BGSU Begins October Schedule with Sunday Matchup at Ohio

Sunday, October 1

Athens, Ohio

1 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

Ohio

Lexi Czerwien, Isabelle Gilmore v Notre Dame

Photo by: Nathan Kubala, BGSU Athletics

September 29, 2023 | Women's Soccer

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Falcons put three-game unbeaten streak on the line in Athens

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BGSU at OHIO
Sunday, Oct. 1 | 1:00 p.m.
Chessa Field | Athens, Ohio
Video/Web Stream: ESPN+
Live Stats: OhioBobcats.com

• The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team begins the month of October with a pair of road matches. Head coach Jimmy Walker and the Falcons head to Athens for a Sunday (Oct. 1) matchup with Ohio University, with first touch set for 1:00 p.m. at Chessa Field.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Sunday's Ohio matchup will be streamed via ESPN+. Live stats, as well as periodic Twitter updates (@BGSU_Wsoccer), will also be available.

• Links to live audio/video/stats for all 2023 matches can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com (on the women's soccer schedule page and in the right column on the main page) on match day.

#MACTION
• BGSU is undefeated in Mid-American Conference play entering the weekend. The Falcons have enjoyed more than their fair share of success in conference action over the last few years. BG finished third in the 12-team league in 2022, but earned regular-season and tournament titles in each of the previous four seasons.

• Since the start of the 2018 season, the Falcons now have a record of 41-7-5 in MAC regular-season matches, good for a winning percentage of .821. BGSU has six more wins than any other team during that span, and every other program except one has at least twice the amount of losses as the Falcons in that time...
MAC RECORDS SINCE 2018 (entering matches of Sunday, Oct. 1)
School    Record   Pct. MAC Championships *
Bowling Green 41- 7- 5   .821 8 (4 Regular-Season, 4 MAC Tournament)
Ball State 35-12- 9   .705 1 (1 Regular-Season)
Buffalo 31-14-10   .655 2 (1 Regular-Season, 1 MAC Tournament)
Kent State 26-17-11 .583 0
Western Mich. 30-21- 6 .579 0
Ohio    29-21- 7 .570 0
Central Mich. 22-27- 7 .455 0
Eastern Mich. 20-31- 5 .402 0
Miami 17-32- 6 .364 0
Toledo 15-30- 9   .361 0
Akron 16-33- 7 .348 0
Northern Ill. 7-44- 6 .175 0
* Includes division titles (MAC split into East & West divisions for the 2020[-21] season)

FAMILIAR FACES IN NEW PLACES (or, HOW THE TURNTABLES HAVE...)
• In the opening week of the conference season, Ellie Pool played against her former team, scoring a goal as BGSU topped Toledo, 2-0. In week two, the Falcons face a pair of former teammates in back-to-back matches.

• Abby.Koly is on the Akron roster after playing for the Falcons last season, and saw several minutes of action in Thursday's match at Cochrane Stadium. Another 2022 BGSU freshman, Ella.Deevers, now plays for Ohio and has started seven matches for the Bobcats this season to date.

FUN FALCON FACTS
• The Falcons are 4-4-1 on the season, and BGSU is 2-0-1 in MAC play to date. Three of the four losses have come at the hands of nationally-ranked teams, and all four setbacks were against schools from Power 5 conferences (two schools from the Atlantic Coast Conference and one each from the Big Ten and Big 12).

• BGSU picked up a 2-0 victory at Toledo in the MAC opener, before battling Western Michigan to a scoreless draw last Sunday afternoon (Sept. 24) at Cochrane Stadium. Then, on Thursday (Sept. 28), freshman Emma Stransky's goal in the 78th minute lifted the Orange and Brown to a 1-0 win over visiting Akron.

• In the Toledo match, Ellie Pool, a transfer from UT, scored with just over two minutes gone against her former team, and Brynn Gardner converted a second-half penalty kick. Madison Vukas and Lili Berg combined for three saves to share the shutout in goal.

