BGSU at #15 MISSOURI STATE
Sunday, Oct. 20 | 8:00 p.m. ET
Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium | Springfield, Mo.
Video/Web Stream: ESPN+
Live Stats: MissouriStateBears.com

• The Bowling Green State University men's soccer team hits the road to face a nationally-ranked opponent this weekend. Head coach Eric Nichols and the Falcons meet 15th-ranked Missouri State University on Sunday night (Oct. 20). First touch for the Missouri Valley Conference match is set for 8:00 p.m. ET at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Sunday's Missouri State contest will be streamed via ESPN+. Live stats and Twitter/X updates (@BGSUMSoccer), as always, will also be available.

• Links to any available live audio/video/stats for all 2024 matches can be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com on game day.

TOUGH CROWD!
• The Falcons definitely have a difficult schedule down the stretch. BGSU has four regular-season games remaining, and three of the four opponents are ranked 35th or higher in the latest RPI rankings. Sunday night's opponent, Missouri State, is currently 11th in the nation in the RPI (as of Thursday morning, Oct. 17).

• Following the MSU game, the remaining schedule includes matches against Evansville (currently 102nd in the RPI), Western Michigan (14th) and Oregon State (35th). The Falcons are currently 67th in the country in the RPI.

• BGSU has already played four teams currently in the top-75 of the RPI this season. That list includes Michigan (29th), Drake (40th), UIC (65th) and Michigan State (73rd).

TOP-DRAWER TANDEM
• A pair of BGSU strikers, junior Trace Terry and sophomore Bennett Painter, have been named to the Top Drawer Soccer Midseason Top-100 list. Terry checked in at number 16 on the list, while Painter was 53rd.

• Terry and Painter have combined to score 19 goals this season to date.

DYNAMIC DUO
• Junior Trace Terry and sophomore Bennett Painter each have had a knack for finding the goal this season. A few facts about the Falcons' dynamic duo...

• Entering Sunday's Missouri State game, Terry has 10 goals on the season, while Painter has scored nine times. The 2024 campaign marks the first time BGSU has had two players with nine goals or more since 1996, when Steve Klein scored 18 times and Dave Kindl 11.

• Painter and Terry are tied for the team lead in points, with 21 apiece. BGSU has not had two 20-point scorers in a season since 1996. That year, the Falcons actually had three players with over 20 points, as Klein had a whopping 50 points, with Dave Kindl and Jason Began adding 29 and 26, respectively.

• Each player has four game-winning goals in 2024, tying them for second in the nation in that category. This season marks the first time two Falcons have each had four GWG in the same year since 1991 (Rob Martella five, Tom Kinney four).

• In addition to being tied for second in GWG, Terry is fifth in the nation in shots on goal per game, sixth in goals, eighth in shots per game, 11th in goals per game, 12th in total points and 15th in goals per game.

• Painter is also tied for second in the country in GWG, and he is 12th in both goals and points, 22nd in goals per game, 24th in points per game, 25th in shots per game and 31st in shots on goal per game.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
• Bowling Green is 9-2-2 on the season, and the Falcons are 3-1-1 in MVC play. All three of BGSU's conference wins have come by a single goal, with 2-1 victories over Northern Illinois at home and Bradley on the road, and a 1-0 home win against Belmont. The Falcons lost in league play for the first time on Oct. 5, falling at UIC by a 2-1 final.

• BGSU bounced back to beat Detroit Mercy, 5-2 (Oct. 8), rolling up a 5-0 lead at the half at Cochrane Stadium. Then, the Orange and Brown battled visiting Drake to a scoreless draw four days later (Oct. 12)

• In non-league play, the Falcons have topped Wright State, Butler, Eastern Illinois and UDM at home – although the EIU match was moved indoors due to inclement weather and field conditions – and BG has beaten Michigan State and IU Indy on the road. The Falcons played host Northern Kentucky to a 1-1 draw, and BG's lone non-league loss this season to date came at Michigan (2-0; Sept. 2).

• The Falcons are currently ranked ninth in the United Soccer Coaches West Region poll, as of Tuesday (Oct. 15). BGSU is 6-0-1 at home (including a 5-0-1 mark at Cochrane Stadium) and 3-2-1 on the road.

• BGSU has topped the goal total for all of last season. The 2024 Falcons have scored 28 goals in 13 matches, an average of 2.15 goals per game. Last season, BG had 27 goals in 18 games (1.50 goals per game).

• The Falcons welcomed back 17 of the 20 players who saw action last year. That group includes nine starters from a 2023 club that went 7-8-3 overall and 4-4-0 in BGSU's first year in the MVC.

• Junior Trace Terry and sophomore Bennett Painter are tied for the team lead in scoring, with 21 points apiece. Terry has a team-leading 10 goals, with Painter right behind with nine. As mentioned earlier, they are tied for second in the country  with four game-winning goals apiece, and they each are ranked among the national leaders in multiple other categories.

• Senior Alberto Anaya and junior Andrew Shaffer have 12 and nine points, respectively. Anaya has eight assists to lead the team and rank third in the nation, while Shaffer is also among the nation's top players in that category, with seven assists. Fifth-year Falcon Kyle Cusimano has six points on the year.

• Another fifth-year Falcon, Brendan Graves, has played all 11 matches in goal and has 47 saves, a 1.08 GAA and four shutouts. Three of the 14 goals BGSU has allowed have come via penalty kicks.

• Graves has played all 1170 minutes this season, while Cusimano has played 1169. Josh Erlandson has played 1140 minutes, with Shaffer and Painter at 1106 and 1082, respectively.

• Anaya and Terry, BGSU's top-two scorers from a year ago, each were named to the Preseason All-MVC Team in 2024. Both players had 14 points on four goals and six assists last season. Anaya was named to the 2023 All-MVC First Team, with Terry earning all-conference second-team honors.

• In all, BGSU returned six of last year's top-seven scorers.

• Graves is back in goal in '24 after starting every match a year ago. In fact, Graves has played every second of the Falcons' last 53 matches – a total of 4,790 minutes. No other BGSU 'keeper has been between the posts since Oct. 22, 2021.

THE OPPONENT
• Missouri State is 9-2-1 on the season, and the Bears are in first place in the MVC with a 4-0-1 league ledger. As mentioned earlier, MSU is 15th in the nation, according to this week's United Soccer Coaches poll. After a 1-2-0 start to the season, the Bears are unbeaten in the last nine contests, having gone 8-0-1 since Labor Day. Jesus Barea leads the team with 12 goals and 26 points, including a brace in Tuesday's (Oct. 15) 3-1 win at Memphis. James Jennings and Fumiya Shiraishi have 16 and 12 points, respectively. Will Lowry has started the last seven games in goal and has 10 saves, three complete-match shutouts and a GAA of just 0.54. The Bears have allowed only 28 shots on goal in 12 matches. Coach Michael Seabolt's club went 12-4-3 overall and 6-1-1 in the MVC a year ago.

THE SERIES
• BGSU trails Missouri State, 2-0-0, in the all-time series. Last season's meeting, a 5-2 win for the Bears (Oct. 27, 2023) marked the teams' first encounter since September of 2000. Sunday will be the first time the programs have met in Springfield. Bennett Painter and Alberto Anaya each had a goal and an assist in last season's game at Cochrane Stadium.

UP NEXT
• Following the Missouri State match, the Falcons will return to the road next weekend, facing Evansville on Friday, Oct. 25. That match will begin at 8:00 p.m. ET.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
• For more information on the BGSU men's soccer program, follow the Falcons on Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUMSoccer), Instagram (bgfalcons and bgsumsoccer) and Facebook (BGMensSoccer), and on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.