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Sunday, November 10
Bowling Green, OH
1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

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vs
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Eastern Michigan (Final)

Women's soccer - 2019 MAC Tournament champions
Photo by: Isaiah Vazquez/BGSU Athletics

FLY WITH US! BGSU Wins MAC Tournament Title for Second-Straight Year

Sun, Nov, 10 | Women's Soccer

Falcons advance past EMU via PKs on Sunday at Cochrane

The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team captured the Mid-American Conference Tournament title for the second consecutive year, advancing past Eastern Michigan University via penalty kicks Sunday afternoon (Nov. 10) at Cochrane Stadium. The Falcons and Eagles battled through 110 minutes of scoreless play before BGSU won the PK phase, 3-1.

The Falcons (now 14-5-3) never trailed in the penalty kick portion of the day's events. Both goalkeepers – BGSU's Kathleen Duwve and EMU's Chelsea Abbotts – were stellar, saving two PKs each. But, BG took an early lead as senior Chelsee Washington and freshman Kennedy White scored, and Duwve made a save on Peyton Davis.

Nicole Remedios stepped up and scored for the Eagles (8-11-3), cutting BG's lead to 2-1 after two rounds. Then, the teams combined to miss the next four attempts. Abbotts saved back-to-back shots from the Falcons. But, with a chance to tie things up, EMU's Parys Kerr sent her shot wide left in the third round, and Duwve made a diving stop of an Amanda Cripps effort in the fourth.

In the fifth round, junior Nikhita Jacob stepped up and made the clinching shot to give the Falcons the MAC Tournament title for the second consecutive season and the fourth time in school history.

Jacob was named the MAC Tournament MVP, while sophomore Mackenzie Reuber and freshmen Katie Cox and Lena Kovar joined her on the MAC's All-Tournament Team.

(NOTE: The complete penalty-kick sequence, as well as the MAC's All-Tournament Team, can be found at the bottom of the page.)

The Falcons entered Sunday's match on a five-game winning streak, having scored 17 goals in those five games and a school-record 45 goals this season to date. The Eagles won four-straight matches prior to Sunday, and Eastern had scored 14 goals in the five matches prior to Sunday. But, neither team could find the back of the net during the 110 minutes of play.




STATISTICS
• BGSU outshot EMU, 14-9, but Eastern had a 4-2 advantage in shots on goal.
Kathleen Duwve made four saves during the first 110 minutes to earn the shutout, then made two more stops in the penalty-kick phase to backstop her team to the title.
• The Eagles' Chelsea Abbotts made two saves during the run of play and two more stops on BGSU PKs.
Nikki Cox led all players with five shot attempts, while teammate Chelsee Washington and EMU's Kristin Hullibarger had three shots each. The Eagles' Nicole Remedios was the lone player on either team with two shots on goal.
• The Falcons had a 7-2 lead in corner kicks, including a 3-0 advantage in the overtime periods.




FIRST-HALF HIGHLIGHTS
• 4' | EMU's Sabrina McNeill played a left-side cross into the box, where the ball was blocked by a BGSU defender. It caromed high into the air, but senior goalkeeper Kathleen Duwve made a leaping grab.
• 7' | POST | Junior Nikhita Jacobs found redshirt junior Nikki Cox with a pass on the right side of the field. Cox made a run along the end line, cutting back and hitting a shot that got past EMU goalkeeper Chelsea Abbotts. The shot hit the far post and headed back the way it came, and Abbotts gratefully fell on it.
• 10' | Freshman Makenzie Ortman won a corner kick for the Falcons, and Jacob was able to get her head on the ensuing kick. But, BG could not put a shot on frame, and the Eagles cleared the ball out of danger.
• 13' | Ortman was fouled by the Eagles after a long run down the center of the field. But, off of a short free kick, a shot by senior Chelsee Washington was blocked.
• 14' | EMU pressed the Falcons and won the ball, and McNeill popped it forward toward Kristin Hullibarger. Hullibarger hit a quick turnaround shot, but the effort went high.
• 17' | Eastern's Amanda Cripps was tripped in the Northwest corner of the field, earning her team what was essentially a short corner kick. Nicole Remedios took the ensuing kick and played it toward the far side of the box. It was knocked back toward the center, where Peyton Davis attempted to redirect it toward the net. But, her shot was off target.
• 23' | Washington made a nifty run over midfield, and found Nikki Cox with a pass. In turn, Cox made a lengthy run down the right side. She slid a centering ball along the 18-yard line, but it was deflected by an EMU defender before it could reach freshman Kennedy White.
• 27' | A Remedios free kick found the onrushing Hullibarger on the right side of the six-yard box, and Hullibarger got her foot on the diagonal ball and put a shot on frame. But, Duwve made the point-blank save.
• 32' | Freshman Lena Kovar took a free kick for the Falcons, just outside the penalty area on the left side. Her cross was deflected toward the far post by Nikki Cox, and White was able to get a boot on the ball with a lunging effort, but she was unable to put it on target.
• 37' | On a counterattack, Nikki Cox and White worked a combination play to get the ball into the EMU end of the field. But, Cox's crossing ball was blocked away by the Eagles.

