Bowling Green State University Athletics
Wednesday, January 12
Bowling Green, Ohio
7:00 PM
Bowling Green State University
90
vs
72
Akron
Lauren Prochaska had 28 points on Wednesday night, surpassing the 2,000-point mark for her career (Craig Bell photo)
Prochaska, Falcons Shoot Past Akron, 90-72
January 12, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Senior reaches 2,000-career-point milestone
Senior Lauren Prochaska had a game-high 28 points and reached yet another career milestone as the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team downed the University of Akron, 90-72, Wednesday night (Jan. 12). The Mid-American Conference game was held inside Anderson Arena.
FINAL STATS - HTML | BOXSCORE - PDF
POSTGAME AUDIO: Curt Miller | Tracy Pontius & Lauren Prochaska
PHOTO GALLERY (courtesy Craig Bell, BGSU Photo Services)
With the victory, the Falcons are now 15-1 overall and 3-0 in MAC play. BGSU has won 15 consecutive games. The Zips drop to 8-7 and 1-2, respectively.
Prochaska drove the lane and hit a runner with just over eight minutes gone in the first half, in the process surpassing the 2,000-point mark for her career. The senior is just the second player in BGSU history, and the 10th in MAC annals, to reach 2,000 career points.
Prochaska was one of four Falcons to reach double digits in the scoring column on Wednesday night. Sophomore Chrissy Steffen had a career-high 17 points, while senior Tracy Pontius added 15. Senior Maggie Hennegan had 10 points for the Brown and Orange.
Akron had four players in double figures as well, led by Rachel Tecca. Tecca had a double-double, with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.Taylor Ruper added 15 points, Carly Young 14 and Kara Murphy 10 for the Zips.
The Falcons shot a season-high 58.8 percent -- from both the floor and beyond the three-point line -- but could not put away the Zips until the very end. BGSU shot 62.5% from the field in the opening half, taking a 47-35 lead into the intermission.
For the game, the Falcons went 10-of-17 from long range. Pontius was 5-of-7 from behind the arc, while Prochaska went 4-of-7. Overall, Prochaska made 11 of 16 shots on the night.
For their part, the Zips went 10-of-19 from long distance, led by Young's 4-of-7 effort. UA's 48.3% overall field-goal rate included a 14-of-28 (50.0%) second-half performance.
Falcon senior Chelsea Albert chipped in with eight points off the bench, while classmate Jen Uhl and sophomore Allison Papenfuss had six apiece.
The Falcons spotted the Zips an early 2-0 lead, but Prochaska hit a baseline jumper to tie the score, then fed Pontius for a three-pointer that gave the home team a 5-2 advantage with 1:12 gone.
Tecca, who scored 26 points against BGSU in the teams' 2009-10 meeting at Anderson, hit layups on back-to-back possessions to give the Zips a 6-5 lead. Tecca had the Zips' first six points of the game.
The Falcons responded, however, as Pontius hit a three-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer, giving BGSU an 8-6 lead. The Falcons had the lead for good, but BG could not pull away from the young Zips until the final moments.
Prochaska's three-pointer from the right elbow gave the Falcons an 11-6 advantage, and gave the BG senior 1,999 career points. Young hit her first three-pointer of the night, but Steffen got a driving finger-roll layup try to drop, then split a pair of free throws for a 14-9 BG lead.
With 11:56 remaining in the half, Prochaska's runner put her over the 2,000-point mark for her storied career. As mentioned, she is only the second player in BGSU history to reach that milestone, joining the legendary Jackie Motycka (2,122 career points).
At the other end of the court, however, Young was hot. The UA freshman hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, sandwiched around Prochaska's historic shot. After Young's second trey in that span, the Falcons' lead was just two points, 19-17.
Each team had a pair of unsuccessful possessions before Pontius connected. The senior took a pass from Papenfuss and drained a straightaway three with 10:14 left before halftime. Pontius returned the favor, finding Papenfuss inside for a layup and a 24-17 lead.
Tecca knocked down a jumper, but Papenfuss got herself to the line, making both free throws. Kacie Cassell's three-ball brought the Zips within four points, 26-22, before Steffen made two charity tosses. Then, Pontius hit another triple after another pass from Papenfuss, and the Falcons had a nine-point lead with 7:37 left in the half.
After two Tecca free throws, the home team went on an 8-0 run, with four different players scoring during that time. Albert canned a jumper, Steffen split a pair of tosses and Prochaska nailed a transition three-pointer after a Pontius steal. When Albert's pass hit Uhl in stride for a layup, the Falcons had a 39-26 lead with four-plus minutes remaining before intermission.
