What To Watch For: Falcons Begin MAC Schedule Thursday

Thursday, September 23

Kalamazoo, MI

4:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Western Michigan

Madison Alberty v Illinois - Sept 9 2021

Madison Alberty and the Falcons begin MAC play with a pair of matches this week

Photo by: Stephen Linsky, BGSU Athletics

September 21, 2021 | Women's Soccer

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BGSU heads to Kalamazoo before hosting Northern Illinois this weekend

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

FALCONS at WESTERN MICHIGAN – Thursday, September 23
4:00 p.m. | WMU Soccer Complex | Kalamazoo, Mich.
• Video/Web Stream: Bronco All-Access •
• Live Stats: WMUBroncos.com | Twitter: @bgsuwsoc •

FALCONS vs. NORTHERN ILLINOIS – Sunday, September 26
1:00 p.m. | Cochrane Stadium | Bowling Green, Ohio
• Video/Web Stream: WBGU-TV (YouTube) •
• Live Stats: BGSUFalcons.com | Twitter: @bgsuwsoc •

WHAT TO WATCH FOR...
• The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team opens the Mid-American Conference portion of the schedule with a pair of matches this week. Head coach Jimmy Walker and the Falcons, the three-time defending MAC champions, head to Kalamazoo for a Thursday (Sept. 23) matchup with Western Michigan University. First touch is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at the WMU Soccer Complex.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will kick off the home portion of the league slate, taking on Northern Illinois University on Sunday (Sept. 26) afternoon. That contest will begin at 1:00 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Thursday's WMU match will be streamed by Bronco All-Access, while Sunday's NIU contest will be streamed on YouTube, free of charge, and produced by WBGU-TV. Live stats will also be available for both matches.

• Links to live audio/video/stats for all 2021 matches will be available on BGSUFalcons.com (on the women's soccer schedule page and at the top of the main page) on game day.

TOUGH CROWD
• The Falcons finished the non-conference schedule with a record of 1-4-2. Six of BGSU's seven non-league opponents are in the top 100 in the RPI, with five of those schools ranked among the top 51, and three (Xavier, Michigan and Notre Dame) in the top 20.

• BGSU is ranked 89th in the RPI, and the Falcons are second among MAC schools.

MAC PLAY IS UPON US
• The Falcons have enjoyed great success in MAC play in recent years. BGSU advanced to the MAC Tournament's championship match in 2017 before falling in overtime, and the Falcons then proceeded to win both the regular-season and tournament titles in both 2018 and '19.

• In 2020 (actually 2020-21), the Falcons went 5-1-0 in MAC regular-season action, then defeated Ball State in the MAC Championship to advance to the NCAA Championships for the third-straight season.

• Entering Thursday's WMU match, the Falcons have a 48-23-10 overall record since the start of the 2017 season. BGSU is 31-7-1 in MAC regular-season matches and 38-8-3 in all games vs. conference foes in that time.

• Since the start of the 2018 campaign, the Falcons are 35-16-9 overall, 25-3-0 in MAC regular-season action and 30-3-2 in all games vs. league opposition.

THE FALCONS SINCE 2017
Year Overall MAC All MAC* Home   Away Neutral
2017 13-7-1 6-4-1 8-5-1 7-2-0 6-4-1 0-1-0
2018 14-5-3   10-1-0   12-1-1 10-1-2 4-4-0 0-0-1
2019 14-6-3   10-1-0   12-1-1 8-1-1 6-5-2   0-0-0
2020(-21) 6-1-1 5-1-0 6-1-0 4-0-0 2-1-0   0-0-1
2021 1-4-2 0-0-0 0-0-0 1-1-1 0-3-1   0-0-0
---------------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS   48-23-10 31-7-1 38-8-3   30-5-4 18-17-4 0-1-2
SINCE '18  35-16-9 25-3-0 30-3-2   23-3-4 12-13-3 0-0-2
* All matches (regular-season & tournament) vs. MAC schools

SUCCESSFUL AT HOME
• The Falcons went a perfect 4-0-0 at Cochrane Stadium in the spring, with all four wins coming against MAC opponents. BGSU outscored the foes, 10-1, in those four matches.

• BGSU enters Sunday's NIU match with a record of 30-5-4 at home since the start of the 2017 season. The Falcons are 23-2-2 against MAC teams at Cochrane Stadium in that time.

• In those 27 contests vs. conference competition, BGSU has outscored the opposition, 59-19.

SUCCESSFUL ON THE ROAD
• Heading into Thursday's WMU match, the Falcons have a record of 15-5-1 on the road against MAC opponents since the start of the 2017 season. BGSU is 12-2-0 in conference road contests since the start of the 2018 season, having outscored the opponents, 39-8, in those 14 games.

• The Falcons have scored at least two goals in 11 of those 14 matches, and BG has put at least three goals on the board in nine of those 14 contests.

97 PERCENT OF THE TIME, SCORING TWO GOALS WORKS EVERY TIME
(alternate title: THE MORE GOALS, THE MORE BETTER)
• It would stand to reason that scoring goals increases a team's chances of winning. For the Falcons, that is most certainly the case.

