Bowling Green State University freshman soccer player Mads Christensen. (Kemery Aichele/BGSU Athletics)
Bowling Green State University mens soccer standout Mads Christensen has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Week, the league office announced on Wednesday.
Christensen is just the second Falcon to earn a weekly award from the MVC, and the first BGSU player to garner Defensive P-O-W honors.
Christensen, a native of Copenhagen, Denmark (Campus Vejle), was on the field for over 179 of the team’s 180 minutes last week, helping the Falcons to a pair of wins.
The freshman, who began the year as a central midfielder but was moved to the center-back position due to injuries to multiple teammates, played all 90 minutes as BGSU held high-scoring UIC to just one goal in a 3-1 win over the Flames on Wednesday night, Oct. 18.
Then, on Sunday afternoon (Oct. 22), Christensen played the first 89-plus minutes of another 3-1 win, this time on the road at Drake. Christensen picked up his first collegiate point with an assist on a Bennett Painter goal that came just 12 seconds into the second half and proved to be the game-winning marker.
Christensen, one of just four Falcons to start all 15 matches this fall, is second among field players in minutes played. In MVC matches, he has played 539:28 of the 540 total minutes.
The Falcons are 7-5-3 overall, and BGSU has moved into third place in the MVC standings with a 4-2 conference record.
BGSU closes the home portion of the regular-season schedule on Friday night (Oct. 27), hosting nationally-ranked Missouri State.
First touch is set for 7 p.m. at Cochrane Stadium. Admission is free to all home regular-season matches, and fans can also participate in a Trunk or Treat event just outside the stadium prior to the match.
