Falcons Head to The ‘Zoo for a Wednesday Wrangle With Western

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 19  |  7:00 P.M.  |  UNIVERSITY ARENA  |  KALAMAZOO, MICH.

BOWLING GREEN FALCONS (13-11, 6-6 MAC)

at

WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS (10-13, 6-6 MAC)

JUMP BALL
• The Bowling Green State University women’s basketball team puts a two-game winning streak on the line in a Mid-American Conference midweek matchup. Head coach Fred Chmiel and the Falcons travel to Kalamazoo for a Wednesday (Feb. 19) game vs. Western Michigan University, with tipoff at 7:00 p.m. at University Arena.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS

• There are many ways to keep up with the Falcons in 2024-25…

• TV/VIDEO: Wednesday’s Western Michigan game will be streamed via ESPN+.

• RADIO/AUDIO: The WMU contest, as is the case for all of BGSU’s 2024-25 games, is scheduled to have an audio stream thanks to Falcon Media Sports Network.

• LIVE STATS: Live stats are scheduled to be available for all games in ’24-25.

• TWITTER/X & THE ‘GRAM: In-game updates, along with other key information, can be found on the BGSU women’s basketball Twitter/X account (@BGSUWBB), with periodic updates on the program’s Instagram account (bgsuwbb) as well.

• For all of the pertinent links to any and all ways to follow the Falcons, go to BGSUFalcons.com and navigate your way to the “women’s basketball schedule” page on game day.

LAST TIME OUT: FALCONS TOP CENTRAL MICHIGAN ON ALUMNI DAY

• The Falcons ended the first half on a double-digit run to seize control on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 15), and BGSU went on to post a 70-55 win over Central Michigan inside the Stroh Center.

• Sophomore Paige Kohler had a game-high 18 points to lead four double-digit scorers for the Falcons (13-11, 6-6 MAC). Senior Amy Velasco and freshman Johnea Donahue each scored 14 points, while fifth-year Falcon Lexi Fleming added 13.

• On Alumni Day at the Stroh, Kohler went 5-for-8 from three-point range in the win, while Velasco had five assists. Donahue also had five helpers, with Donahue and Fleming each coming up with five steals.

• Jess Lawson led the Chippewas (10-14, 5-7 MAC) with 13 points, while Ayanna-Sarai Darrington had a double-double, with 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

• The Falcons went on a 9-0 run late in the first quarter to take a 21-8 lead, before the Chippewas scored the final bucket of the period.

• After the lead reached as many as 15 points early in the second quarter, the visitors went on an 11-2 run to trim BG’s margin to just six points, at 27-21. But, a corner three by sophomore Keiryn McGuff sparked a 14-0 run for the Falcons. BGSU held CMU scoreless over the final 4:30 of the first half, and the Orange and Brown took a 41-21 lead into the intermission.

• BG’s lead reached a game-high 24 points midway through the third quarter, and although the Chippewas made a late push, the margin never dropped into single digits the rest of the afternoon.

• McGuff had seven points, going 3-of-4 from the field, and led all players with a plus/minus rating of +18.

FIT TO BE TIED

• Wednesday’s Western Michigan game is the Falcons’ 13th Mid-American Conference contest of the season. And, the WMU matchup will mark the ninth time that BGSU meets a team tied with the Falcons in the MAC standings.

• Each of BG’s first five MAC contests saw the Falcons face a team that was even with the Falcons in the standings. Then, after three-straight games against teams either above or below the Falcons, BGSU is now meeting a team even in the standings for the fourth time in the last five games.

• BGSU and WMU each are 6-6 in the MAC, tied for sixth place in the 12-team league, heading into Wednesday’s game in Kalamazoo.

FUN BELT: FALCONS GO 2-0 IN MAC-SUN BELT CHALLENGE

• BGSU withstood an early three-point barrage by Arkansas State, and the Falcons rallied back for a thrilling 75-73 road win in MAC-Sun Belt Challenge play (Feb. 8).

