Falcons Begin Stretch Drive Saturday in Athens

Saturday, February 17

Athens, OH

1:00 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

Ohio

February 16, 2018 | Women's Basketball

BGSU plays 5-straight games vs. East Division foes to end regular season

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

BGSU at OHIO
<><> Saturday, February 17, 2018 • 1:00 p.m. <><>
<><> Convocation Center (13,080) • Athens, Ohio <><>
<><><><><><><><><><><><>
<><> TELEVISION / VIDEO: ESPN3.com <><>
<><> RADIO / AUDIO: BGRSO <><>
<><> LIVE STATS: www.OhioBobcats.com <><>
<><> TWITTER: @BGSUwbb <><>

all available audio, stats & video links can be found at BGSUFalcons.com on game day

UP NEXT...
The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team ends the regular season with five consecutive Mid-American Conference intra-divisional games, beginning Saturday (Feb. 17). Head coach Jennifer Roos and the Falcons travel to Athens to face Ohio University, with tipoff scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

THE CARLY 500
Junior Carly Santoro pulled down the 500th rebound of her career in last Saturday's (Feb. 10) game at Northern Illinois. She now has a total of 502 boards in 83 career games, for an average of just over 6.0 rebounds per contest.

Santoro has pulled down 452 of those rebounds since moving into the starting lineup at the beginning of last season. Since the start of her sophomore year, she is averaging 8.2 rebounds per outing.

If Santoro can keep up that pace, the 5-10 guard has a chance to finish her career ranked among the top-10 rebounders in BGSU history.

DOUBLE(-DOUBLE) TROUBLE
If it's a game day for the women's basketball Falcons, there's a pretty good chance junior Carly Santoro just might record a double-double. Santoro had 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds at Northern Illinois last weekend, marking her 11th double-double of the season.

Santoro had a pair of three-game double-double streaks during the non-conference portion of the schedule, then had a four-game streak that included the final non-league game and the first three MAC contests. As of Thursday afternoon (Feb. 15), Santoro was tied for second in the MAC and deadlocked for 35th in the nation in double-doubles.

Santoro now has a total of 16 career double-doubles.

CARLY SPENDS THE WINTER IN DOUBLE-DOUBLE LAND (we hear it's nice there)
Junior Carly Santoro led the Falcons with five double-doubles a year ago, and had topped that total less than one-third of the way through 2017-18. Now, she has more than doubled it, with 11 this season to date.

Santoro is only the third Falcon to have 10 or more double-doubles in a season in the last 20 years. Her total of 11 such games is the highest by a Falcon since the legendary Charlotta Jones had 15 double-doubles in 1997-98.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
If you can't make it to the arena on game day, fear not – you can still follow the Falcons via your radio- or computer-like devices. Saturday's Ohio game will feature free video and audio streams, as well as live stats and Twitter updates. All links will be available via BGSUFalcons.com.

All of BGSU's home games, and many road contests (including the matchup with the Bobcats), will have audio broadcasts, courtesy of the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO). And, every BGSU home game this season will have a free live stream, with all but one home contest in 2017-18 aired via ESPN3.com. Additionally, all of BG's conference road games are scheduled to be streamed via ESPN3.com.

Live stats are also available for all games, and in-game Twitter updates for every BGSU game can be found at @BGSUwbb.

To follow the Falcons, simply log on to BGSUFalcons.com and click the 'calendar' link on the day of the game, or navigate your way to the women's basketball page. Any and all available links to ticket info. and game coverage will be available there.

THE FALCONS: A QUICK OVERVIEW
BGSU is 10-14 on the season, and the Falcons are 2-11 in Mid-American Conference play. BG is 5-7 at the Stroh Center, 4-7 in true road games and 1-0 in neutral-site contests, and the Orange and Brown will enter the Ohio game looking to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Head coach Jennifer Roos and her staff – which is comprised of assistant coaches Jacey Brooks, Nick Moore and Jessie Ivey, director of operations Monique Rosati and video coordinator Amanda Cutcher – welcomed back a total of nine returning players, including three starters, from a year ago. The list of returnees includes two seniors, three juniors and four second-year Falcons.

Rachel Myers and Haley Puk make up the senior class, while Maddie Cole, Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro each are in their junior year. Sophomores Andrea Cecil, Caterrion Thompson and Jane Uecker also returned, as did Clare Glowniak, who is a redshirt freshman in terms of eligibility.

The nine returnees were joined by five freshmen, including Terri Battle, Madisen Parker, Angela Perry, Sierra Thompson and Kennedy Williams. Perry was injured during the non-league slate, but has played in 12 of the 13 MAC games.

