The Bowling Green State University Women’s Basketball team lost their exhibition match this past Saturday against Ashland University 59-53. Leading the way for the Falcons were redshirt seniors Lauren Tibbs with sixteen points and Erica Donovan with eleven points.
“Their kids came in, they worked hard,” head coach Jennifer Roos said. “They did a good job of making the extra pass. I thought when we got beat off the bounce, and had to do some help to help our rotations it forced us into recovering late to the wide open shooter and they made eleven three pointers tonight.”
AU’s Andi Daugherty led the way for the Eagles, scoring a game high 21 points. Ashland made eleven three pointers while shooting 39 percent from behind the arc, and outrebounded the Falcons 35-33.
The two teams went back and forth to open the game, trading baskets and the lead. The Falcons took an early 12-7 lead when Miriam Justinger found Donovan for a three pointer to cap an 8-0 run, and finished the first up 14-12 after Ashland’s Laina Snyder made a layup with twelve seconds left in the quarter. Tibbs had seven points in the quarter.
AU started off the second quarter scoring with a three pointer by Daugherty to take the lead, and pushed that lead to 17-14 after a Snyder layup. Donovan scored for BG with a layup in the paint, but AU’s Kelsey Peare answered with her own layup on the ensuing possession.
After Daugherty made another three pointer to make the score 22-16 with 5:20 left in the quarter, the Falcons were able to hold the Eagles scoreless for the rest of the half. They went on a 10-0 run to take a 26-22 lead as they went into halftime.
Ashland opened the second half strong with a layup by Snyder and three pointer by McKenzie Miller, taking a 27-26 at the 9 minute mark. The Falcons answered with a layup by Rachel Konieczki, and Tibbs hit two free throws at the 5:40 mark to give BG a 30-29 lead.
AU retook the lead on a layup by Snyder at the 5:15 mark, and Rachelle Morrison’s three pointer pushed the Eagles’ lead to 34-30. BG came right back when Carly Santoro fought through a foul and made her layup in the paint, and but the lead to one by making the ensuing free throw. Snyder made a jumper to push Ashland’s lead to 36-33, but BG countered with a 7-0 run to take a 40-36 lead. Daugherty made split a pair of free throws with three seconds left to finish the quarter with BG up 40-37.
Daugherty made a three pointer to start the fourth quarter and to tie the score, and found Snyder for a layup on the next possession to take a two point Ashland lead. Tibbs converted on a layup attempt to tie the score, but Peare made a three pointer to regain the Ashland lead. BG went on a 5-0 run over the next two minutes to take a 47-45 lead, until Daugherty tied the game at 47-47 with a layup at the 5:51 mark.
The two teams traded baskets over the next two minutes, with BG taking a 51-50 lead on Donovan’s layup in the paint with 3:10 left in the game.
In a game that saw the lead change hands twelve times, Ashland was able to pull ahead with 2:49 left in the fourth quarter when Peare’s three pointer sparked a 9-0 run by Ashland to end the game. Konieczki made two free throws with six seconds.
“We’ve just got to do a better job of taking care of the ball, and I thought our execution today was poor,” Roos said. “There were a handful of plays that we did not run correctly, by guards and post players.”
After a disappointing end to last season, the hard fought exhibition against the former Division Two National Champions will only help the Falcons as they open their season and start their nonconference schedule.
“It was better than the last time out, and that’s what I told the team,” Roos said. “I want to get better with each time out, and we’ve got a week to prepare now for Illinois State.”
The Falcons will open their season at the Stroh Center this Friday, Nov. 13, against Illinois State at 7 p.m.