• Freshman Johnea Donahue had the first double-double of her young career for the Falcons, with career-high totals in both points and rebounds at A-State. Donahue had 19 points and 10 boards, going 8-of-9 from the field in the win.

• Senior Amy Velasco had 15 points and eight assists, while sophomore Paige Kohler scored 14 points and added five rebounds.

• BGSU’s win snapped an 11-game winning streak dating to late December for the Red Wolves, who dropped to 15-8 (11-1 Sun Belt).

• BGSU had a dominant 49-28 rebounding lead, with Erika Porter pulling down 11 boards to go along with her seven points. Fellow fifth-year collegian Lexi Fleming had a season-high eight rebounds along with six points and seven assists.

• After going 0-2 in the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge last year, BGSU was a perfect 2-0 this season, with a season-opening home win over Southern Miss and the win at A-State.

NUMBER 3 HAS BEEN A KEY IN BGSU’S 3 ROAD WINS

• The Arkansas State game was the Falcons’ third true road win this season. Freshman Johnea Donahue has played a key role in each of those wins.

• Donahue had 10 points, tying her career best at the time, along with a career-high eight rebounds in the win at Ohio (Jan. 15). She also had two assists and three steals.

• At Central Michigan (Feb. 1), she set a new career high with 12 points, and tied her career best with five assists in a comeback victory. Donahue also had five rebounds and a pair of steals.

• Then, at Arkansas State, Donahue exploded for career-high numbers in both points (19) and rebounds (10), as she went 8-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-2 from three-point range. Her lone steal came in the final minute of play with the game tied.

• In those three road wins, Donahue shot a combined 15-of-19 (78.9%) from the floor, including 3-of-3 from the arc. She averaged 13.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game in those three contests.

EP = ELITE PERFORMER

• It’s no secret that Erika Porter can shoot the ball well. How well? Very well. So well, in fact, that she has already set several school records and is on pace for another.

• Last season, Porter shot 66.3 percent from the field, making 159 of her 240 shots to set a new school single-season record in that category. In fact, she broke not only the BG record, but the MAC single-season mark as well, and she ranked second in the entire nation in field-goal percentage a year ago.

• Porter shot 68.2% from the field in MAC games last season, making 107 of her 157 attempts. She shattered that BGSU record (65.5%, Talita Scott in ’92-93) and fell just shy of breaking the conference mark (68.9%, Buffalo’s Heather Turner in 2006-07).

• Now, Porter is on pace to shatter another BGSU record – the school career record for field-goal pct. Entering the Western Michigan game, Porter has shot 60.6% (258 of 426) from the field in her BG tenure – well ahead of the current record of 57.0% (Jacki Raterman, 1995-99).  Hear us now and believe us later, @OldTakesExposed – Porter is a virtual lock to break this record.

PK10 GETS IT DONE

• Sophomore Paige Kohler had a monster game in the Falcons’ 82-69 win over Akron (Jan. 29). Kohler had 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists to lead the team in all three categories. She tied her career scoring high, and fell just two rebounds and one assist shy of matching each of those career standards.

• Then, three days later, she had a team-leading 17 points in the win at Central Michigan (Feb. 1), including arguably the biggest bucket of the game. With under a minute to play and the Falcons leading by a single point, Kohler hit a long three-point attempt to give BGSU a 71-67 lead with 42.0 seconds to go.

• With 15 points at Ball State (Feb. 5) and 18 more in the home win over CMU (Feb. 15), she has led the Falons in scoring in each of the last four MAC games.

• Kohler, who has started all 55 of BGSU’s games since her arrival on campus, heads into the Western Michigan game with impressive career totals of 657 points, 242 rebounds and 191 assists. She currently ranks 15th in BGSU history in career scoring average (11.94 ppg), and is eighth in career assists per game (3.47).

