BGSU, Ohio Battle to Nil-Nil Draw

Thursday, September 30

Bowling Green, OH

7:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

2-5-3, 1-1-1

Ohio

6-4-1, 2-0-1

Ohio

Bowling Green

Photo by: Larry Clapper

September 30, 2021 | Women's Soccer

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Berg blanks Bobcats for third time in as many matches

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team had advantages over visiting Ohio University in nearly every statistical category on Thursday night (Sept. 30), but the Falcons and Bobcats battled to a scoreless draw. The Mid-American Conference match was held at Cochrane Stadium.

The Falcons (2-5-3, 1-1-1 MAC) had a 15-7 lead in total shot attempts and a 6-4 lead in shots on goal in the match. BG had a slim 5-4 lead in corner kicks as well.

Lili Berg made four saves to earn the shutout for the Orange and Brown, while Sam Wexell had six stops for the Bobcats (6-4-1, 2-0-1 MAC).

NOTE OF THE NIGHT
• Lili Berg, as mentioned, made four saves to earn the shutout on Thursday night. Berg now has two complete-match shutouts this fall, and she played nearly 62 minutes of another clean sheet.
• In her BGSU career, Berg has made 18 starts. She now has been a part of nine shutouts in those 18 matches, with six complete-match shutouts.
• Berg has faced Ohio three times, and kept a clean sheet on all three occasions. She has made six total saves and allowed zero goals in 290:54 of time between the posts vs. the Bobcats.

BONUS NOTE OF THE NIGHT
• Lili Berg has played in nine MAC regular-season matches in her career, and BGSU has kept seven clean sheets in those nine contests.
• Berg has a career goals-against average of just 0.45 in MAC regular-season matches, having allowed just four goals in 804:01 between the posts.

FALCONS REACT
"We defended really well tonight. I think we possessed well in the midfield and we didn't give up much in the back. We defended well as a unit from the top, which makes my job that much easier. We have a great relationship in the back, and the whole team did well defending tonight." – Lili Berg

"I thought we played well. It was the second game in a row where we struggled to find the net. We had some great chances – we had three very good chances in overtime where we probably should have scored – so we're disappointed with that. But, the effort was there, the attitude was there, the togetherness is there. We played a really good game tonight; we kept the ball well and did a lot of nice things. We've just got to get the final touch right." – Jimmy Walker

