Falcons fall to Duquesne

The BG men's basketball team was unable to hang onto a 12-point first half lead as it fell to Duquesne, 86-76.

The Falcons came out strong, taking a 29-17 advantage mid-way through the first half, but that lead had evaporated by halftime, as BG trailed the Dukes by six at the break.

For one of the few times this season, BG had success on the offensive boards, outscoring Duquesne 16-6 on second-chance opportunities. However, turnovers plagued the Falcons, as they coughed up the ball 18 times — compared to only seven turnovers by the Dukes — and allowed Duquesne to score 22 points off those turnovers.

While the Falcons' bench had been playing well of late, BG only got seven points from the bench in this game — all coming from Chauncey Orr, who also had five rebounds in 17 minutes of action for the most successful game of his young career.

Scott Thomas and A'uston Calhoun once again paced the BG attack. Both played a team-high 37 minutes, while Calhoun led the team with 24 points and eight rebounds. Thomas wasn't far behind, as he tallied 20 points, two rebounds and four assists.

BG closed a five-game road trip with a New Years Day tilt with Texas-San Antonio, before returning home Jan. 7 for a conference matchup against Ohio.

Falcons take down FIU, 61-53

The BG men's basketball team picked up its first road win Thursday night with a 61-53 win over Florida International.

Scott Thomas led the way for BG, dropping a double-double. He played 39 minutes, dropping 18 points on 5-of-11 shooting, adding 11 rebounds and seven assists. He also had four steals.

Jordon Crawford and Torian Ogelsby also scored in double figures. Crawford had 15 points, while Ogelsby had 11 on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting night.

The Panthers entered halftime with a four-point lead, but 36 second-half points paced the Falcons to victory.

This was helped by a huge shooting advantage for BG. The Falcons shot 58.3 percent from the field in the second half, while the Panthers only shot 32.1 percent.

BG is off until Dec. 28, when it takes on Duquesne on the road.

Women's basketball hit scoring highs in win against Madonna

The Falcons head into the holidays with a big win over Madonna University - 91-41.

With their highest point total all season, the team put up a united front led by Noelle Yoder with 14 points. Yoder's efforts tied her season best point total, which she achieved early in the season against Evansville. Jessica Slagle and Danielle Havel contributed solid performances with 13 points apiece. All of the 12 Falcons saw playing time, and added points to the board.

BG out rebounded the Crusaders 60-27 and shot 44.6 percent from the field compared to the 29.8 percent effort from Madonna. After this win, MU falls to 5-6 going into the new year, where it puts the Falcons at 8-3, tied for the best record in the Mid-American Conference with Miami University.

Despite the fifty point margin between the Falcons and the Crusaders, Kaylee McGrath led her team with 16 points and nine rebounds, followed by Becca Wojcinski and Megan Murphy who had six points each.

The Falcons are off for the holiday, but will resume their schedule and play their last two non-conference games on the road before the year ends. BG will match up with Wyoming on Dec. 29 at 7p.m. Mountain Time and then head to Colorado State on Dec. 31 with a one day prep for their game scheduled for 1p.m. Mountain Time.

Tomic named new volleyball coach

Danijela Tomic has been named the fourth coach in BGSU volleyball history, the University announced Monday.

Tomic, formerly of Florida International, was the Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year in 2006, 2008 and 2009, leading the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament in 2008 and 2009. In seven seasons at FIU, she posted a 158-61 record.

“We are thrilled to welcome Danijela to the BGSU Athletics team,” Director of Athletics Greg Christopher said in a statement released by the University. “Throughout the research process, Danijela’s name was brought up by everyone in volleyball circles. Those positive reviews played out in the interviews as well. Danijela’s passion, vision and commitment to excellence are evident to anyone who spends time with her. Not only will Danijela help elevate Bowling Green volleyball, but she will help make our entire department better.”

A native of Bosnia, Tomic took over the FIU program in 2005 and made an immediate impact, helping the team achieve a 12-win improvement from the previous season.

