Brady Wahl's goal just over three minutes into overtime gave host Ohio State University a 1-0 win over the Bowling Green State University men's soccer team Wednesday night (Oct. 5).  The non-conference match was held at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.

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BGSU-OSU PHOTO GALLERY - photos by Galloway Photography
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With the win, the Buckeyes improve to 7-4-1 on the season. The Falcons drop to 7-3-1 on the year.  The loss snapped BGSU's season-long four-match unbeaten streak.

The teams combined for 43 shots and 17 corner kicks in the match, but neither the Falcons nor the Buckeyes could put a ball into the net until Wahl's one-timer at the 93:15 mark.

The goal came after a long throw-in by the Buckeyes.  Wahl picked up the loose ball and put it past  Falcon redshirt senior goalkeeper Miguel Rosales for the winning goal.  Rosales was spectacular in net, making a total of eight saves in his 80-plus minutes of relief work.

At the other end, Matt Lampson had five stops.  Additionally, the Buckeyes were credited with one 'team save,' as an OSU defender blocked a shot by BG senior Tanner Fink on the goal line in the second half.

The Falcons had two near-goals, roughly a minute apart and sandwiched around the break between regulation and overtime.  In the final minutes of the second half, the Buckeyes struggled to clear the ball out of the own penalty area.  An OSU player knocked the ball out of the box and toward the sideline, but Zach Lemke swooped in to steal the ball.  Lemke made two nifty cutback moves, eluding a defender with each move, on the end line along the right side of the box.  Lemke fired a low shot, but Lampson was able to make the save at the near post with just 25 seconds on the clock.

Then, junior Rodcliff Hall nearly scored in the first minute of the OT period.  Hall worked a give-and-go play with freshman Danny Baraldi, taking Baraldi's return pass at the top of the box and hitting a shot that whizzed just wide of the right goalpost with roughly 25 seconds elapsed.

Early in the match, Baraldi ripped a shot just wide of the far post.  The shot, which came after Baraldi turnstiled a defender and took several touches down the left side of the pitch, had Lampson beaten, but just missed hitting the far-side netting.

Wiest, who drew the start in goal, collided with Ohio State players twice on crossing balls within the first 12 minutes of the match.  Not long after the second incident, Rosales entered the match.  Wiest made two saves during his stint in goal.

With just under 20 minutes left in the half, Hall laid the ball off to Baraldi, who was cutting left to right just outside the 18-yard box.  Baraldi hit a shot with great force, but the ball sliced just wide of the right post.

Less than two minutes later, the Buckeyes headed home a diagonal ball, but the assistant referee's flag was raised the entire time, indicating offside against OSU.

Senior Byard Ebling made a long run to win a corner kick with 14 minutes left in the half.  Off of that corner kick, sophomore Zach Schewee served a ball toward Hall.  The junior, with his back to goal, headed the ball backward, but Lampson was able to tip the ball over the crossbar with a leaping effort.

Eleven minutes before the intermission, Rosales made a nice diving stop of a shot that was headed toward the far (left) post.  Late in the half, Schewee did well to take the ball off of the boot of an OSU player deep in BGSU's defensive end of the field.  Despite a total of 20 shots between them, the Falcons and Buckeyes went to the intermission locked in a scoreless draw.

The Buckeyes had the better of the play in the first few moments of the second period, but Rosales kept them off the scoreboard.  He made a save on Austin McAnena, then parried a turnaround blast by Chris Hegngi, both within the first 70 seconds of the half.

With nine minutes gone in the period, however, the Falcons nearly got on the board, as Baraldi's corner kick found the head of Fink at the far post. The senior tri-captain headed the ball on frame, but Lampson was able to make the save.

Nineteen minutes remained in regulation when Schewee fired a cross into the box from the left side.  Lampson was able to get to the ball, however, just before Lemke could reach it.

Ebling was able to take the ball off of the boot of Parnell Hegngi in the box with 15 minutes left, thwarting a strong chance for the hosts.

Under six minutes remained when Fink hit a shot that seemed ticketed for the far side of the goal, but a Buckeye defender was able to clear the ball off of the line for a 'team save.'  The Falcons had three more shot attempts in the final five-plus minutes of regulation, including Lemke's last-minute effort, but the match went to overtime to set the stage for Wahl's heroics.

The Buckeyes had a 24-19 advantage in total shot attempts, and OSU was credited with 11 shots on goal to the Falcons' six.  BGSU had a 9-8 advantage in corner kicks on the night.

The Falcons return to Mid-American Conference play this weekend, heading to Western New York for a Sunday (Oct. 9) match vs. the University at Buffalo.  Kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at UB Stadium.

FALCON NOTES
* Wednesday night's match was streamed by the Big Ten Network (BTN.com) ... the match is scheduled to air on the Big Ten Network in the state of Ohio on Friday (Oct. 7) at 12:00 p.m.

* Wednesday marked the first time the Falcons have been shut out this season ... BGSU had scored in 10-straight games to start the 2011 campaign, the longest such streak since a 10-match scoring streak to end 1999 (the last two games) and start 2000 (the first eight matches).

* The Falcons had not scored in as many as 10-straight matches since a 12-game streak in 1997 ... that streak began on Oct. 10, 1997, in a 201 loss to Kentucky ... then, however, the Brown and Orange won 11 consecutive matches before losing, 4-0, to Indiana in the second round of the NCAA Championships (Nov. 30, 1997).

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