Gallery: (9-30-2021) W.Soccer v Ohio - Sept 30 2021

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Four minutes into the match, Nikki Cox took a pass from Madi Wolfbauer and slid a nifty pass between a pair of defenders. Kennedy White ran onto the ball and for a moment, it looked as if she was through on goal. But, the assistant referee's flag was raised, indicating offside against the Falcons.
• With 18 minutes gone, Wolfbauer played a nifty pass between a pair of Bobcat backliners. White and Ohio goalkeeper Sam Wexell raced for the ball, and Wexell reached it just a split-second before White arrived, poking it away from the BG striker before it was cleared away.
• Several minutes later, Lacee Bethea's pass found White in the box, and the junior hit a quick turnaround shot, but it was blocked.
• In the final minute of the opening half, Ruby Linton took a pass from Jasmijn Dijsselhoff on the left side of the field. Linton cut the ball back to her right and hit a gorgeous diagonal ball toward the back post. Wolfbauer raced toward the ball, but the serve was just out of her reach and went over the line for an Ohio goal kick.
• Seven minutes into the second half, Maya Dean's pass found Dijssselhof near midfield. Dijsselhoff made a run down the left side and put a cross onto the head of the onrushing White. White, from eight yards out, put her shot on frame, but Wexell was there to make the stop.
• With nearly an hour gone, the Bobcats thought they had gotten on the board. Shae Robertson fired a shot from the 18-yard line that was parried by BGSU goalkeeper Lili Berg. Ohio's Paige Knorr was first to the rebound and deposited the ball in the back of the net, but the goal was nullified due to an offside call.
• Just 90 seconds later, the Falcons threatened at the other end. Rachel Muller's long ball was headed by Nikki Cox, and Bethea ran onto it and quickly found White. White redirected the ball toward goal with a header, but it was deflected out of play for a corner. Off of that Dijsselhof corner, Audrey Shea got her head on the ball, but her shot sailed high.
• Just under 22 minutes remained in regulation when Ohio's Carsyn Prigge wound up and fired a hard shot from distance, but Berg made a diving save to push the ball wide of the right goalpost.
• With 16 minutes on the clock, Lynsey Spotts took a pass from Nikki Cox and played White through. White poked the ball past a flailing defender on the right side of the box, and hit a shot that Wexell was able to deflect as she raced off of her line. A defender just barely beat Spotts to the rebound and cleared the ball away.
• BGSU had more and more of the possession as the second half went on, and the Falcons had several late scoring chances. With under six minutes remaining, Linton's left-side serve somehow went through the six-yard box without a player getting a touch. Then, just over a minute later, Madison Alberty was fouled just outside the 18, and Dijsselhof put the ensuing free kick on frame. But, Wexell made the stop. With three minutes to go, Wolfbauer hit a shot from the top of the box that sliced just wide.
• If BG had more of the possession in the latter stages of the second half, the first overtime was nearly a 10-minute game of keep-away. In the first minute, White played the ball across the six-yard box, and Bethea volleyed it out of the air at the back post, but the shot went just wide.
• Three minutes later, a nifty diagonal ball by Mackenzie Reuber just missed connections with a pair of teammates in the box, as it sailed just over the head of Nikki Cox and bounced just out of Wolfbauer's reach.
• In the 98th minute, very much against the run of play, the Bobcats' Abby Townsend received a pass near midfield and went on a long run, taking the ball all the way into the box on the right side. She hit a shot from a bad angle, somehow managing to put it on frame, but Berg grabbed the ball on the short-hop at the near post.
• The second overtime, just as the first, saw BG hold a 2-1 advantage in shots, but neither team could put a shot on goal in the final 10 minutes.
• The Falcons had a flurry in the late stages of the match. Dean put a left-side diagonal ball into the box with 1:20 to go, but Nikki Cox's header was off the mark. After the ensuing goal kick, BGSU stole the ball right back. Shea's entry ball was deflected to Wolfbauer, who quickly fired a hard shot, but the ball went just wide of the far post with only 25 seconds remaining.

STATS, NOTES & NUMBERS
• The Falcons, as mentioned, had advantages in total shots (15-8), shots on goal (6-4) and corner kicks (5-4). Ohio committed 17 fouls to BG's nine, and each team had one yellow card.
• BGSU was shut out for the first time this season, and the first time since a 0-0 draw vs. Ole Miss in the NCAA Championships back on April 27.
• The Falcons were blanked by a MAC opponent for the first time since another double-overtime match at Cochrane, a 1-0 loss to Ball State on Oct. 20, 2019.
• BGSU now has an overall record of 49-24-11 since the start of the 2017 season. The Falcons are 32-8-2 in MAC regular-season matches and 39-9-4 in all games vs. conference foes in that time.
• And, since the beginning of the 2018 campaign, the Falcons are now 36-17-10 overall, 26-4-1 in MAC regular-season action and 31-4-3 in all games vs. league opposition.

AROUND THE MAC
Thursday's Results
at Bowling Green 0, Ohio 0 (2-OT)
Miami 3, at Akron 0
at Buffalo 2, Ball State 1
at Central Michigan 1, Northern Illinois 0 (OT)
Western Michigan 1, at Eastern Michigan 0
Kent State 2, at Toledo 1 (OT)

MAC STANDINGS
School (Overall) MAC Pts.
1. Miami (6-2-3) 3-0-0 9
2. Ohio (6-3-1) 2-0-1 7
   Kent State (6-3-1) 2-0-1 7
4. Toledo (7-2-2) 2-1-0 6
5. Bowling Green (2-5-3) 1-1-1 4
   Ball State (3-5-1) 1-1-1 4
   Buffalo (7-2-1) 1-1-1 4
8. Central Mich. (4-5-0) 1-2-0 3
   Northern Ill. (4-7-0) 1-2-0 3
   Western Mich. (3-7-0) 1-2-0 3
11. Eastern Mich. (1-7-2) 0-2-1 1
12. Akron (2-9-0) 0-3-0 0

UP NEXT
• The Falcons hit the road for the next two matches, beginning with a Sunday (Oct. 3) contest vs. Kent State. First touch is set for 1:00 p.m. at Zoeller Field at Dix Stadium.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• For more information on the women's soccer program, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUWSoccer), Instagram (bgsuwsoccer) and Facebook (bgsuwsoccer) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.