DEKALB, Ill. -- Four days after meeting in the regular season finale the Northern Illinois University men's soccer team will face Bowling Green in the Missouri Valley Conference Quarterfinals as the Huskies and Falcons meet on Sunday evening, Nov. 5, in Ohio. Kickoff for Sunday's contest is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT at Cochran Stadium in Bowling Green, the game will be available on ESPN+.

NIU (6-8-1, 3-4-1 MVC) enters the Missouri Valley Tournament as the fourth seed and secured its place in the postseason with a 2-1 victory over Bowling Green on Wednesday night (Nov. 1). Angel Rodriguez (Elgin, Ill./Ignite Christian Academy) opened the scoring in the 41st minute and Taisei Arima (Machida, Japan/Seiryo) netted the winner in the 86th minute to help setup Sunday's rematch. 

Braeden Beard (Olathe, Kan./Olathe Northwest) provided the primary assist on both Huskie goals against the Falcons and was named the Missouri Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Jakub Rojek (Chicago, Ill./Von Steuben) made nine saves in the contest for NIU. For the season, Rojek is averaging 5.33 saves per game, best in the Missouri Valley and sixth in the nation. 

Five of the last six goals scored by Huskies have come from substitutes, dating back to the Marquette match on Oct. 3. Rodriguez has scored three goals from off the bench during the stretch while Arima and Taylor Davis (Wichita Falls, Texas/Wichita Falls) each have one, Arima has also scored the goal as a starter, which came at Western Michigan (Oct. 18).

Bowling Green brings a 7-7-3 overall record into Sunday's contest, having finished league play with 4-4-0 mark. Alberto Anaya and Trace Terry each have four goals and six assists to lead the Falcons in scoring. Brendan Graves has played all 17 matches in goal for Bowling Green, posting a 1.65 goals against average and a .738 save percentage. 

NIU leads the all-time series against Bowling Green, 19-17-3, and the Huskies have a 4-3 edge all-time against the Falcons in conference tournament games, with all seven of those matches coming in the Mid-American Conference Tournament. The most recent conference tournament meeting came in the 2021 MAC Semifinals when the Huskies topped the Falcons, 5-2. 

In the 16 meetings between NIU and Bowling Green since 2012, seven of them have gone to overtime. 

The winner of Sunday's quarterfinal will advance to the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament semifinals on Wednesday, Nov. 8, in Kalamazoo, Mich.