THE FLEMING FACTOR

• Lexi Fleming has been a B!G part of the Falcons’ success since arriving at BG. The MAC Freshman of the Year in 2020-21, Fleming missed the entire ’21-22 season due to injury, but returned to the court in 2022-23 and saw action in 36 games as BGSU went 31-7. She was injured in December of 2023 and missed nearly an entire year, before returning to the court for this season’s Xavier game (Dec. 7).

• Fleming surpassed the 1,000-point mark last month (Jan. 18). She became the 32nd player to reach that plateau, and she did so in her 82nd career game, tying her for the ninth-fastest player to reach the millennium mark in program history.

• Entering the WMU game, Fleming has played in a total of 89 contests as a Falcon. BGSU has a record of 64-25 in those 89 games, including a 33-14 ledger in MAC regular-season play, a 37-16 mark in all games (regular season and tournament) against conference foes and a 31-8 record at the Stroh Center.

• Four of those losses have come against nationally-ranked opponents, including a game at Indiana (Dec. 22, 2023), when Fleming played just 70 seconds before leaving due to injury. Heading into that IU game, Fleming had led the 2023-24 team in scoring (16.7 ppg), rebounding (5.1 rpg for the 5-5 guard) and steals (2.7 spg).

• The list of BGSU’s leading career scorers can be found on page 24 of these notes, while the list of quickest Falcons to 1,000 points is on page six.

FLEMING CONTINUES TO CLIMB CAREER CHARTS

• Lexi Fleming is in her fifth season with the Falcons, but has played the equivalent of just under three seasons in a BG uniform. She has been moving up the BGSU career scoring list at a rapid rate since returning to the court in early December, and enters the WMU game with 1,106 career points, ranking 26th in BGSU history. With an average of 12.43 points per game, Fleming is 11th on that BG career list.

• In her career, Fleming has now made 164 three-point field goals, ranking her 13th in school history. She is fifth on the BGSU career list for triples made per game (1.84). And, Fleming is 16th in school history in assists per game, with 2.72, and 14th in career free-throw percentage (80.0%).

• Additionally, she continues to move up on the career steals list. Fleming now has 196 steals as a Falcon, tying her for 10th in BGSU history, and after recording five steals vs. CMU, she is currently second in career steals per game (2.20).

VELASCO CONTINUES TO MOVE UP THE SCORING LIST AS WELL

• Amy Velasco is putting together a stellar senior season. Velasco has scored in double digits in 21 of the Falcons’ 24 games to date, and is averaging a team-high 15.4 points per contest in 2024-25.

• Velasco has scored at least 20 points five times this season, including game-high totals of 28 points at Horizon League favorite Cleveland State and 24 points at nationally-ranked Ohio State.

• She recently moved into the top 20 on BGSU’s career scoring list, and has continued to climb the leaderboard. With 1,408 career points, Velasco currently ranks 13th, and she is now only 16 points away from moving into the top 10 on that list.

• Velasco has a career scoring average of 11.26 points per game, which currently places her 21st on that BGSU list. And, with a career total of 143 three-point field goals made, she is tied for 16th on that BGSU chart.

• Velasco has a career free-throw rate of 82.9%, having made 305 of her 368 attempts from the stripe. She is ranked ninth on that BGSU career list.

AMY ALSO ACCUMULATES ASSISTS

• Amy Velasco, as mentioned, is now 13th on the BGSU career scoring list, and the senior also enjoys a lofty perch on the school’s assists chart. In the Kent State game on New Year’s Day, Velasco became just the seventh player in school history to surpass 400 career assists.

• Velasco recently moved past her former teammate, Kadie Hempfling (432 assists from 2018-23), into sixth place on the BGSU career list. Velasco now has 456 career dimes. Lindsay Austin (508 assists from 2000-04) holds down the fifth-place spot.

• Velasco currently ranks sixth in BGSU history in assists per game, with 3.65. If you were able to find the BGSU career scoring list elsewhere in these notes, you’ll have no trouble finding the complete lists of both career assists and assists per game.

