BGSU Rolls Along to 4-0 Win Over Central Michigan

Sunday, September 28

Bowling Green, Ohio

1 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

7-1-3, 2-0-2

Central Michigan

0-8-2, 0-2-2

Central Mich.

Bowling Green

Lizzie Bultynck, shown here scoring her second goal of the day, had five points vs. the Chippewas

Photo by: Drake Harlett, BGSU Athletics

September 28, 2025 | Women's Soccer

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Falcons have matched the win total for all of last season

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team exploded for three first-half goals Sunday afternoon (Sept. 28), en route to a 4-0 win over Central Michigan University at Cochrane Stadium.

Junior Lizzie Bultynck had a five-point day for the Falcons (7-1-3, 2-0-2 MAC), who have matched the win total for all of last season. Bultynck had two goals and an assist, while classmate Emma Stransky and redshirt sophomore Audrey Oliver also found the back of the net.

Sophomore Payton O'Malley had one save in 78-plus minutes, sharing the clean sheet with Kendall Sears on Sunday. Sears made her collegiate debut with just over 11 minutes to go.

For the Chippewas (0-8-2, 0-2-2 MAC), Brylee Borgman made four saves.

BGSU is now undefeated in the last nine matches, dating to August 17, and the Falcons continue the best start in program history.

NOTE OF THE DAY: TYING LAST YEAR'S TOTAL
• The Falcons have matched the win total for all of last season. BGSU is now 7-1-3 on the season after going 7-7-4 in 2024.

ALSO HIGHLY NOTEWORTHY: HOW THE TURNTABLES HAVE...
• BGSU went 4-4-3 in MAC regular-season play last season. The four losses came to Central Michigan, Kent State, Ohio and Western Michigan.
• Those four teams were the first four opponents on BGSU's conference schedule this year, and through four matches, the Falcons are unbeaten.
• Last year, the Falcons were (obviously) 0-4-0 against those clubs, and were outscored by a 13-3 count.
• This season, BGSU took eight of a possible 12 points vs. that quartet, going 2-0-2, and the Falcons outscored that group, 8-3.

A PRETTY GOOD NOTE AS WELL: BEST. START. EVER.
• The Falcons, as mentioned, are now 7-1-3 (.773) on the season, continuing the best start in program history.
• Prior to this season, the best winning percentage through 11 games in program history was .636, set in 2001 (6-3-2) and matched in 2008, '17, '18 and '24. The 2017 team started 7-4-0, while the other aforementioned teams all were 6-3-2.
• The 2025 season is the 29th in the history of the program, which began in 1997.

AND DON'T FORGET TO READ THIS NOTE: WE'RE GOING STREAKING! THROUGH THE QUAD AND INTO THE GYMNASIUM
• The Falcons are now 6-0-3 in the last nine matches, since BGSU's lone loss of the season (1-0 vs. Illinois on Aug. 17). BG's current unbeaten streak is the third longest in school history.
• The school record is an 11-match unbeaten streak (9-0-2) by the 2005 team. The 2018 Falcons had a 10-match unbeaten streak (9-0-1).
• The 2005 and '18 clubs each went on to win MAC championships.

ONE MORE NOTE (FOR NOW): LIGHTNING BULT
• Junior Lizzie Bultynck had a pair of goals in Sunday's win, for her first and second goals of the season.
• The goals came just 1:47 apart, for the sixth-fastest brace in school history.
• The BGSU record is held by Tracy Gleixner, who scored a pair of goals just 17 seconds apart in a game at Detroit Mercy in 1998.

Two goals in under two minutes for Lizzie Bultynck today!#AyZiggy | 🟠⚽️🟤 pic.twitter.com/0zb1aLQNyN
— BGSU Women's Soccer (@BGSU_WSoccer) September 28, 2025

HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Chippewas had the first good chance of the game, as an errant BGSU pass gave Ella Betzold the ball in the Falcons' defensive end of the field, with only BG goalkeeper Payton O'Malley in her way. Betzold raced toward the 18-yard box and fired a shot, but O'Malley came out near the top of the penalty area and parried the blast. That would wind up being CMU's lone shot on goal of the game.
• Just over 10 minutes into the match, a pass by Emme Butera found an onrushing Ellie Pool. Pool headed down the left side of the field, cut back to elude a defender and hit a shot on goal, but CMU 'keeper Brylee Borgman made a diving stop.
• But, the Falcons broke through just past the 15-minute mark. Butera got her head on a Borgman punt, knocking the ball to Pool. Pool played a nifty through ball to Emma Stransky, who raced behind the CMU back line. Borgman was forced to come off of her line to contest the play, but Stransky poked the ball past the 'keeper, then rolled a shot into the vacated net.
• Midway through the period, Isabella Mazzaferro received a pass near the sideline in front of the benches. She took one touch and played a ball down the line to Stransky. Stransky headed downfield and slid a pass to Emily Hollar as Hollar entered the penalty area. Hollar settled the ball with her left foot and quickly fired a shot with her right, forcing Borgman into a leaping save.
• Lizzie Bultynck entered the match for the first time with 7:58 remaining in the first half, as the Falcons prepared to take a corner kick. Butera played that kick into the box, where it glanced off of the head of a CMU defender. Gabby Lamparty knocked the ball to Bultynck, who quickly fired it off of the left goalpost and into the net, but the assistant referee's flag was raised and the Falcons were ruled offside. Bultynck, however, would strike just over four minutes later.
• With under four minutes remaining in the half, Lamparty took a pass from a teammate near midfield and headed forward. Finding herself with a great deal of space, Lamparty continued into the CMU end of the field. Finally, several defenders converged upon the junior defender, and she slid a through ball to an open Bultynck. Bultynck ran onto the pass on the left side of the box, and slid a shot past a diving Borgman and into the far side of the net.
• Less than two minutes after that goal, Bultynck struck again. After a BG foul, Borgman came ahead to take a free kick near midfield. She played the ball toward the BGSU penalty area, where it was cleared by the Falcons. The ball caromed to Minah Syam, who fired it toward midfield. Bultynck, in her own half of the field, was behind the CMU defenders and took off down the right side. As she neared the penalty area, she spotted Borgman off of her line, and Bultynck expertly chipped a shot over the Central 'keeper and into the far side of the net for her second goal in a span of 1:47.
• CMU had a chance early in the second half after a long ball bounced over O'Malley's head, but a header by Melaina Troy went wide.
• Eight minutes into the half, Bultynck stole the ball in the CMU end and slid a pass to Quinn O'Neil. O'Neil, in the penalty area, got a shot off as Borgman collided with her, but the ball went wide of the net.
• Five minutes later, BGSU worked the ball forward. Jayna Searles found Syam in the middle of the park, and Syam in turn played the ball to Pool out left. Pool put a cross into the six-yard box, but a CMU defender headed the ball away from the far post just before Bultynck could arrive.
• With just under 20 minutes to go, Hollar played a gorgeous diagonal ball toward the far post, as White made a run. White redirected the ball just wide of the goal.
• The Falcons put an exclamation point on the win with seven minutes to go. Regan Reilly saved a ball near midfield and headed down the right side of the pitch. She played a pass to Bultynck, who in turn knocked the ball to Audrey Oliver in the center of the park. Oliver fired a shot from distance, and Borgman got her hand on it as she made a diving effort, but the CMU 'keeper could not prevent the blast from going into the net.

ADDITIONAL FALCON NOTES (THERE ARE A LOT OF THEM)
• The Falcons scored four goals in a match for the second time this season. BGSU also turned the trick in a 4-1 win at Detroit exactly one month ago (Aug. 28, 2025).
• BGSU had not scored as many as four goals in a MAC match in nearly two years, since the last time Central Michigan visited Cochrane Stadium. The Falcons picked up a 5-1 win over the Chippewas on Oct. 19, 2023.
• Redshirt sophomore Audrey Oliver scored her first goal of the season and the second of her career on Sunday. Her first collegiate goal came in that 2023 victory over CMU.
• Junior Lizzie Bultynck scored her first two goals of the season on Sunday. She added an assist for the Falcons' first individual five-point match of the year. No Falcon had registered as many as five points in nearly three years, since Kennedy White had six points on a hat trick at Akron (Oct. 6, 2022).
• Bultynck now has 10 career points on three goals and four assists.
• Emma Stransky scored the first goal of the game. She now has team-leading totals of six goals and 12 points.
• Stransky now has 13 goals and 31 points in her BGSU career.
• Stransky's goal on Sunday was her third game-winning goal of the season and the eighth GWG of her career. The career total ties her for fifth on the school list, along with Samantha Meister (2002-05), Skylar Fleak (2014-17) and Erica Hubert (2015-18). BGSU Hall-of-Famer Kristy Coppes (2001-04) holds the school record with 14 career GWG.
• Junior Emme Butera had an assist on Sunday, her third in as many matches. She now has four this season and seven in her career.
• Butera came off the field for the first time in 2025 on Sunday. After playing the first 945 minutes of the season, she did not start the second half vs. CMU. Butera played a total of 66 minutes vs. the Chippewas after playing all 90 minutes in each of the first 10 matches this fall.
• Gabby Lamparty and Ellie Pool each had an assist vs. Central. Both players now have seven points on two goals and three assists this fall.
• Pool now has eight assists and 24 points at BGSU, and 14 assists and 46 total points in her collegiate career.
• Both sophomore Regan Reilly and redshirt freshman Minah Syam picked up the first point of their respective collegiate careers. Syam had the primary assist on Bultynck's second goal of the day, while Reilly had a helper on Oliver's goal in the second half.
• Like Butera, goalkeeper Payton O'Malley came off of the field for the first time this season on Sunday. The sophomore played the first 978:39 of the season, including the first 78:39 of Sunday's match. She now has a goals-against average of just 0.64 in 2025.
• Christie Fransen made her first start of the season on Sunday. A total of 20 different Falcons have started at least one match in 2025. Twenty different players started matches in 2024. The school record for most players to start at least one match in a season is 22, set in 2004 and equaled in both 2007 and 2010.
• Redshirt freshman Kendall Sears made her collegiate debut in Sunday's match. Sears played the final 11:21 in net and did not face a shot on goal. A total of 26 different players have seen action in at least one match this season to date.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons will open the month of October with a pair of short trips north, beginning with a Thursday (Oct. 2) trip to Toledo. BGSU will meet the Rockets in a 7:00 p.m. start at Paul Hotmer Field.
• Then, the Orange and Brown will venture to Ypsilanti to face Eastern Michigan next Sunday (Oct. 5). That match will begin at 1:00 p.m. at Scicluna Field.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
• For more information on the women's soccer program, follow the Falcons on Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSU_WSoccer) and Instagram (bgsu_wsoccer), as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.