The Bowling Green mens soccer team lost to the Dayton Flyers 6-0 on Friday night at Baujan Field in Dayton.

Head coach Eric Nichols said that the team played well despite the loss.

“I was really pleased with the first half,” Nichols said. “I was also quite impressed with how well Dayton did with their few chances in that half. They had a couple really good moments that stung us, but even at halftime, I fully believed that we could get something back.”

The team’s defense faltered against the top scoring offense in the Atlantic 10 Conference, as they allowed nine shots on goal to come towards junior goalkeeper Ryan Heuton, six of which made their way into the net for goals.

Nichols said that the second half was where the match began to go bad.

“We couldn’t catch a break there early in the second half,” he said. “They stung us again and then the game got out of hand.”

The team’s offense was unable to fare much better than the defense, as only three shots were directed on goal. Those getting shots on goal included junior Jacob Roth, junior Joe Sullivan and freshman Ryan Ross, who is still searching for his first goal at the college level. The team was able to keep pace with Dayton in terms of total shots, with 15 to their 17.

The first goal scored by Dayton occurred 13:09 into the match as senior forward Maik Schoonderwoerd scored with assists from senior defender Andrew Lightner and junior midfielder Tommy Harr. Harr received a pass from Lightner along the left side of the pitch, where he then crossed to Schoonderwoerd for the score. Schoonderwoerd would score again in the second half, doubling his goal total on the season to four goals.

The team was beat by a set piece goal for the second match in a row, as junior defender Lalas Abubakar scored off a corner kick taken by senior forward Michael Frasca after a Heuton save.

Also scoring for Dayton was senior midfielder Kissima Bojang, Frasca, and senior midfielder Anthony Keene.

With the loss, the Falcons are now standing at a 6-2 overall, which still places them second in the Mid-American Conference. Dayton increased their standing lead in the Atlantic 10 Conference, now holding a 5-3-1 overall record.

“Certainly not a good result, but it is just one game.” Nichols said. “We will review this game, learn from it and get better as we get ready for Michigan State next week.”