raiders' eight goals on the year. In goal, Ryan Pignatiello has played every second of every match, and has 19 saves and a 1.73 GAA. Coach Bryan Davis and the Raiders finished with records of 12-8-1 overall and 4-4-1 in the HL last season. WSU was picked to tie for first place in the Horizon League in the preseason poll.

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Wright State, 9-6-2, in the all-time series, and BGSU has won each of the last four matches. All four of those wins have been by one goal, with three coming in overtime. Last year in Dayton, Keaton Reynolds and Tate Robertson scored late in the second half as the Falcons won a 3-2 decision in a driving rain. Jacob Roth also scored in that win, and he had both goals – both on penalty kicks and the second one in OT – in the Falcons' 2-1 win at Cochrane in 2014. WSU's last series win was a 2-1 decision in 2011. The Falcons are 5-2-2 at home and 4-4-0 on the road vs. the Raiders.

AUDEN, ROTH AND SULLIVAN NAMED TEAM CAPTAINS
Seniors Max Auden, Jacob Roth and Joe Sullivan are the tri-captains for the 2016 Falcons. Auden, a fifth-year senior, is serving as a team captain for the second consecutive season.

UP NEXT FOR THE FALCONS
Following the Wright State match, the Falcons will return to the road to face Cincinnati on Saturday, Sept. 17. Then, the Brown and Orange will begin a two-match homestand by facing Dayton on Tuesday, Sept. 20.

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Max Auden

Chris Brennan

Pat Flynn

Robert Miller III

Anthony Mwembia

Keaton Reynolds

Tate Robertson

Jacob Roth

Joe Sullivan

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