BGSU vs. DRAKE
Wednesday, Nov. 13 | 4:00 p.m. ET
Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium | Springfield, Mo.
Video/Web Stream: ESPN+
Live Stats: MVC-Sports.com

• The Bowling Green State University men's soccer team, after an emphatic victory in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament's quarterfinal round, now heads to the semifinals. Head coach Eric Nichols and the Falcons face Drake University on Wednesday (Nov. 13), with first touch set for 4:00 p.m. ET at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium in Springfield, Mo.

• The Falcons are the third seed for the MVC Tournament, while the Bulldogs are the number-two seed.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Wednesday's Drake 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.

THE FALCONS AND THE MVC TOURNAMENT
• The Falcons enter Wednesday's Drake contest with an all-time record of 1-1-0 in the MVC Tournament. Last season, in BGSU's first year in the MVC, the Falcons dropped a 2-1 decision to Northern Illinois in the quarterfinal round of the league tourney. Kyle Cusimano scored for the Falcons, who outshot the Huskies by a 24-14 count in that 2023 contest.

• On Sunday night, Jake Bergin scored just 33 seconds into the match to put the Falcons ahead, and BGSU went on to a 4-1 win over UIC at Cochrane Stadium.
BGSU'S MVC TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Year             Round  Site  Opponent           Result
2023 (#4 seed)    QF     H    #5 Northern Ill.    L 1-2
2024 (#3 seed)    QF     H    #6 UIC              W 4-1
                  SF     N^   #2 Drake        Wednesday
^ Springfield, Mo.                                     

LAST TIME OUT
• Senior Jake Bergin's goal just 33 seconds into the match gave BGSU the lead for good, and the Falcons went on to a 4-1 win over UIC on Sunday night (Nov. 10), in MVC Tournament quarterfinal-round action at Cochrane Stadium.

• Freshman Ryko Bodurov had the first two-goal game of his young career for the Falcons (11-5-2 [4-3-1 MVC]), the third seed for the six-team tournament.

• Sophomore Bennett Painter put an exclamation point on the win with his 13th goal of the season.

• Bodurov had an assist on Painter's goal to cap a five-point night, while junior Trace Terry had two assists in the win.

• Junior Andrew Shaffer and sophomores Anthony Hernandez and Jake Lane each added assists, while fifth-year Falcon Brendan Graves made seven saves in the contest. Bart Muns scored for the sixth-seeded Flames (7-10-0 [3-5-0 MVC]).

UNDEFEATED AT HOME
• The Falcons went unbeaten at home in 2024, capped by Sunday night's (Nov. 10) 4-1 win over UIC. That victory gave BGSU a record of 8-0-1 in home matches, including a 7-0-1 mark at Cochrane Stadium and an additional win in a match that was moved indoors due to weather and field conditions.

• The Falcons last went unbeaten at home during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, actually played in the spring of 2021. BGSU was 3-0-1 inside Cochrane Stadium that season.

• BGSU posted unbeaten home records in 1965 (2-0-1), 1973 (5-0-0), 1974 (4-0-0), 1978 (7-0-0), 1992 (8-0-0), 1994 (9-0-0), 1996 (9-0-1) and 2016 (5-0-4), in addition to 2020(-21) and 2024.

• The Falcons outscored the opponents by a 21-8 count in matches at Cochrane, and BGSU outscored the foes, 26-8, in all home games in '24.

DOUBLE THE DOUBLE-DIGIT SCORERS
• Junior Trace Terry scored his 11th goal of the season in the second half of the Falcons' win over Western Michigan (Nov. 1). Eight minutes later, sophomore Bennett Painter scored his 11th goal of the year.

• Painter scored his 12th goal of the year at Oregon State (Nov. 6), and made it a baker's dozen on Sunday night, finding the back of the net vs. UIC as well. Terry picked up a total of three assists in those two games.

• As of Tuesday morning (Nov. 12), BGSU is one of only two teams in the nation – joining Duke – with a pair of double-digit goal scorers this season.

TOUGH CROWD!
• The Falcons definitely have played a difficult schedule down the stretch. BGSU's last four matches of the regular season included three opponents listed among the top 30 teams in the nation in the latest RPI rankings.

