KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan men's soccer team earned another crucial point in the race to the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament on Saturday afternoon in a 1-1 tie with Bowling Green.

The Broncos came just minutes away from taking all three points in Saturday's match with the Falcons. But a penalty kick in the 82nd minute gave Bowling Green the equalizer to keep the match at only a draw. WMU led for most of the match as sophomore forward Sahel Yessen had a career game against the Falcons. Yessen scored the Brown and Gold's lone goal in the 25th minute and took a team-high nine shots for a new career record. Also active on offense for Western Michigan was senior forward Jonathan Stout with four shots and redshirt freshman winger Liam Smith with three. 

It was a fast start on offense for the Broncos and Yessen as he recorded his first shot less than two minutes into the match. WMU racked up three shots in the first ten minutes, including forcing a save from Falcons goalkeeper Jason Ball on another shot from Yessen. The Brown and Gold kept the ball in their attacking third for the next 18 minutes, adding five corner kicks and three more shots, including the lone goal of the first half. 

In the 25th minute, Yessen dribbled the ball up the left side of the penalty area on a midfield pass from defender Mathieu Beauvain. Yessen took the ball to the goal area line before sending a shot in the middle of the net that Bowling Green tried to clear. But the Falcons clear came after the ball crossed the goal line, giving Western Michigan a 1-0 lead. Through the rest of the first half, the Broncos kept Bowling Green mostly out of its attacking third, allowing only one shot in the final 20 minutes. But WMU kept the offensive pressure on, as the team added eight more shots.

The Brown and Gold kept the momentum in the second half as well, as Stout and Smith had near misses back-to-back in the first 10 minutes. It took a full 15 minutes for the Falcons to find their offensive third in the second half, getting two chances before Western Michigan returned to its offensive zone. But the tides began to turn in the final 10 minutes of the match as Bowling Green put a shot on net and then were awarded a penalty kick in the 82nd minute. The Falcons converted on the penalty kick, tying the match at one all. The Broncos had three close chances to get back in front, but the chances were either saved or went just wide of the net.

WMU hosts its final home match of the regular season next week. The Brown and Gold welcome MVC-leading Drake to the Farm for a Halloween showdown. Western Michigan will also be celebrating its Senior Day on Friday, Oct. 31. Kickoff against the Bulldogs is set for 3:30 p.m.