Bowling Green women’s basketball started the Mid-American Conference (MAC) portion of their schedule on the road in Mount Pleasant against the Central Michigan Chippewas on Wednesday night.

The Falcons entered MAC play without their leader Lexi Fleming following an injury suffered in the last non-conference game against the Indiana Hoosiers.

Central Michigan found the score board first and continued to maintain their lead through a majority of the first half as they took a 34-32 lead into halftime.

The Chippewas exploded in the third quarter for 22 points, their largest scoring quarter of the game, compared to just 15 from the Falcons. This put the score at 56-47 in favor of Central Michigan at the start of the fourth quarter.

The Falcons, no stranger to playing from behind, stepped up to the challenge in the fourth quarter wiping away a nine point deficit by holding the Chippewas to 1-19 (5.3%) shooting from the field. Central Michigan’s final bucket from the field came with 8:20 left in the game, and with the help of an offensive 10-0 run by the Falcons they found themselves in a tie game with under a minute to play.

Amy Velasco made what would prove to be the game-winning free throw for Bowling Green with 30.7 seconds left in the game.

The night however, belonged to the freshman, Paige Kohler, who surpassed her career high in points and scored 28 points for Bowling Green in the win. The win also marks the first MAC win for the first year coaching staff.

Next up for Bowling Green will be the conference home opener against the Western Michigan Broncos on Saturday, January 6, with tip-off set for 2:00 p.m. EST.