BGSU women’s basketball fell to (10-7, 3-3 MAC) after a 51-49 loss to the Miami RedHawks (14-4, 6-0 MAC) on Saturday afternoon.

Throughout the game, both teams struggled mightily to generate consistency on offense. BG committed 28 turnovers to Miami’s 26. The real issue for both offenses was a lack of focus.

The Falcons had the ball swiped from them 14 times, while the other half of their turnovers were from a variety of shot clock violations, travels, offensive fouls, and errant passes.

BG head coach Fred Chmiel spoke about the offensive struggles after the game. “There has to be more movement off the ball,” Chmiel said. “There has to be more confidence in our ballhandling.”

Miami also endured the same problems throughout the game. As they encountered 11 turnovers that were not the result of a steal by the Falcons’ defense.

A way in which the Falcons tried to overcome the offensive struggles was with stifling defense. Sophomore forward Lauren Gerken tallied six steals, sophomore guard Johnea Donahue had four, and junior guard Paige Kohler added another three.

Junior forward Joniyah Bland-Fitzpatrick rounded out the defense with two steals of her own.  15 total steals is the third highest mark of the season for BG, and their most against a division one opponent.

Chmiel also praised the Falcons’ defensive effort. “Anytime you can hold a team like that to 51 points, we did our job defensively.”

It’s a disappointing loss for the Falcons, as a win over the red-hot Miami squad would’ve boosted their position in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) standings.

The Orange and Brown move their focus to the Ohio Bobcats, as they battle their in-state foes on Wednesday at 7 p.m., in the Stroh Center.