A hostile crowd at the University of Toledo’s Savage Hall wasn’t enough to stop the Bowling Green women’s basketball team from leaving the arena with a 69-66 overtime win against the school’s biggest rival on Saturday night.
Toledo won the tip, but it was BG’s Liz Honegger who opened scoring for both teams.
Both squads battled back and forth with Toledo taking control of the offense midway through the second half.
The Rockets went on a 13-0 scoring run to take a commanding 14 point lead, but the Falcons answered back with a 7-0 run and went to the locker room trailing 28-23.
Both teams had trouble getting the ball to their leading scorers during the first half, but remedied the problem in the second half. UT’s Karin Hoogendam and BG’s Ali Mann were both held to just three points in the first half. Mann fouled out of the game with 22 points and Hoogendam ended up with a game-high 23.
The BG defense came out strong in the second half, forcing Toledo to garner most of their points from the free throw line. The Rocket held on tightly to their lead as the Falcons tried to get back into the game.
With 7:38 left in the game and BG trailing by eight, a foul by BG head coach Curt Miller seemed to be just what the team needed to get fired up for a comeback.
Honegger drained a huge three and Mann and Kate Achter combined for seven points to tie the game at 52 with just under four minutes to play.
Ali Mann came up big for the Falcons late in the half with several point in the paint, including a three point play with three minutes on the clock.
Toledo wasn’t about to lose quietly. The Rockets fought back and trailed by one with 1:59 on the clock. Casey McDowell came up with a big three to put the Falcons ahead 60-56. Two free throws by Toledo’s Savannah Werner and a layup by Olivia Terry with six seconds left tied the game at 60 and sent the game into a five minute overtime period.
Honegger scored in the paint to put BG up two before Toledo’s Danielle Bishop tied the game with two free throws. With three minutes to play, Mann fouled out, causing an eruption of cheers from the Rockets’ bench.
Hoogendam and Bishop combined for four points, giving Toledo a 66-62 lead.
Honegger came up big from beyond the arc to put BG within one point. With one minute left in the period, Tene Lewis stepped in the passing lane for a spectacular steal which she converted into a breakaway layup for the Falcons. Achter clinched the win for BG with a jumper in the lane.
“Overall, I can’t be more pleased with the effort at the defensive end during the second half and overtime,” Miller said. “Winning close games is what it’s all about in the MAC.”
Toledo head coach Mark Ehlen gave credit to BG’s offensive powers, but was also proud of his young team.
“Honegger and Mann second half were great and that’s why they won. [Mann] fouls out and our team’s jumping up and down like they won the daggone championship. Our freshmen did some freshmen things. Turnovers really hurt us because they turned into generating points for Bowling Green,” Ehlen said.
The win was BG’s second consecutive victory on the road against Toledo. It had been sixteen years since BG had won back to back games at Savage Hall.
The excitement of the rivalry was not lost on any of the BG players, especially Achter, a freshman and clutch player in the game.
“I knew this rivalry was going to be very intense,” Achter said. “When Ali fouled out, we needed someone to step up.”
Saturday’s win puts Bowling Green on top of the MAC West Division alone with Western Michigan.
The Falcons will attempt to carry on their winning ways against Miami (OH) on Wednesday, January 19.