BE READY WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED

• The Falcons lost an estimated 126 player-games to injury last season. No fewer than 10 different players were unavailable for at least one game due to injury or illness. Despite those setbacks, BGSU, picked for fourth place in the 2023-24 MAC Preseason Poll, still tied for fourth in the final MAC standings and advanced to national postseason play.

• This season, the Falcons have lost 65 player-games heading into the Western Michigan contest. A total of eight different players have missed at least one game due to injury or illness this year to date.

THE FALCONS – A QUICK OVERVIEW

• The Falcons are 13-11 on the season, and BGSU is 6-6 in MAC play. BG is tied with Wednesday’s opponent, Western Michigan, for sixth place in the 12-team league.

• BGSU has won four of the last five games, with the lone loss in that time coming at  MAC-leading Ball State (71-51, Feb. 5). The Falcons rebounded from that setback, hitting the road and beating Arkansas State, 75-73, in the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge (Feb. 8). That BG win snapped A-State’s 11-game winning streak. Then, the Orange and Brown returned home and posted a 70-55 win over Central Michigan on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 15).

• The loss at BSU had snapped a two-game winning streak that included an 82-69 home win over Akron (Jan. 29) and a 76-69 road victory against CMU (Feb. 1).

• In addition to the aforementioned victories, the Falcons have MAC wins over Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois at home, and Ohio on the road. BGSU also has conference losses at home against Buffalo and Western Michigan, and on the road vs. Kent State, Miami and Toledo.

• In non-league play, BG posted home wins over Southern Miss, St. Bonaventure, Xavier and Marquette, with neutral-site victories vs. Stetson and Arkansas. The losses included road contests vs. two nationally-ranked teams (#13/12 West Virginia and #12/11 Ohio State), as well as Horizon League favorite Cleveland State.

• BGSU is 8-2 at home, 3-9 on the road and 2-0 in neutral-site games this season to date. In MAC play, the Falcons are 4-2 at the Stroh and 2-4 at hostile venues.

• Overall, the Falcons have a scoring margin of +1.4 and a rebounding margin of +3.0 this year. BG has outrebounded 13 of this season’s first 24 opponents, with a rebounding margin of 10 or more in seven of those games to date. That includes a school record-tying four games with a rebounding margin of +18 or better.

• Four players are scoring in double digits for the Orange and Brown. Senior Amy Velasco leads the way with 15.4 ppg, and she also paces the Falcons with 4.5 assists per contest. Velasco has scored in double figures in 21 of 24 games this season, and is second on the club with 36 three-point field goals made. She is shooting a BG-best 40.0 percent from the arc. Velasco leads the entire conference in both free-throw pct. (92.5%) and minutes played (35.33 mpg). She has made 90 career starts and has 72 career double-digit scoring games.

• Sophomore Paige Kohler and fifth-year Falcon Lexi Fleming have 13.3 and 12.8 ppg, respectively. Kohler also has 4.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game, and has made a team-leading 58 three-point field goals. She flirted with a triple-double in the win at Ohio, with 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, and had a 28-point, seven-board, seven-assist performance vs. Akron. Kohler is third in the MAC in minutes (34.27 mpg) fifth in the league in assist/turnover ratio (1.68).

• Fleming had 23-point outings on the road against both Miami and Toledo, part of a five-game stretch in which she led BG in scoring four times. She has made 32 triples in her 17 games to date, and has 3.3 assists and 2.4 steals per game to rank second on the team in both categories.

• Fifth-year collegian Erika Porter is averaging 10.1 ppg, and has a team-leading 5.6 rpg. Porter also leads the Falcons and is third in the MAC in field-goal pct. (53.2%).

• Freshman Lauren Gerken has 7.2 ppg and 4.6 rpg, while classmate Johnea Donahue is scoring 6.9 ppg after averaging 16.5 ppg in wins over A-State and CMU. Donahue leads BGSU and is second in the MAC with 2.48 steals per game.