• BGSU faced Missouri State, ranked 11th in the RPI and 15th in the United Soccer Coaches Top-25 poll at the time of that match. The Bears are currently seventh in the RPI. The Falcons also faced Western Michigan (14th in the USC poll at the time of the match) and Oregon State (currently 20th in the RPI and 23rd in the Top Drawer Soccer poll at the time of the match) during that stretch.

• BGSU has played nine matches against teams currently ranked in the top-100 of the RPI this season, and Wednesday's Drake match will be the 10th. The list includes Missouri State, Oregon State (20th), Michigan (27th) WMU (30th), Drake (40th), Michigan State (79th), Evansville (82nd) and UIC (95th; two meetings).

TOP-DRAWER TANDEM
• A pair of BGSU strikers, junior Trace Terry and sophomore Bennett Painter, recently were 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 24 goals this season to date. Keep reading for more information about the duo.

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 Wednesday's Drake game, Painter has 13 goals and Terry 11 on the season. The 2024 campaign marks the first time BGSU has had two players with 10 goals or more since 1996, when Steve Klein scored 18 times and Dave Kindl 11.

• Painter and Terry have 29 and 26 points, respectively, this fall. BGSU had not had two 20-point scorers in a season since the aforementioned '96 campaign. 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 11th 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 GWG, both Painter and Terry are ranked in the top-20 in the nation in total goals, goals per game, total points, points per game. Terry is in the top-10 in the country in total shots per game and shots on goal per game.

ALOTTA ASSISTS FOR ALBERTO
• Senior Alberto Anaya had four assists in the Falcons' win over Eastern Illinois (Sept. 24) , tying the school record. Anaya matched the mark set by Brian Ferguson in a 6-1 win over Eastern Michigan on Sept. 20, 1989.

• Anaya also had the assist on Bennett Painter's goal at Missouri State. On the season, he now has 15 points on three goals and a nine assists, tying for the team lead in the latter category. As of Tuesday morning (Nov. 12), Anaya was 12th in the country in total assists and 19th in the nation in assists per game.

• Anaya now has career totals of 23 assists and 53 points. He has moved into a tie for ninth place on the BGSU career assists list, and is tied for 19th in career points.

ANDREW ALSO ADDS ASSISTS
• Junior Andrew Shaffer picked up an assist in the win over UIC, giving him nine on the season. He is tied with Anaya for the team lead in that category, and also ranks 12th in the nation in total assists and 19th in assists per game.

• Shaffer now has career totals of 27 points on seven goals and 13 assists.

RHYMES WITH SAVES
• Fifth-year Falcon Brendan Graves had four saves, including a pair of impressive second-half stops, in BGSU's win over Western Michigan (Nov. 1). He now has kept 16 clean sheets in his BGSU career.

• Graves has a total of five shutouts this season, including a spectacular performance in a 1-0 win at Michigan State (Aug. 26). Graves made six saves vs. the Spartans, with arguably no routine stops among them.

• After a seven-save performance against UIC, Graves – who has been in goal for every second of every match for more than three years now – has a goals-against average of 1.17 this season, with a GAA of just 0.88 in MVC regular-season matches.

• Entering the Drake match, Graves has a career goals-against average of 1.24, along with 214 saves and the 16 complete-match shutouts. He has moved into a tie for seventh place in BGSU history in career shutouts, and he is in sole possession of seventh place on the school list for career wins, with 27.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
• Bowling Green is 11-5-2 on the season, and the Falcons went 4-3-1 in MVC play. BG finished in a three-way tie for third place in the nine-team league, and the Falcons earned the third seed by virtue of the MVC's second tiebreaker.

• The first tiebreaker is head-to-head results, and all three teams involved in the tie – BGSU, Evansville and Western Michigan – went 1-1-0 against one another. The second tiebreaker is goal differential in conference matches, and the Falcons had the best goal differential (+3) of the three teams.

• On Sunday night, as mentioned, BGSU picked up a quarterfinal-round win, downing UIC by a 4-1 count.

• The Falcons ended the conference regular-season schedule with an emphatic 3-0 win over then-No. 14 Western Michigan (Nov. 1) at Cochrane Stadium. BGSU snapped the Broncos' 37-match unbeaten streak which dated to August of 2023.

• BGSU wrapped up the regular-season slate with a 3-1 loss at Oregon State (Nov. 6), prior to returning home and downing UIC in the league tourney opener.