Lambert, Puk and Santoro each have started all 24 games this season, while Cecil has made 21 starts, Uecker 13 and Glowniak eight. Perry and Caterrion Thompson each were in the starting lineup for the first time in the Miami game (Feb. 3), and they both have started three-straight games.

Heading into the Ohio matchup, two Falcons are scoring in double figures, and two more are not far off that pace. Santoro leads the way with 13.2 ppg, and is nearly averaging a double-double, with a team-leading 9.3 rpg. She ranks third in the MAC in rebounds.

Lambert has 10.0 ppg, while Cecil and Puk are averaging 9.0 and 8.9 ppg, respectively. Caterrion Thompson (5.8 ppg) is fifth on the Falcons in scoring, and she ranks third in the MAC in three-point percentage (42.9%; 27-of-63).

Lambert leads the team in assists, with 2.1 per game, while Santoro has 1.7 helpers per contest. Santoro (1.6) and Lambert (1.5) are ranked 1-2 on the team in steals per game. Lambert has knocked down 48 three-point field goals this year, while Puk has hit 38.

In MAC play, Santoro has BG-best averages of 11.8 ppg and 8.5 rpg, while Lambert has 9.4 ppg, Puk 7.8 and Caterrion Thompson 7.7. Three Falcons are ranked among the top-8 in the MAC in three-point accuracy, as Thompson is fourth (43.5%; 20-of-46); Williams sixth (41.4%; 12-of-29) and Puk is tied for seventh (40.0%; 18-of-45). The Falcons are second in the MAC in three-pointers made (7.4 per game) and third in the conference in free-throw percentage (73.5%) in league contests.

FALCONS VS. THE MAC
The Falcons continue to own the best record in MAC history. Entering the Ohio contest, BGSU has an all-time record of 404-206 (.662) in MAC regular-season games, for the most wins and highest winning percentage of all league institutions.

And, BG leads the series with all 11 MAC foes, making the Falcons the only team in the league with a winning series record against every other school. BG also has the most overall victories and highest overall winning pct. of any league institution.

SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio has a 13-11 record, and the Bobcats are 7-6 in MAC play. Ohio has gone 3-3 over the last six games, alternating wins and losses during that time. Last time out, the 'Cats dropped a 73-58 midweek matchup at Eastern Michigan. Ohio is 7-4 at home, 6-5 on the road and 0-2 in neutral-site matchups this season. In the MAC, Ohio is 4-2 at "The Convo" and 3-4 in hostile venues. Cierra Hooks paces three double-figure scorers with 14.4 points per game, while Amani Burke and Dominique Doseck have 12.7 and 10.0 ppg, respectively. Hooks leads the team in rebounding (4.9 rpg), and she leads the entire MAC in steals (3.3 spg). Ohio is first in the MAC in turnover margin (+8.2). Last year, Ohio went 22-10 overall and 12-6 in the league. Head coach Bob Boldon welcomed back a total of seven letterwinners from that club.

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Ohio, 55-28, in the all-time series between the teams, but the Bobcats have won each of the last seven meetings after BG had taken the previous four games. Last month (Jan. 20, 2018), Ohio picked up a 70-63 win at the Stroh Center. In the last meeting in Athens, the Bobcats held off the Falcons by a 79-68 count late last season (March 1, 2017). BGSU's last win in the series was a 63-39 victory on March 2, 2014. BG is 31-9 in home games, 21-17 in road contests and 3-2 in neutral-site games vs. Ohio over the years.

FRIES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BAG
Andrea Cecil, who had 20 points at Northern Illinois, leads the Falcons with three games of 20 points or more this season. Five different BG players have scored 20 points this season, as Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro each have done so twice, while Haley Puk and Caterrion Thompson each have one 20-point game.

BGSU blocked eight shots at NIU, the team's highest total in nearly seven years (since March 12, 2011, vs. Eastern Michigan in the MAC Tournament championship).

UP NEXT
Following the Ohio game, BGSU returns home to face East Division-leading Buffalo on Wednesday night (Feb. 21). That game, which begins at 7:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center, is the Falcons' annual Play 4Kay / Pink game.

BGSU WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
REMAINING REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE
Sat., Feb. 17 – at Ohio, 1:00 p.m.
Wed., Feb. 21 – BUFFALO, 7:00 p.m. (Play 4Kay / Pink game)
Sat., Feb. 24 – at Miami, 2:00 p.m.
Wed., Feb. 28 – AKRON, 7:00 p.m. (Senior Night)
Sat., March 3 – at Buffalo, 2:00 p.m.

HOME games at the Stroh Center
All times Eastern