BGSU women’s basketball (9-6, 2-2) returns to action on Wednesday night in Kalamazoo, taking on the Western Michigan Broncos (5-9, 2-2) led by former Falcon legend Kate Achter in her first season in charge.
Achter, a member of the BGSU Athletics Hall of Fame, played at Bowling Green from 2004-2008 and won four Mid-American Conference (MAC) regular-season championships along with three MAC Tournament titles. Finishing with a 108-23 and 57-7 MAC record and being crowned the Falcons’ all-time leader in assists with 688.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Adam Duffin will be on the call starting at 7:00 p.m. on WBGU 88.1 FM, joined by Daniel Ridenour and Lucas Kleimeyer in the studio.
SERIES HISTORY
This matchup will be the 82nd all-time meeting between the Falcons and Broncos, with the Orange and Brown leading 44-37.
Bowling Green is 18-22 on the road against Western Michigan, including winning the last time they faced off at WMU’s Read Fieldhouse 70-63.
BOWLING GREEN
Coming off a 65-48 win over the Northern Illinois Huskies on the road, with five Falcons notching double-digits in scoring.
The story as of late has been senior forward Kendal Moxey, who had a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds in that win over NIU. Before that, she recorded her first double-double in Orange and Brown colors against Central Michigan with 16 points and 15 rebounds.
Bowling Green shot 45.1% from last Saturday, which is a significant improvement from 29.1% against CMU and 36.8% in their road game versus Eastern Michigan. However, the Falcons have not shot above 50% since Dec. 14 in a 104-76 win against Lourdes.
The Falcons will look to get star junior guard Paige Kohler back on track from three, after making just two in her past two games. Yet, she leads the team in 3-pointers attempted, and will remain the Falcons’ go-to scorer on all levels.
WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Broncos are heading into this one after a 59-46 loss to Toledo at Savage Arena. Before that, they had back-to-back MAC wins against Akron and Buffalo, after just winning three of their first 11 games this season.
Achter’s squad just has four returning players from last season, from a squad that went 12-18 and 8-10 in MAC play. Losing to eventual champions Ball State in the MAC Tournament quarterfinals.
One of the key players for Western Michigan this season is former Detroit Mercy Titan Kailey Starks, who is averaging 10.9 points per game (PPG).
Wednesday will be WMU’s seventh home game this season, and so far, they have posted just a 3-3 record on their home court.
FALCON FOUR PLAYERS TO WATCH
#3 Johnea Donahue – Sophomore Guard, Bowling Green
Donahue has continued to be dominant for the Falcons, leading the MAC in steals per game with four, which is also fourth in the nation. She is coming off a 10-point and eight-steal performance against the Huskies.
#33 Kendal Moxey – Senior Forward, Bowling Green
Coming off two of her best performances in a Falcon uniform, Moxey will be key in rebounding and providing energy off the bench. Her 10 offensive rebounds against CMU last week were the most by a BG player in nearly 10 years.
#12 Alli Carlson – Senior Guard, Western Michigan
Carlson leads the Broncos with 22 steals on the season, and in assists with 69, and is right behind Starks in PPG with 8.6, and will be a threat offensively for WMU.
#10 D’Myjah Bolds – Sophomore Forward, Western Michigan
Bolds will be huge in the rebounding category, as she leads the Broncos with 87 boards on the year, including 72 of them being defensive. She is also averaging 8.1 PPG, playing all 14 games so far for WMU.