• While BGSU beat WMU by three goals, the Falcons' other three conference wins came by a single goal. BG posted 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.

• The Falcons' other league losses came against No. 15 Missouri State (2-1; Oct. 20) and Evansville (1-0; Oct. 25), and BG battled Drake to a scoreless draw (Oct. 12).

• In non-league play, the Falcons topped Wright State, Butler, Eastern Illinois and Detroit Mercy 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 suffered non-league losses on the road against Michigan (2-0; Sept. 2) and Oregon State.

• The Falcons were ranked eighth in the most recent United Soccer Coaches West Region poll, as of last Tuesday (Nov. 5). BGSU went 8-0-1 at home this season (including a 7-0-1 mark at Cochrane Stadium), and the Falcons are 3-5-1 on the road. Wednesday's Drake match will be BG's first neutral-site contest in 2024.

• 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.

• Sophomore Bennett Painter and junior Trace Terry are leading the way in scoring, with 29 and 26 points, respectively. Painter and Terry have 13 and 11 goals, respectively, to rank among the national leaders. Both players have four game-winning goals this season to date.

• Senior Alberto Anaya and junior Andrew Shaffer have 15 and 11 points, respectively. Both players have nine assists to rank among the nation's top-20 players in both total assists and assists per game.

• With a brace against UIC, freshman Ryko Bodurov now has seven points on the year, while fifth-year Falcon Kyle Cusimano has six points and sophomore Jake Lane five.

• Another fifth-year Falcon, Brendan Graves, has played all 18 matches in goal and has 69 saves, a 1.17 GAA and five shutouts. Three of the goals BGSU has allowed this season have come via penalty kicks.

• Graves has played all 1620 minutes this season, while Cusimano has been on the field for 1619 of those 1620 minutes. Josh Erlandson has played 1590 minutes, with Anaya, Shaffer and Painter at 1481, 1461 and 1434, 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-league 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 58 matches – a total of 5,240 minutes. No other BGSU 'keeper has been between the posts since Oct. 22, 2021.

HOME COOKIN'
• Head coach Eric Nichols and the Falcons have made Cochrane Stadium a difficult place to play for the opponents. In the last decade-plus – since the start of the 2014 season – BGSU has a record of 53-15-16 (.726) in games at the site.

• Since Nichols took the helm prior to the 2009 season, the Falcons have a record of 70-31-23 at home. That mark now includes one win at a dome in Rossford.

CAPTAINS
• Alberto Anaya, Kyle Cusimano and Brendan Graves are the captains of the 2024 Falcons. All three are captains for the second-straight season.

THE OPPONENT
• Drake has an overall record of 9-4-3 on the season, and the Bulldogs went 5-1-2 in MVC play to finish in second place in the conference standings. DU's only league setback came on the final night of the regular season, a narrow 1-0 loss to Missouri State (Nov. 6). After starting the season with a 1-2-0 record, the Bulldogs then went 8-1-3 over the next two months before that MSU match. Damian Segura leads a balanced scoring attack with five goals and 11 points, while Preston Kipnusu has nine points, including four goals. No fewer than nine different players have at least two goals this year to date. Tomas Butkovic has played all 16 matches in goal and has 37 saves, six shutouts and a GAA of just 1.06. Coach Pat Flinn's 2024 team has tripled the overall win total for last season, as the '23 Bulldogs were 3-10-3 overall and 1-6-1 in the MVC.

THE SERIES
• BGSU leads Drake, 1-0-1, in the all-time series. The teams' first-ever meeting came just last year, with Bennett Painter scoring a pair of second-half goals as the Falcons picked up a 3-1 win in Des Moines (Oct. 22, 2023). Alberto Anaya also scored in that win. This season, the teams battled to a scoreless draw at Cochrane Stadium (Oct. 12, 2024), with Brendan Graves making three saves and Tomas Butkovic two.

UP NEXT
• The BGSU-Drake survivor will advance to the MVC Tournament final, which will be held on Saturday night (Nov. 16) in Springfield, Mo. Wednesday's second semifinal pits fifth-seeded Evansville against top-seeded Missouri State.

• Saturday's final will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET, and like the semifinals, will be streamed on ESPN+.

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 right here at BGSUFalcons.com.