• Since the start of the 2017 season, BGSU has a record of 43-1-1 when scoring at least two goals in a match. In that time, the Falcons are 5-22-9 when being held to fewer than two goals.

• The Falcons have won 27-straight matches when scoring two or more goals at Cochrane Stadium, since a 4-3 loss to Western Michigan on Oct. 20, 2016.

FASCINATING FALCON FACTS
• BGSU enters the week with an overall record of 1-4-2. As mentioned, the Falcons are ranked 89th in the first RPI rankings of the year.

• BGSU's grueling non-conference schedule saw the Falcons face four Big Ten Conference schools (Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State) as well as one Atlantic Coast Conference member (Notre Dame) and a nationally-ranked Big East Conference foe (Xavier). BGSU also faced Oakland, downing the Golden Grizzlies by a 6-0 count in the fall 2021 home opener.

• The Falcons are 1-1-1 at home and 0-3-1 on the road this season to date. BGSU has been outscored, 15-12, through seven matches.

• Returning All-MAC First-Team performers Nikki Cox and Madi Wolfbauer lead the team in scoring, with eight and seven points, respectively. Lacee Bethea has six points, including three goals to tie her with Wolfbauer for the team lead in that department. Cox has a pair of goals and a BG-leading four assists.

• Audrey Shea has four points after scoring her first collegiate goal in Thursday's Xavier match. Shea becomes the 16th player on the current roster who has scored at least one goal as a Falcon.

• Lili Berg has started every match in goal, and has 33 saves and a 1.88 goals-against average. She had a career-high seven saves at Michigan State, then topped that total with eight stops vs. XU.

• The Falcons returned 19 letterwinners, including all 11 starters, from last season's club. The 2020(-21) Falcons went 6-1-1 overall and 5-1-0 in MAC play, outscoring opponents by a 17-3 count in the spring.

• The returning players combined for 100 percent of the goals and 90.9% (all but one) of the assists in the spring, and Berg played approximately 96% of the minutes between the posts.

• The Falcons were picked to finish second in the MAC's regular-season race in 2021. BGSU received 132 total points and five first-place votes. Buffalo was tabbed to win the conference, with 136 total points and seven first-place votes. BGSU received six votes to win the MAC Tournament, while UB garnered four.

• Nikki Cox is the Falcons' active career leader in goals, assists and points. A two-time All-MAC First-Team selection at BGSU, she has 54 points (20 goals, 14 assists) in 59 matches as a Falcon. Cox began her collegiate career at UNCW, and scored 16 points on seven goals and two assists in 23 total games for the Seahawks.

• Cox is tied for sixth in BGSU history in career goals scored. She has moved into a tie for 13th in BG annals in assists, and is ninth in career points. Kennedy White is tied for 16th in scoring, with 34 points in 37 career matches.

• Wolfbauer, a transfer from Illinois, has scored 17 points in just 15 matches at BGSU. In fact, those 17 points (on eight goals and an assist) all have come in the last 12 games.

• Wolfbauer has played seven home matches in her BGSU career, and has five goals and 11 points at Cochrane.

• Berg, in her first season as BGSU, had a miniscule 0.38 GAA. She enters the WMU match with a career GAA of 1.08 in 1337 minutes played.

THE OPPONENTS
• Western Michigan enters Thursday's match with a 2-5-0 record, and the Broncos are looking to snap a two-game losing streak. The team's wins have come against Detroit Mercy and IUPUI. Only one of WMU's seven matches has been decided by fewer than four goals. Bailey Korhorn leads the Broncos with four goals and nine points, while Jenna Blackburn has six points on three goals. Maggie Rogers has played in six matches in goal, and has 38 saves and a 3.15 GAA.

• Northern Illinois takes a 3-5-0 record into a Thursday home match vs. Toledo, and the Huskies are looking to reverse a three-match losing streak. Northern has defeated Chicago State and Valparaiso this season to date. Haley Hoppe has six goals and 13 points for the Huskies, and Sadie McGill has 43 saves in goal, along with a 2.10 GAA.

THE SERIES
• The Falcons trail Western Michigan, 17-9-1, in the all-time series, but BGSU has captured the last two matches. In the most recent meeting, Kennedy White's goal lifted the Falcons to a 1-0 win in Kalamazoo two years ago (Oct. 27, 2019). BGSU is 5-6-1 at home, 2-11-0 on the road and 2-0-0 in neutral-site matchups with Western.

• BGSU leads Northern Illinois, 11-10-3, in that series, and the Falcons have won the last four meetings, including a 7-0 decision in DeKalb two seasons ago (Oct. 24, 2019). In the most recent meeting at Cochrane, the Falcons posted a 3-0 win in late September of 2018. BGSU is 5-6-1 in home matches, 6-3-2 on the road and 0-1-0 in neutral-site contests vs. the Huskies through the years.

UP NEXT
• Following the NIU match, the Falcons will remain at home to face Ohio on Thursday, Sept. 30. That contest will begin at 7:00 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium.

• Then, BGSU open the October slate with road matches against Kent State (Oct. 3) and Ball State (Oct. 7), before returning home for three of the next four games.

# BGSU FALCON SOCCER #