BGSU women’s soccer completed its 2025 campaign with a loss on Friday night at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, falling to Western Michigan in the Mid-American-Conference (MAC) Tournament final after a season that finished much as it began. With grit, passion, and a clear blueprint of the program under second-year head coach Chris Fox.
After the squad broke into the conference tournament with a much-needed 3-1 victory over UMass in the regular season finale, they proceeded to win back-to-back tournament matches against Buffalo and Miami (OH) without scoring a single goal in regulation, beating Buffalo in the quarterfinal on an 106th-minute game-winner by junior forward Isabella Mazzaferro and Miami in the semifinal in penalty kicks.
A possession-based style of play allowed Fox and his squad to excel on the defensive end of the pitch, breaking records and earning a program record 13-straight match unbeaten streak, and with only two graduating players, nearly the full squad of contributors will be back for a 2026 season that is filled with optimism.
“One of the things we pride ourselves on is our culture,” Fox said. “We always say that it’s the foundation of everything we do, and culture is ultimately your standard, right? And how you carry yourself, how you hold yourselves accountable daily, and we have a tremendous group that has bought in those standards.”
Season summary: (Overall: 10-3-9, MAC: 4-1-7, Home: 5-2-4, Away: 4-0-4)
After a non-conference slate that featured two home matches against Power Four opponents and a 5-1-1 record, the Falcons went on an unbeaten and defensive run that rivals some of the best squads in program history.
The unbeaten streak that lasted from a victory over Cleveland State on Aug. 21 to a 1-0 victory over Northern Illinois on Oct. 16 featured a 7-0-6 record where the Falcons outscored their opponents 20-8, and in that span, BG earned prominent results such as a 0-0 tie over Cincinnati of the Big 12, and home victories over Kent State, Duquesne, and Central Michigan, as well as draws against Western Michigan and Miami, the two squads that finished at the top of the 2025 MAC regular season standings.
The Falcons finished the season tied for third in the MAC with 26 goals scored, and tied for first in the league with 13 goals allowed and 0.59 goals allowed per game, a mark that is the lowest in a full season in program history and top 10 in NCAA Division I.
The squad was led by consistent performers throughout the season and throughout their back line, including team captain Taylor Green and All-MAC First Team member Gabby Lamparty, who ran the center of the line together throughout much of the season, minus five games Green missed due to injury. Redshirt junior Jayna Searles and 2024 All-MAC Freshman Team member Haley Wolf started at the outside back positions and provided impressive consistency through a combined 3,103 minutes of play.
“We’re super connected on and off the field,” Green said. “I trust everyone back there to keep the ball, and we communicate very well. We all get each other, and I think having the same goal in mind of getting that trophy, if not now, we’re getting it next year.”
Goalkeeper Payton O’Malley had one of the best statistical seasons of any MAC player at her position as only a sophomore, finishing second in the conference in both average goals against and save percentage. O’Malley ended as one of the best goalkeepers in both of those categories, with her .584 goals allowed per game putting her 14th in NCAA Division I and her .84 save percentage placing 30th in the same sample size.
The offensive side of the ball was led by junior forward Emma Stransky, who registered a team high eight goals and 17 points, a career high for the Copley, Ohio native and the most since Kennedy White in 2022. Stransky finished tied for third in the MAC with her eight goals and tied for first with four game-winning goals.
Junior midfielder Emme Butera’s impact was felt on both sides of the ball, as her defensive midfield role meant she had a prominent position in the possession-oriented system, but her role of taking set pieces was what earned her the tie for second-most assists in the MAC at six.
Lamparty, the defensive transfer from West Virginia, also finished second on the team in points, earning three goals and three assists, including a last-minute game-tying goal against Akron in the regular season home finale.
Depth was a strength of the Falcons as a whole, but especially on the offensive end, as six different forwards scored goals in 2025, and eight forwards saw at least 400 minutes on the season, and 27 of the 29 players on the roster saw at least 10 minutes on the season.
Consistent improvement
Despite finishing the season as the sixth-best team in the regular season in both 2024 and 2025, the first two years under Fox, the two seasons ended in two completely different ways, and the 2025 squad saw improvement in nearly every area from the year prior.
On the offensive end, the Falcons earned 26 goals and 29 assists for a total of 81 points across 22 matches. This mark is nearly 25% higher than their 2024 mark of 65 points on 21 goals and 23 assists. Multiple Falcon attackers had career years, most notably Stransky, who doubled her total of four goals in 2024 and led the squad in points for the first time in her career.
The defense that allowed .58 goals per game this season cut their 2024 total of 1.22 by a bit more than half, and their 13 total goals allowed outperforms last year’s total of 22. O’Malley’s goalkeeping went from some of the poorest in the conference in 2024 after she played the first eight matches of the season as a true freshman, to some of the best, going from a 1.56 goals allowed average and a .650 save percentage in 2024 to a 0.58 goals allowed average and a .840 save percentage.
“We walked into the season, and one of our big things is that this year just feels different,” Green said. “I think we’ve said that from our first exhibition game against Vanderbilt to right now. This team was so special, and it’s going to continue to be.”
There’s always next year
With 27 of the 29 players on the roster and 10 of the 11 starters returning for the 2026 season, pending potential transfer exits and entrances, the squad is poised to run it back for yet another tournament run to come next fall.
Despite the notable losses of senior Emily Hollar and grad student Ellie Pool, who earned eight points and started all but one match, the team’s depth will be sure to fill the hole in 2026. With the likely starting lineup featuring Stransky, Mazzaferro, and junior forward Ella Kane, who earned six points of her own despite missing eight matches due to injury, the bench will still feature the same players that made them so potent in 2025.
Junior forwards Lizzie Bultynck and Lexi White, who combined for 634 minutes and 11 total points, will both be returning alongside freshman Quinn O’Neil, who progressed into a forward role throughout the season, making five starts in the final 10 matches and playing 50 minutes across the MAC Tournament.
The Falcons will return their entire midfield, including sophomore Alexis Tsaprailis, who was a full-time starter through the first six matches before suffering an injury that sidelined her for the rest of the season. Midfielders Audrey Oliver and Minah Syam had exceptional years in the midfield throughout the rest of the season, with Oliver earning a goal and an assist on the season and playing nearly every minute of the final eight matches of the season, and Syam earning a spot on the All-MAC Freshman Team for her efforts in her own 1,377 minutes of play.
The entire back line, plus O’Malley and Butera, will likely be retained, which will be so important for a team that is looking to build on a historically impressive defensive season in 2025.
With BG retaining nearly all of their squad while top MAC squads like Buffalo and Western Michigan lose key contributors, the window is wide open, and the sky is the limit for a Bowling Green women’s soccer squad that is looking to prove itself and earn the program’s seventh MAC championship.
“Looking back on the season as a whole, it’s definitely a season to be proud of,” Fox said. “We’re still a young group, right? We’re returning almost everybody next season, so I think all of these opportunities and games and things like this are all just experience for them and learning opportunities. I’m just excited about the future and what we’re building, and yeah, we’ll be back.”
