The men’s soccer team is on the last leg of their journey as they hit the road today. The Falcons travel to Akron to take on the Zips.

BG is returning from a well-traveled road trip over the past two weeks in which they went to Florida and Las Vegas for their last two tournaments.

The games prior to today’s game have provided building blocks for the primarily young team. The Falcons are most recently coming off a tough double overtime loss to the Runnin’ Rebels of UNLV on Sunday. The team is now 2-2-2.

With six games under their belt, the Falcons will now begin playing games that will have a direct effect on their season because today’s game marks the beginning of Mid-American Conference play. The Falcons realize the importance of these games and are by no means taking the Zips lightly.

The Falcons’ schedule, which had them competing against NCAA powerhouse schools such as UNLV and Cincinnati, was designed to help the Falcons better prepare themselves for the MAC. This year’s schedule has had the Falcons on the road for four out of six games, and well prepped for conference games. “We are excited to play Akron,” Coach Mel Mahler said following the UNLV tournament.

Mahler and the Falcons have good reason to be excited for conference play. So far this season the team has only allowed seven goals in six games, including two shutouts.

Other than the play of the defense, led by goal keeper David DeGraff, the Falcons also have some offensive weapons.

Transfer Omari Aldridge has provided a great lift for the team, scoring three goals this season. Paul Seip and Paul Dhaliwal have two goals apiece.

Following today’s conference opener, the team heads home to play their first home game in nearly three weeks. On Sunday the Falcons face off against the University of Michigan at 3:30 p.m. at Cochrane Field.