Team volunteers at Black Swamp Art Festival

Senior co-captain Alicia Almond reflects on a recent outing by the team to the Black Swamp Arts Festival. The team volunteers time each year at the event as part of our support to the BG community. (Read on to hear more about the event from Alicia!)

"Helping out with the local Black Swamp Arts Festival has become an event over the past few years that our team looks forward to volunteering for annually. We all enjoy giving back to the community to show our appreciation for the support that we have been given. This year was especally enjoyable because a majority of the team was assigned to the tye-dying station where we got to be hands on with kids of all ages. There was a group of girls twisting and tying rubber-bands around the t-shirts, pillow cases, and bandanas, another group was putting tye dye on the items, other girls were bagging the shirts with instructions, and others were "runners" (refilling dye bottles and running back and forth between the tables). Even though the day was filled with scattered showers, there was never a dull moment. The community kept us busy throughout the day, meanwhile, allowing us to show off our creative side for a change. I, personally, was one of the dyers, and it was soooooo much fun! Even though I got a little messy dying my fingers and some of my sweatshirt it was worth every once of color that I took home with me".

Check back often to see what new adventures the BGSU Women's Soccer team takes part in next!

BG Rallies to top ISU, Richards gets #100

This past Sunday the BGSU Women's Soccer team came from behind twice to earn a victory over Indiana State in the team's final non-conference game. Alyssa Zuccaro netted twice for the Falcons, and Sarah Vonderbrink scored her 2nd game winner in a week to put the Falcons on top with a 3-2 win. The victory also marked Head Coach Andy Richard's 100th Career win, a tremendous coaching milestone. CONGRATULATIONS ANDY!

The Sycamores scored the first goal of the day on a wonderful finish by Alison Gasparovich, but the Falcons would even things up a mere 4 minutes later on Z's first goal of the day (credit to Alicia Almond for the assist). The game went into half-time in a 1-1 deadlock, with each team trading chances on goal throughout the remainder of the first half.

ISU again opened up the scoring and went ahead for the second time in the match for a 2-1 lead over the Falcons. The lead was again fairly short-lived for the home team as Z notched her second goal just under 10 minutes later to tie the game up once again. This time, however, the momentum would stay with the Falcons as Sara Vonderbrink found the game winner with a composed finish following a great pass from teammate Maddie Wideman.

With the Win, the Falcon's broke a 6 game winning streak for the Indiana State Sycamores.

The Falcon's will now begin Mid American Conference play opening up against Buffalo on Friday at 4:00pm and Kent State on Sunday at 2:00pm. Both games will be played at home, at Mickey Cochrane Stadium, home of the FALCONS!

BG posts 2-1 Victory over CSU

This past Sunday the BGSU Women's Soccer team put on a nice showing to earn a 2-1 win over visiting Cleveland State University. The game was scoreless going into the second half, but Senior Katie Stephenson got the Falcons rolling with a header on goal that eluded the CSU keeper and put the Falcons up 1-0 (assists on the goal were provided by Morgan Burgner and Emily Rothwell). The lead was short lived and CSU fought back 3 minutes later to even the score up. BG kept their composure and continued to chip away at the CSU back line until finally Sarah Vonderbrink put in another Falcon goal from a cross from teammate Megan Amann who was put in behind the defense by Katie Stephenson. On the day, BGSU outshot the Vikings 15-8 and dominated much of the run of play and opportunities on goal. Katelyn Turner nearly scored twice and was supported by many other offensive attempts by the Falcons.

The team will next take on the Michigan State Spartans this Friday, September 17th. Game time is set for 5:00pm.

*The team will hold an autograph session with poster handout following the game on Friday. Please stick around following the final whistle to meet and greet this year's team!

BG registers a tie and a loss on the road

This past weekend the BGSU Women's Soccer team hit the road to New York for two away games. The team's first stop was in beautiful Niagara Falls to play Niagara University. From Niagara, the team traveled to Olean, NY to take on the Bonnies of St. Bonaventure.

The Falcons fought a good Niagara team to a 0-0 double overtime battle to open up the weekend. The game against Niagara was exciting to watch as it took place on a very fast turf field under the stadium lights. Both teams exchanged scoring opportunities and played a very physical game. Neither team could find a winner as both defensive units stood strong. The hard fought 0-0 tie earned the Falcons their first shutout of the year.

The team then was able to spend some time enjoying the scenery of Niagara. The team took in the "awesomeness" of the falls....and even got an up-close look from a trip on the "Maid of the Mist". After a "dry" experience on the maid of the mist adventure, the team traveled to St. Bonaventure's field to have a Saturday afternoon training session.

Click Here to view video from the trip to Niagara Falls.

The game against St. Bonaventure ended in a 0-3 loss, which does not quite reflect the way the game appeared to be played. The Falcon's looked to take the early lead only 5 minutes into the game on a Jenny Fowler goal following a free kick, but the linesman waved his flag to indicate offside and so the goal was called back. Shortly after the called back goal, St. Bonaventure would find a way to go up on a bomb that found the back of the net (with a lot of luck and gust of wind) to give the Bonnies a 1-0 lead going into the second half. In an attempt to find the equalizer, the Falcons pressed forward, and in doing so, were more exposed at the back. St Bonaventure was able to capitalize as the Falcon's were pushed forward as the Bonnies earned 2 late goals as a result.

