Aug. 19, 2008

Final Stats

ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Bowling Green State University men's soccer Falcons put their first marks on the 2008 season as the squad played to a 1-1 draw versus the Oakland University Grizzles. The first exhibition match of the season was played before a crowd of 175 spectators on a breezy August afternoon in southern Michigan.

Oakland scratched the scoreboard first with a Piotr Nowak one touch shot as a result of Michael Robinsons' pass from the side of the box at 77:35. Though the shot slipped passed veteran Falcon Paul Shoemaker, the senior goalkeeper went on to finish the match with three saves.

The latter goal would come at 80:39 as OU freshman keeper Steven Clark would overplay a header from his own defense.

"This was a great, even game and overall was played well," said head coach Fred Thompson. "We have 10 more training sessions and another exhibition before we face South Florida; we exposed strengths and weakness today and will address both in the coming days."

The Falcons, starting a veteran group of nine lettermen, saw five rookies take to the grass for the first time in their collegiate careers. Vuk Krkeljic was the lone starter of that group; after sitting out his first season, Chris Jurtovski also earned a start. Jurtovski, along with Dusko Topolic led BGSU with a pair of shots this afternoon.

Cleveland State will journey westward to face the Falcons on Sunday, Aug. 24 for a 2:00 p.m. exhibition showdown.