DeKALB, Ill. – Toledo scored early at Northern Illinois and dominated play throughout in a 3-0 victory over the Huskies in the Mid-American Conference opener for both schools. The win improved the Rockets' record to 6-1-2 overall, while NIU dropped to 3-6-0 this season.

"I'm happy with our team's performance tonight," Head Coach T.J. Buchholz said. "NIU is a difficult place to play, and our defense played outstanding again. NIU has some very talented attackers, and I'm proud with how well our backline dealt with them throughout the game."

Toledo held an 18-2 advantage in total shots, a 9-0 cushion in shots on goal and an 8-2 edge in corner kicks.

Junior Stephanie "Stitch" Currie put Toledo on the board in the opening minutes with her first goal of the season at the 2:41 mark. Currie's breakaway goal set the tone for the contest as the Rockets held a 10-2 shot advantage in the opening 45 minutes.

"It was great to have Mia (Leonetti) find Stitch early behind the NIU defense to score on a breakaway," Buchholz said. "From there, we did a really good job of creating great chances in front of their goal but NIU's defense was strong and didn't let us score the rest of the half."

Freshman Olivia Dault provided Toledo with some breathing room when she netted her team-best fourth goal at the 62:04 mark. She knocked home a shot during a scramble near the goal line following a free kick from freshman McKenna Schultz, who was credited with an assist.

Sophomore Caylee Jozefov tallied her first career goal on a header with just under 10 minutes to play to provide the Rockets their final margin of victory. Dault assisted on the play with a corner cross.

Dault topped the Rockets with four shots and three shots on goal. Currie and sophomore Ellie Pool each registered three shot attempts.

Sophomore goalkeeper Emma Boutorwick picked up her fifth shutout of the season for Toledo.

Toledo returns home on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. to host Western Michigan at Paul Hotmer Field.

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team got the Mid-American Conference portion of the schedule off to a successful start Thursday afternoon (Sept. 23). Michigan natives Kennedy White and Madi Wolfbauer scored first-half goals to lift the Falcons over Western Michigan University, 2-0, in the conference opener at the WMU Soccer Complex.

The Falcons (2-4-2 overall) took the lead for good when White scored in the 13th minute of the match. After a long ball forward by Nikki Cox, WMU goalkeeper Maggie Rogers came out of the penalty area and attempted to clear the ball away. But, White blocked that clearance attempt, then slotted the ball past a Bronco defender and into the vacated net.

Wolfbauer scored on a strike from distance with just over three minutes left before halftime.

Lili Berg made a pair of saves against the Broncos (2-6-0), for her first complete-match shutout of the year. Rogers had four saves for the hosts, as the Falcons were credited with a 6-2 advantage in shots on goal.

ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio soccer team (5-3-0, 1-0 MAC) opened Mid-American Conference play on Thursday afternoon at Chessa Field, snapping Buffalo's (6-2-0, 0-1 MAC) six-game winning streak, taking down the Bulls thanks to a late goal from senior Haley Miller (Cincinnati, Ohio). 
 
"It was very good win," head coach Aaron Rodgers said. "it's very satisfying. I mean, the players, they they've been working hard. It's very good and satisfying to be able to put together a performance like that, especially coming off a game last Sunday against Western Carolina where we were not at our best. We were able to refocus and get back to what we know we can do. We were strong mentally, and we showed that today we showed that resilience. To give up a goal and then score less than two minutes later, was a tremendous testament to the players and their grit and resilience."
 
Buffalo struck first, taking an early 1-0 in the eighth minute on a goal from Tess Ford on an assist from Abbey Callaghan off their first corner kick. 
 
Ohio responded just a minute later when the Bobcats crashed the net and graduate transfer Madison Clayton (Waynesburg, Pa.) scored on an assist from senior Abby Townsend (Powell, Ohio). 
 
After the early two goals, offensive onslaught slowed down during the remainder of the rainy first half. As the two teams battled late into the second half, the Bobcats finally broke the tie in the 82nd minute wen Clayton placed a ball from the right side perfectly to a jumping Miller, who headed the ball past the diving Buffalo keeper, giving Ohio the late 2-1 lead. 
 
The Bobcats' defense held strong over the remaining seven minutes, staving off a couple of Buffalo changes, helping seal the 2-1 win. 
 
Overall, both teams recorded eight shots, with Ohio placing seven on goal to UB's five. Meanwhile, Buffalo attempted nine corner kicks, capitalizing on one. 
 
Individually, Clayton finished the game with a goal and an assist on one shot, while Townsend added an assist while taking four shots with four on goal. Miller added a goal on one shot. 
 
In net, senior Sam Wexell (Irwin, Ohio) got the start in next, plating all 90 minutes, allowing one goal and making three saves. 
 
The Bobcats continue MAC play on Sunday, Sept. 26 when they head to Akron, Ohio to take on the Zips. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. 

MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State soccer team returned to the friendly confines of the Briner Sports Complex for the Mid-American Conference opener Thursday. The Cardinals battled the Eastern Michigan Eagles to a 0-0 draw. Maya Millis produced the play of the game with a team save to secure the draw in double overtime.
 
At the nine-minute mark, Millis put the first shot on target of the game but was unable to beat the EMU keeper. Kennedy Metzger ripped a shot on net, but the Eagle goalie made a big stop 35 minutes into the match. The Cardinals had another scoring chance in the 38th minute, when Lexi Fraley managed to beat the EMU keeper, but the shot went just high enough to hit the crossbar.
 
The BSU defense was stout in the first half as the group did not allow EMU to get a shot on target.
 
Eastern Michigan came out fast in the second frame and put the first shot on net, but Alex DeRuvo came up with the save to keep the Eagles off the scoreboard.
 
Nicky Potts and Kaitlyn Fraser put shots on target in the 69th and 72nd minutes, respectively, but the EMU goalkeeper was up for the challenge and kept the match at 0-0. Jenna Dombrowski posted the final two shots on target of regulation but was unable to find the back of the net.
 
In the first overtime period, neither team was able to record a shot due to the staunch defense.
 
The biggest play of the night came in the 101st minute. The Eagles managed to beat the Cardinal goalie, but Millis posted a huge team save as she headed the ball away from the goal and preserved the tie.
 
Ball State will be back in action on Sunday, Sept. 23, as they travel to Mount Pleasant, Michigan for a matchup with Central Michigan. Kickoff is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start time.