• Berg and Vukas combined on another shutout against WMU, as the Falcons limited the Broncos to just one shot on goal. Isabelle Gilmore played all 180 minutes on the back line vs. the Rockets and Broncos, and was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week on Monday (Sept. 25).

• Vukas and Berg each made two saves vs. the Zips en route to the Falcons' fourth shutout of the season, and the third clean sheet in as many MAC matches.

• After dropping road decisions against #17 Michigan State and Cincinnati to begin the season BG bounced back to end the month of August with wins over Loyola Chicago and Detroit Mercy. The Falcons got first-half goals from Gardner and Katie Cox against the Ramblers, while Pool scored early in the second half to lift BGSU to a 2-1 win over the Titans. Lacee Bethea also found the back of the net for the Falcons at UDM.

• The Falcons suffered a pair of losses against top25 teams to end the non-conference slate, dropping a 5-1 decision at #21 Pittsburgh and a 3-0 match against #11 Notre Dame at Cochrane.

• Pool and Stransky are tied for the team lead with five points apiece this season, while Brynn Gardner has four points. Each of those three players have two goals so far this year. Bethea and Cox each have three points, while Maya Dean leads the club with two assists.

• Gilmore is the lone Falcon to have been on the pitch for all 810 minutes, while Emilie Gardner has played 688 minutes on the year.

• Goalkeepers Madison Vukas and Lili Berg have split time in each of BGSU's first nine matches. Each has played 405 minutes, and Vukas has a goals-against average of 1.11 while Berg sports a 1.78 GAA. Berg has made 21 saves and Vukas 20, and they have shared four shutouts.

• A total of 24 different players have seen action in at least one match this season to date. That lengthy list includes all nine of the team's true freshmen. Five Falcons – Cox, Dean, Gilmore, Pool and Emilie Gardner – each have started all nine games to date, while Brynn Gardner and Makenzie Ortman each have made eight starts.

• The Falcons returned 16 letterwinners, including eight starters, from last season's club. The 2022 team went 9-5-5 overall and 6-2-3 in MAC play, placing third in the 12-team league. BG battled Ball State to a 1-1 draw in the semifinals of the '22 league tourney, before the Cardinals advanced via PKs.

THE OPPONENT
• Ohio is 4-4-2 on the year, and the Bobcats are 2-1-0 in MAC play after a 3-1 win at Northern Illinois on Thursday. The 'Cats opened the league schedule with a 1-0 loss to visiting Kent State, but now have won two-straight matches, including a 1-0 win on the road against defending MAC champion Buffalo last Sunday. Individually, Shae Robertson leads the team with four goals and eight points, with three of those four goals coming in MAC play. Scout Murray and Izzi Boyd each have five points including two goals. Celeste Sioma has played every second in goal and has 44 saves, four shutouts and a GAA of just 0.90. Head coach Aaron Rodgers and the Bobcats were picked to finish seventh in the MAC in 2023 in the preseason coaches poll, after going 10-7-2 overall and 6-4-1 in the MAC in '22.

THE SERIES
• BGSU trails Ohio, 12-10-6, in the all-time series, but the Falcons are undefeated in the last nine matchups, having gone 7-0-2 vs. the Bobcats since a 4-2 Ohio victory in Athens in 2015. Last season, BGSU picked up a 4-0 win at Cochrane Stadium (Oct. 9, 2022). The Orange and Brown captured a 3-0 victory at a rainy Chessa Field in BG's last trip to Athens (March 28, 2021). The Falcons are 8-5-3 at home and 2-7-3 on the road vs. Ohio through the years.

UP NEXT
• BGSU, as mentioned, hits the road for the first two October matches. Following the Ohio contest, the Falcons will meet Miami in Oxford on Thursday (Oct. 5), in a 7:00 p.m. start at Bobby Kramig Field.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will return home to face Eastern Michigan on Sunday, Oct. 8, with first touch at 1:00 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium. Beginning with that EMU contest, the Falcons will play four of the final six regular-season matches at home.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
• For more information on the women's soccer program, follow the Falcons on Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSU_WSoccer), Instagram (bgsu_wsoccer) and Facebook (bgsuwsoc) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.