The Falcons have returned home and look forward to hosting a pair of home games this weekend. The team will take on Nationally Ranked University of Minnesota on Friday, September 10th at 5:00pm and Cleveland State University on Sunday, September 12th at 1:00pm. As always, admission to Cochrane field is FREE!

See you on the Side Line!

BG Drops two tough Games to WVU and XU

This past weekend the BGSU Women's Soccer team lost two tough battles against non-conference opponents. The team opened up weekend play with a very hard fought loss against West Virginia, who is nationally ranked in many polls. Despite the loss, BG was able to put together some dangerous scoring opportunities and WVU can not claim to have had any easy time during the game, despite the score line. 20 players for the Falcon's saw action during the game.

BGSU took on Xavier for their second match of the weekend, and again came away empty handed with a loss. The loss was especially tough to stomach due to the fact that many unforced team errors helped XU secure the win. Xavier got out to an early 1-0 start with a bit of luck and some miscommunication between BGSU players to take the lead less than 4 minutes into the match. The score would remain the same until only 26 seconds into the 2nd half when the falcons found the equalizer on a great pass from Alicia Almond that put Katelyn Turner in on goal. Turner calmly beat the XU keeper and put the score at an even 1-1. BG came right back again with another goal less than 7 minutes later to take the lead 2-1 (Alicia Almond again threaded a ball through the defense to an onrushing Alyssa Zuccaro, who slotted the ball to Katie Stephenson who finished 1st time against the XU keeper). Unfortunately, XU got right back into the game on an own goal by BGSU only minutes later, knotting the match at 2-2. XU got the go ahead goal and would not relinquish the lead, despite continued offensive pressure from the falcons. On the day, BG outshot Xavier 14-12.

BG will now travel to New York for an away-trip set of matches against Niagara University and St. Bonnaventure University this upcoming weekend. BG will be back in action on their home field next Friday Sept 10 against the University of Minnesota, and Sunday against Cleveland State University.

We hope to see you during our next home stand! R O L L A L O N G !!

UC tops BGSU in Season Opener 2-1 in 2OT

The University of Cincinnati Bearcats narrowly pulled out a win over the Falcons in the home, and season, opener for BGSU. The game ended in a 1-1 tie at the end of regulation, but the Bearcats were able to make the most out of a questionable free-kick call in the second overtime period to secure their victory.

The Bearcats struck first, taking a 1-0 lead over the home team early in the first half on an own goal by the Falcons. BG thwarted many UC attacks as the game continued and did not allow the visitors any more good chances on goal during regulation. The team pushed on with consistent offensive pressure and Alyssa Zuccaro netted the equalizer with a little over 5 minutes left in the match. Sarah Vonderbrink and Maddie Wideman were credited with assits.

Although a disappointing loss, the team recognizes many positive aspects in terms of how they played. Spectators would agree that BG easily had some of the best opportunities to score on the day, in a game that was exciting to watch due to it's physical nature and fast pace. The team looks to rebound from the loss this weekend as we host Nationally ranked West Virginia on Friday (kickoff 5:00pm) and Xavier on Sunday (kickoff 1:00pm).

Hope to see you on the sidelines! R O L L A L O N G!

2010 Preseason Underway

The 2010 BGSU Women's Soccer team officially began pre-season training camp on Friday, August 6th. The day began with some meetings and "Christmas" (a.k.a. gear distribution - man are they spoiled!), and concluded with the running of the annual Falcon Fitness Test followed by a short training session. The team has completed preseason and already have the foundation of a very cohesive and talented group. Pre-season has been extremely competitive as the team continues to build toward the beginning of the season, but there have also been many laughs and light-hearted team activities along the way. A few noteworthy team activities include the Iron Chef competition and Midnight Madness with team Camo being triumphant over team Black Attack.

IRON CHEF COMPETITION:
Each one of our seniors "captained" a team to compete in the cooking contest. The teams were given $40, 1.5 hours, and the secret ingredient of "potatoes" and the rest was left up to each team's imagination. The teams were judged on taste, creativity, and presentation.....and boy did they make it tough! The food was truly delicious and it was rewarding for the team to prepare the food together and to eat the foods that they, themselves, made. Watch out BG restaurants....the BGSU Women's Soccer team could start a successful catering business! :)

FOOD DESCRIPTIONS:

Team Jamaican Jerks (Winner!):

Jamaican stir fry with jerk flavored chicken, cauliflower, asparagus and potatoes, served with a homemade garlic potato biscuit, and a potato-peanut butter sushi roll.

Team Shake and Bake:

Baked parmesan idaho potato wedges, rosemary crusted red potatoes served over a bed of rice pilaf, veggie stir fry with tri colored peppers, corn, and red onion, and a sweet potato casserole for des sert.

Team Chow Down:

Sauteed green beans with pierogies, served with a crostini of french bread topped with seasoned mashed potatoes, grilled chicken, sweet barbeque sauce and chives.

Team "Winners":

Whole wheat gnocchi with a turkey sausage and creamy tomato sauce ragout, served with cheesy potato casserole, and homemade jalapeno poppers stuffed with mashed potatoes, cheese, and sour cream.

MIDNIGHT MADNESS:
There are no words to describe this team activity. The videos will have to speak for themselves. All I can say is H I L A R I O U S ! Such a good group! (Videos to follow shortly...check back soon!)