SECOND-HALF HIGHLIGHTS
• 51' | The Eagles had a chance on the left side, but a McNeill effort was blocked by a BG defender. The ball caromed back off of McNeill and out of bounds for a BG goal kick.
• 56' | Washington was fouled on the left side of the field, and Kovar played a free kick into the box. The ball ping-ponged around the area, but BG was unable to get a shot off.
• 59' | Off of a corner kick by the Eagles, Haley Tausend got her head on the ball, putting a shot on target. But, the effort was hit in the vicinity of Duwve, who made the save.
• 59' | Less than 60 seconds later, Ortman played a through ball for the onrushing White, who blew past a pair of EMU defenders. But, Abbotts was able to come off of her line and dive on the ball a split-second before White could arrive.
• 60' | The Eagles countered quickly, with Hullibarger playing a ball ahead to Cripps. Cripps hit a shot, but the ball went wide of the far post.
• 66' | The Falcons had a chance, as Nikki Cox found sophomore Sarah Allen on the right side, near the end line. Allen played a low cross into the box, and Nikki Cox laid the ball off to freshman Katie Cox. But, in traffic, the younger Cox got tangled up and was unable to get a shot off. The ball caromed off of a defender to Nikki Cox, who hit a quick shot from approximately eight yards out. But, the shot was blocked and EMU eventually won a goal kick.
• 71' | Senior Kristin Tveit won a corner kick for the Falcons, and freshman Jasmijn Dijsselhof took that kick. The curving ball was just beyond the leaping effort of White near the far post.
• 74' | Washington sent White down the left side, and White cut back and hit a cross, but the ball was blocked, ending the BG threat.
• 75' | The Falcons won the ball right back, and White hit another cross from the left side. Nikki Cox hit a shot toward net, but ball was stopped by Abbotts.
• 77' | Off of a Kovar corner kick, White's header went wide of the far post.
• 80' | A foul was called on the Eagles deep in EMU's defensive end. Washington took the ensuing free kick, and put a shot on frame, but the hard effort was saved by Abbotts at the near post.
• 85' | McNeill made a long run for the Eagles, playing the ball to Davis. Davis hit a right-side cross, but the ball was just out of reach of Hullibargar, who was crashing the net at the far post.
• 88' | With just over two minutes to go in regulation, White hit a shot just over the bar.
• 90' | Nikki Cox won a corner kick for the Falcons with 45 seconds to go. Kovar took that kick, but the ball was just a bit behind several Falcons. Jacob tracked it down on the far side, but the Falcons could not get a shot away before time expired.

OVERTIME HIGHLIGHTS
• 92' | With just over a minute gone, sophomore Mackenzie Reuber put a cross into the box from the right side. The ball was knocked away by Abbotts with White lurking at the far post. Abbotts tipped the ball out for a corner kick, but that corner was cleared by the Eagles.
• 95' | Allen hit a shot from distance after her initial pass was deflected back to her, but the shot was blocked.
• 96' | After a foul on the Falcons, a Remedios free kick curved into the box, but Duwve made a leaping grab.
• 98' | Washington got her head on a Dijsselhoff corner kick, but the shot was wide of the left post.
• 101' | Just over a minute into the second OT period, McNeill put a cross into the 'danger zone' for the Eagles, but Duwve plucked the ball out of the air.
• 103' | Duwve gathered in another crossing ball, this time off of the boot of Hullibarger.
• 104' | Washington found Nikki Cox with a pass, but Cox's cross/shot was blocked.
• 105' | After an EMU throw-in, Ortman and BGSU won the ball back. Washington played it out left to Dijsselhof, and the freshman slid the ball toward the center.
Nikki Cox ran toward the six-yard line, and she, an EMU defender and the ball all arrived at approximately the same time. Cox was able to get a shot off, but the ball was stopped by Abbotts.
• 108' | Nikki Cox found sophomore Alexis Miller, who hit a shot from distance, but that effort was blocked. That was the final shot attempt of the period, and after another two-plus minutes, the teams proceeded to the penalty-kick phase.
 
PENALTY KICK PHASE
BGSU - #7 Chelsee Washington – GOAL
EMU - #4 Peyton Davis – SAVED (Kathleen Duwve)
BGSU - #4 Kennedy White – GOAL
EMU - #16 Nicole Remedios – GOAL
BGSU - #8 Katie Cox – SAVED (Chelsea Abbotts)
EMU - #12 Parys Kerr – MISSED (wide left)
BGSU - #9 Nikki Cox – SAVED (Abbotts)
EMU - #18 Amanda Cripps – SAVED (Duwve)
BGSU - #5 Nikhita Jacob – GOAL

MAC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Katie Cox, Bowling Green
Mackenzie Reuber, Bowling Green
Lena Kovar, Bowling Green
Nikhita Jacob, Bowling Green
Chelsea Abbotts, Eastern Michigan
Sabrina McNeill, Eastern Michigan
Kristin Hullibarger, Eastern Michigan
Emily Kelly, Buffalo
Adrianna VanCuyck, Buffalo
Alivia Milesky, Ohio
Sydney Leckie, Ohio
 
MAC TOURNAMENT MVP
Nikhita Jacob, Bowling Green
 
WHAT'S NEXT?
• The Falcons have earned the MAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. The national tournament field will be announced on Monday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• For more information on the women's soccer program, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @bgsuwsoc), Instagram (bgsuwsoc) and Facebook (bgsuwsoc) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.