Bowling Green State University’s Women’s Basketball is set to kick off their season next week on the road at St. Bonaventure on Monday, Nov. 7. The Falcons are looking to put together another strong season after making the Mid-American Conference Tournament the past two seasons.
The big development at this time last year was that Bowling Green star guard, Lexi Fleming, would miss the season with an injury. The good news for Falcon fans is that Fleming is healthy once again and the former MAC Freshman of the Year returns alongside a well versed team.
The Falcons return: Morgan Sharps, Amy Velasco, Sophie Dziekan, Elissa Brett, Jocelyn Tate, Nyla Hampton, Olivia Hill, Jasmine Clerkley, Lexi Fleming and Kadie Hempfling.
Alongside the veteran players for Bowling Green, the Falcons also welcome in five newcomers consisting of three freshman and two transfers. Emily Siesel, Jasmine Fearne and Jaci Tubergen represent the freshman class while Allison Day and Payton Moore have transferred from other programs to play for the Falcons.
Day’s connection to the BGSU program is an easy one to see, she is transferring from Loyola University Chicago where she played under BGSU alum Kate Achter. At 6’1” Day adds size down low and double digit scoring numbers to boot.
Kadie Hempfling returns for her fifth season with the Falcons and will bolster some already impressive career stats in the record books. Hempfling is 23rd in career scoring at Bowling Green and sits in the top ten in career assists, rebounds and games started.
Bowling Green has 12 non-conference opponents this season before the calendar turns over to 2023 and they open conference play against Ball State on Jan. 4. The biggest non-conference opponent the Falcons will battle this season are the Indiana Hoosiers on the road in Bloomington, Indiana.
The Falcons were selected to finish third in the MAC behind the Toledo Rockets and the Ball State Cardinals. The reality is the competition across the MAC will be tough this season but the Falcons will likely be in contention for their second regular season MAC Championship in the last three seasons.
Since Robyn Fralick has taken the reins at the helm of BGSU women’s basketball, the team has gone from struggling to compete in conference play to a top team amongst the conference. Over the past two seasons the program is 24-14 in MAC play with those numbers highly likely to increase this season.
Regular Season Prediction: 25-5 OVERALL, 15-3 MAC, Compete for Regular Season and Tournament Titles
This may seem like the bar is high but when examining just what the program has put together, this team has the capabilities to accomplish something special. The returning talent and leadership combined with new key pieces to the puzzle have the program sitting in a position for great success this season.
As far as the scheduled conference slate, the battle expected at the top between Ball State, Bowling Green, Kent State, and Toledo makes any game between this group of teams a marquee game that could make an impact on the standings towards the end of the year.
For more information about the program, visit bgsufalcons.com.