• Sophomores Keiryn McGuff and Taya Ellis are averaging 4.7 and 3.8 ppg, respectively. McGuff also has 4.2 rpg, and scored in double figures in three-straight games to begin MAC play. Ellis has 4.6 rpg on the season, ranking second on the team, and she leads BGSU with 0.8 blocks per game. Junior Kendal Moxey has 3.3 ppg and has gone 29-for-56 (51.8%) from the floor.

• In MAC play, Kohler (14.7 ppg), Fleming (14.4) and Velasco (13.0) all have scored between 156 and 176 points in the 12 games to date. Porter and Kohler have 5.3 and 4.6 rpg, respectively, while Velasco (4.1 apg), Kohler (3.8) and Fleming (3.3) all are averaging over three assists per game vs. conference competition.

• Kohler is tied for third in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio in conference games, while Fleming is deadlocked for second in the league in steals (2.58).

• The Falcons returned seven players who saw action on the 2023-24 team that went 16-15 overall and 10-8 in MAC play. BG won four of the last six regular-season games, and the Falcons advanced to national postseason play with trip to the WNIT.

• BGSU’s other returnees from last season are third-year Falcons Emily Siesel and Jasmine Fearne. Siesel played in 26 games off the bench last winter, while Fearne is back after missing the entire ’23-24 campaign due to injury. Fearne is fourth on the Falcons with 19 successful triple tries in 2024-25 to date, and set career-high minutes totals in the back-to-back wins at Ohio (24:09) and Northern Illinois (26:02).

• The Falcons’ seven newcomers include a pair of junior-college transfers in Moxey and Kristiana Kulackovska, along with five freshmen – Donahue, Gerken, Laila Harrison, Sofia Moschen and Taylor Wallace. Moschen joined the team in the first week of January.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE BRONCOS

• Western Michigan is 10-13 overall, and the Broncos, like the Falcons, are 6-6 in MAC play. Western saw a two-game winning streak snapped with Saturday’s 60-51 loss to Northern Illinois. Prior to the NIU contest, the Broncos had gone on the road and defeated both Akron (70-64; Feb. 5) and Texas State (59-50; Feb. 8).

• WMU is 5-6 in home games and 5-7 in road contests this season to date. In MAC play, the Broncos are 2-4 at home and 4-2 on the road.

• Marina Asensio and Hannah Spitzley are averaging 13.6 and 13.0 ppg, respectively. Asensio leads the Broncos in assists (4.7 apg) as well as scoring, and has hit a team-high 49 three-point field goals. Spitzley leads the Broncos in rebounding (5.1 rpg) and paces the entire MAC in steals (2.52 spg).

• Head coach Shane Clipfell and the Broncos went 12-18 overall and 7-11 in conference play a season ago.

THE SERIES

• The Falcons lead Western Michigan, 43-37, in the all-time series, but the Broncos captured this season’s first meeting. Western picked up a 63-60 victory at the Stroh Center (Jan. 22, 2025), snapping a four-game BGSU series win streak. The Falcons swept last year’s meetings, with a 75-69 win at home (Jan. 6, 2024) and an 87-73 victory in Kalamazoo (March 6, 2024).

• BGSU is 23-15 at home, 17-21 on the road and 3-1 in neutral-site meetings with the Broncos through the years. Additional series information can be found elsewhere in these very notes.

DOWN THE ROAD

• Following the WMU game, the Falcons return home for two-straight contests, beginning with the next edition of the “Battle of I-75.” The Falcons host Toledo on Saturday night (Feb. 22), with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. at the Stroh.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will host Ohio next Wednesday evening (Feb. 26), with that game also set for a 7:00 p.m. start.

FOR MORE INFORMATION…

For more information on BGSU women’s hoops, be sure to follow the Falcons on Facebook (@BGWBB), Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUWBB) and Instagram (@bgsuwbb), as well as on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.