She replaces Denise Van De Walle, who retired following 29 seasons at the helm of BGSU volleyball.

“I am honored and privileged to have this opportunity to lead the Falcon volleyball program,” Tomic said in the statement. “I feel very fortunate to be a part of the BGSU family. I want to thank Greg Christopher and Lesley Irvine for giving me this opportunity and for supporting my vision for the future of the program.”

BG women's basketball clips winning streak against Creighton

A three-pointer made all the difference in the final 49-47 win for Creighton. Carli Tritz, with her hot hand, added three with 1:11 left in the game to take the lead and silence the Falcons. She left the court in Omaha, Neb. with 12 points and she went 2-2 in three-point shots.

Even though BG lost, it was only by a basket. Chrissy Steffen put up 10 points, and both Jessica Slagle and Danielle Havel had nine.

The Falcons held the lead for most of the first half, then with a late push, Creighton went up 26-25 before the buzzer.

Creighton returned strong and held the lead until Havel hit a three to tie up the game with 3:34 left. Allison Pappenfuss followed with a jumper to take the lead, but the decision fell in the hands of Tritz with her three-point shot.

BG will return home to play Madonna University on Wed. Dec. 21, at 7p.m.,  for their last contest before Christmas.

MSU drops Falcons, 74-60

The BG men's basketball team fought valiantly, but in the end, Michigan State was too much.

The Falcons only trailed 35-33 at the half, but 16 points from Brandon Wood and 39 second-half points helped the No. 21 Spartans come out on top, 74-60.

The Falcons received very little production from their starting lineup. The starting five of Scott Thomas, Luke Kraus, Anthony Henderson, Dee Brown and Cam Black combined for only nine points — seven of which came from Thomas — on 4-for-28 shooting.

The Falcons' bench was forced to pick up the slack, and it did, led by a career game fro Jehvon Clarke. The freshman guard dropped a career-high 14 points, while adding two assists and two steals.

Jordon Crawford and A'uston Calhoun also had strong games off the bench. Crawford had 11 points, four rebounds and three assists, while Calhoun chipped in 12 points and six rebounds. However, he was limited by foul trouble, as he picked up four in the game.

That bench effort was matched by Michigan State, led by Draymond Green's double-double off the bench. He had only 12 points, but had 10 rebounds — four being offensive — and six assists. Braden Dawson and Derrick Nix also scored in double figures for the Spartans.

The Falcons are off until Thursday, when they take on Florida International in Miami.

Women's basketball earn big win over Austin Peay

By Michele Wysocki
Assistant Sports Editor

BG was off to a sloppy start in the first half with missing three shots in a row that could have given them the lead. With Austin Peay playing aggressive, BG didn't take the lead until midway through the first half when Alexis Rogers hit back-to-back shots. She led the team with 15 points the first half and three steals. Chrissy Steffen hit a shot at the buzzer to end the first half and give the Falcons a 34-18 advantage over the Governors.

Whitney Hanley and Meghan Bussabarger led AP with five points apiece; combined they possessed the better half of their points scored so far.

Coming out of the locker room strong, BG extended their lead. With 11:36 to play the scored was gaped at 51-27, Falcons on top. Allison Pappenfuss contributed a strong performance with eight points in the second half, eight rebounds, and three assists. All but two rebounds came in the second half.

Shots were falling short on both sides throughout the second half of the game. Freshman Noelle Yoder went the distance and made back-to-back three point shots with six minutes left to play.  When Yoder added six to an already high score, BG led Austin Peay 63-29.

In the last minutes of the game, BG had five off the bench players on the court including Simone Eli who saw playing time for the first time this season. She's been out do to a hand injury.

Autins Peay played hard and fouled even harder. Overall the Governors had 20 on the night, compared to BG's 15.

BG remains home for Sunday's contest against the Jacksonville Dolphins. Schedule is set for 2 p.m. in the Stroh.