After beginning the season 2-0, the BG men’s soccer team split their weekend series 1-1 during the Duquesne Invitational in Pittsburgh.

The Falcons looked unbeatable again on Friday as they went on to defeat Niagara University 4-0 pushing their undefeated record to three win.

Two first half goals were scored by sophomores, Sullivan and Flynn; the Falcons then followed them up with the same result again in the second half. Sullivan and Flynn each finished the game with two goals apiece, giving Flynn eight goals through just three games.

“Our mentality was good all game,” head coach Eric Nichols said. “I felt we played very comprehensive and we defended our lead well.”

While the Falcons as a whole have continued to be successful, a majority of their scoring has come from their underclassmen.

With eight goals on the season, sophomore Pat Flynn leads the Falcons with eight goals. Fellow sophomores Joe Sullivan and Max Auden have both added three and one goal[s] respectively. Freshman, Bradley Macomber has also added a lone goal for the Falcons, giving the underclassmen 13 of the 16 season goals for the Falcons.

“Our young guys are coming along really well,” Nichols said. “A number of our young guys have gotten goals and assists; they’ve just been making plays.”

After going on the road and getting their first visiting victory, the Falcons took the field against Duquesne University, midday Sunday.

Remaining scoreless for the first thirty minutes, the Falcons suffered their first deficit of the season as the Dukes pushed in the first goal of the game on a rebound from a Landsberger save.

Shortly after halftime, Duquesne scored a second goal with just over 34 minutes left in regulation.

However, the Falcons were not bothered by the pressure, and instead, remained aggressive.

“We never felt like we were on our heels,” Nichols said. “We were always the aggressor throughout the game, we just can’t leave so many possessions without chances.”

Despite falling behind, the Falcons maintained their composure and battled back to tie the game after converting a Danny Baraldi penalty kick with less than three minutes remaining.

“There was never any doubt that we could come back despite falling down 2-0,” Nichols said. “We were playing to win the entire time.”

After battling back from their first deficit of the season, the Dukes put the nail-in-the-coffin with a ‘golden goal’ during the second overtime.

This goal ended the game, giving the Falcons their first loss of the season to end the Duquesne Invitational.

“We showed a lot of character against Duquesne,” Nichols said. “They are a good team with some interesting weapons and battled well.”

While the Falcons fought hard throughout the game, never giving up, they were unable to find a way to put the Dukes away.

Now the Falcons will look to get the bad taste out of their mouth and move onto their next matchup against Northern Kentucky.

“This loss is going to sting, but we need to remember the sting and figure out how to win the next close game,” Nichols said.

The next time the Falcons will take the field, they will be back home September 12 at 7 p.m. on Cochrane Field.

“Next time, we need to figure out a way to finish and get the win,” Nichols said.