What To Watch For: #17/22 Falcons Head to Columbus Wednesday

Wednesday, September 29

Columbus, OH

7:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Ohio State

Men's Soccer - BGSU ranked 17th in the nation

The Falcons are ranked No. 17 in the nation in the United Soccer Coaches poll for the second-straight week

September 28, 2021 | Men's Soccer

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By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

#17/22 FALCONS at OHIO STATE – Wednesday, September 29
7:00 p.m. | Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium | Columbus, Ohio
• Video/Web Stream: Big Ten Network + •
• Live Stats: OhioStateBuckeyes.com | Twitter: @BGSUmenssoccer •

WHAT TO WATCH FOR...
• The Bowling Green State University men's soccer team puts a four-match winning streak on the line Wednesday evening (Sept. 29). Head coach Eric Nichols and the defending Mid-American Conference champions head to Columbus to meet Ohio State in a 7:00 p.m. kickoff at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.

FALCONS IN THE RANKINGS
• Last week, for the first time in two years, the Falcons broke into the top-25 in the national rankings. On Monday (Sept. 20), BGSU checked into the College Soccer News poll at No. 24. The following day, the Falcons were ranked No. 17 in the United Soccer Coaches poll.

• BGSU had been ranked fifth in the United Soccer Coaches North Region for several weeks, and moved up to third in that poll last Tuesday (Sept. 21).

• This week, BGSU remains 17th in the nation and third in the region in the United Soccer Coaches rankings. The Falcons trail only West Virginia and Maryland in the regional rankings. And, BG moved up two spots to 22nd in the country in the College Soccer News poll.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• The OSU match is scheduled to be streamed via Big Ten Network+ (subscription/fee required). Live stats will be available, and twitter updates will be available at @BGSUmenssoccer.

• Links to live audio/video/stats for all 2021 matches can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com (on the men's soccer schedule page as well as at the top of the main page) on game day.

FASCINATING FALCON FACTS
• The Falcons are 7-1-1 on the season, and BGSU has won four-straight matches. After battling IUPUI to a scoreless draw in the season opener at Cochrane, BG went on the road and won three consecutive matches. Those victories came against Gonzaga (2-1 in OT), Cleveland State (3-0) and Michigan State (also 3-0).

• Then #6/7 Marshall got a goal with just 93 seconds left in the second half as the defending national champions downed the Falcons, 1-0, on Sept. 11. But, the Orange and Brown bounced back with three shutout wins, downing Wright State by a 3-0 score before posting 2-0 victories vs. FIU and Detroit Mercy.

• Last time out, the Falcons picked up a 2-1 win at Canisius on Friday afternoon (Sept. 24). Joey Akpunonu and Kyle Cusimano scored the BG goals, and Cusimano was named to the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week on Tuesday (Sept. 28).

• BGSU led by two goals on only one occasion during all of last season, and the Falcons never led by three (BG took a 2-0 lead against Syracuse [Feb. 23, 2021] before winning by a 2-1 final). But, BG has now led by two or more goals in six of the last seven matches, winning five of those contests by at least two goals.

• BGSU scored as many as two goals in a match only three times in 13 games in the spring. But, the Falcons have scored two or more goals seven times in nine matches this season to date.

• The Falcons have recorded three three-goal games this year after doing so only once in those 13 spring matches.

• BGSU is now 72-8-6 when scoring two or more goals in a match in the Eric Nichols Era.

• BG is 3-1-1 at home and a perfect 4-0-0 on the road, and the Falcons have topped the road win total for all of last season. BGSU has outscored opponents by a 17-3 count this season.

• Sergi Martinez and Kyle Cusimano each have nine points on the season, while Roberto Fernandez Garrido has eight. Martinez has three goals and three assists on the season, and Cusimano has two goals and a BG-best five helpers. Fernandez Garrido has a team-leading four goals, and came off the bench to score a goal in three-straight games, culminating with the win over UDM.

• Jacob Erlandson has six points after recording a goal and an assist vs. UDM, and Alberto Anaya has six points as well, after assisting on both BG goals at Canisius. Nathan Masters has five points this fall.

• Logan Kowalczyk has played every second between the posts this fall, and has allowed just three goals to date. He has six shutouts and a goals-against average of just 0.32. Kowalczyk has kept 11 clean sheets in 21 career starts at BGSU.

• Entering the OSU contest, the Falcons have an overall record of 32-15-5 over the last 52 games, dating to late in the 2018 season. Eleven of the 15 setbacks in that time have come by a single goal.

CAPTAINS
• Zach Buescher, Jacob Erlandson and Jensen Lukacsko are the captains of the 2021 Falcons.

THE OPPONENT
• Ohio State enters Wednesday's match with an overall record of 3-4-1, and the Buckeyes are 0-1-0 in Big Ten Conference play. OSU posted back-to-back shutout wins, blanking Akron (1-0) and Cleveland State (2-0), before falling to Maryland by a narrow 2-1 score in Friday's conference opener. Laurence Wootton has team-leading totals of four goals and nine points, while Keagan McLaughlin has a GAA of just 0.96. McLaughlin has a pair of shutouts in six starts.

THE SERIES
• The Falcons trail Ohio State, 25-18-4, in the all-time series, and the Buckeyes are unbeaten in the last three meetings. OSU captured a 2-1 decision in Columbus two years ago (Sept. 13, 2019), after the teams battled to a 1-1 draw the previous year. BGSU's last series win was a 2-0 triumph at Cochrane Stadium in 2016.

UP NEXT
• Following the OSU contest, the Falcons will return home to begin the Mid-American Conference schedule with two matches in a three-day span. BGSU will open league play by hosting Georgia State on Thursday, Oct. 7, with first touch set for 7:00 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will meet Georgia Southern 48 hours later (Saturday, Oct. 9), in another 7:00 p.m. kickoff at Cochrane.

• After facing the MAC's two newcomers, the Falcons then will hit the road for four matches, facing Northern Illinois (Oct. 16), Purdue Fort Wayne (Oct. 19), Akron (Oct. 23) and Oakland (Oct. 26).

# BGSU FALCON SOCCER #