BGSU women’s basketball (16-12, 8-8) defeats the Ohio Bobcats (15-11, 9-6) 60-56, led by junior forward Taya Ellis, who finished the night with her third consecutive double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds on the night.
“I feel like it’s crunch time of the season,” said Ellis. “My teammates need me, and I feel like I’m just out here doing everything I need to do. Just getting a rebound and getting a stop.”
From the jump, the Falcons were the more dominant team, controlling an early 11-3 lead at the midway point of the first quarter. The Orange and Brown were led by junior guard Paige Kohler and Ellis, who combined for BG’s 11 points at that point of the action.
Bowling Green finished the quarter in front, commanding a 19-8 lead while shooting 35% from the field, and holding Ohio to an abysmal 18% from the floor.
BGSU dictated the glass in the early stages, eclipsing 15 total rebounds in comparison to the Bobcats 13 at the conclusion of the first quarter.
Having said that, Bowling Green’s first-quarter momentum quickly vanished as OU closed the Falcons’ lead to six after reaching the first media timeout of the second period with the score reading 23-17 in favor of BG.
Despite cutting the Orange and Brown’s lead to six, turnovers continued to haunt both the Falcons and the Bobcats, exceeding 22 turnovers between the two schools. At halftime, OU totaled 12, and BG amassed 10 miscues.
Kohler and Ellis together led the Falcons with points scored, each with eight points at the break, spearheading Bowling Green to a 30-20 lead at the break.
At the end of the third quarter, BGSU remained on top, leading the Bobcats by a score of 46-37.
The Bobcats ended the quarter shooting 26%, as Bowling Green finished the third period shooting 34%.
Heading into the third quarter, Ellis neared her third consecutive double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds, and Kohler possessed a team-high in scoring with 12 points off 4-11 shooting.
For Ohio, junior guard Bailey Tabeling maintained a game-high 14 points and six rebounds.
After controlling the entire flow of the game, the Falcons were 0-7 from the field, ending the fourth quarter of action after allowing OU’s freshman guard ReRe Jennings for a put-back layup to tie the game at 52 a piece, forcing overtime.
Ohio was the team to score first in overtime, with redshirt sophomore Bella Ranallo splitting a pair of free throws, putting OU on top, 53-52.
Immediately after Ohio captured its first lead of the game, Ellis quickly put BG back on top with four straight points scored, turning it to a 58-56 Falcons’ advantage, and minutes later, hanging on, winning the game against the Ohio Bobcats 60-56.
Bowling Green finished the game shooting 29% from the floor, while Ohio concluded the night shooting 26% from the floor.
With a win tonight against OU, BG now rides a three-game winning streak as they begin their preparation for their next game against the Central Michigan Chippewas next Wednesday night.
“It’s one game at a time,” said assistant coach Kadie Hempfling. “We’re going to be happy about this one, but then focus on Central, because that’s another tough away game next week. We don’t want to look forward. We want to stay present, stay in the game that we’re at, and focus on one game at a time. You know, I think that’s what our mindset has been, and it’s been working for us.”
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Trey Kennedy will have the call against the Chippewas with coverage beginning at 6:30 PM on WBGU 88.1 FM.