Young snapped that run with a jumper, but Prochaska scored four-straight points to give BG a 15-point lead, the largest of the half. The Zips cut the lead to 10 points before Steffen's layup in the final seconds of the period.
In that first half, both Pontius and Young went 4-for-4 from three-point land. The Falcons were 6-of-10 from long distance in the opening 20 minutes, while the Zips went 5-of-8.
The teams traded points in the early moments of the second half. Prochaska drove the lane and whipped a pass to Hennegan for a layup and a 51-40 lead, and that lead was again at 11 points after Uhl's layup at the 17:33 mark. But, the Zips got a jumper from Tecca and a three-pointer from Ruper, cutting BG's lead to 53-47.
The lead was still six points before Pontius hit her fifth triple in as many tries, draining a shot from out top with 14:49 remaining. BGSU's lead was 60-51.
Young finally missed a triple try for the visitors, and moments later, a crowd-pleasing sequence gave the Falcons a double-digit lead once again.
Prochaska blocked a shot attempt by UA's Jasmine Mushington, and Uhl dove to the ground to grab the ball and flip it to a teammate before sliding out of bounds. The Falcons were off and running, as Steffen drove and fed Hennegan for a layup and a 62-51 lead, prompting a UA timeout.
After the timeout, however, Akron turned the ball over, and Prochaska took an inbounds pass from Pontius and hit a triple with 12:59 on the clock, giving BG a 65-51 lead.
Murphy scored three-straight points for the Zips, but a nifty pass by Prochaska led to another Hennegan layup. The lead fluctuated between 10 and 12 points before Ruper's three-pointer cut the Zips' deficit back into single digits, 72-63, with 8:14 left.
Steffen answered Ruper's shot, however, with a three-pointer of her own, knocking down a shot after Uhl had grabbed an offensive rebound. Then, Albert's offensive board and slick putback resulted in a layup and Tecca's fourth foul. Albert completed the three-point play, with her free throw giving the Falcons a 78-63 lead with 6:43 remaining.
A 5-1 run by the Zips cut the Falcons' lead to 11 points, and after a BG miss, UA had the ball back as the clock wound down toward the four-minute mark. But, Steffen stole a Natasha Williams pass and hit a layup on the break, giving the Falcons an 81-68 lead.
Williams bounced back with a three-pointer, but Prochaska hit a jumper, then came up with a steal that led to a Papenfuss layup with 2:27 left. That was part of a 9-0 run that finally sealed the win.
Prochaska's three-pointer and Uhl's layup gave BG a 90-71 lead, before Ti'eshia Stubbs split a pair of shots from the line to close the scoring.
For the second game in a row, the Falcons had a large advantage in points off turnovers. BG forced 22 UA turnovers, scoring 37 points on the ensuing possessions. UA had nine points off of 15 Falcon turnovers.
The Zips, paced by Tecca's 10 rebounds, had a 32-25 advantage on the boards. No Falcon had more than four rebounds in the game.
Pontius led all players with six assists in the win, while Prochaska and Steffen each had three of BGSU's 10 steals.
The Falcons will play back-to-back road games, beginning with a Saturday (Jan. 15) contest with Kent State in a battle of MAC unbeatens. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at the M.A.C. Center in Kent, Ohio.
FALCON NOTES
* BGSU senior Lauren Prochaska now has a career total of 2,022 points ... she ranks ninth in MAC history, having moved past former Kent State standout Amy Sherry (2,014 pts. from 1991-96) in Wednesday night's game.
* Prochaska is now exactly 100 points shy of the BGSU career scoring leader, Jackie Motycka ... Motycka had a career total of 2,122 points during her stellar career (1985-89).
* In the last two games, BGSU has enjoyed a 77-12 advantage in points off turnovers ... on Saturday (Jan. 8), the Falcons had a 40-3 margin in that category in a win over Miami ... Wednesday night, BG had 37 points off turnovers to Akron's nine.
* BGSU is now 9-0 at Anderson Arena this season ... the Falcons have won 22 consecutive home games, and BG has won 38-straight regular-season home games at 'The House That Roars' ... the Falcons' last regular-season loss at Anderson Arena came vs. Western Michigan nearly three years ago, on Jan. 30, 2008.
* Overall, BGSU has won 41 of the last 42 home games ... the lone loss in that time came to Indiana in the third round of the 2009 WNIT ... BG had won 19-straight games before losing to IU, and beginning the current 22-game streak.
* BGSU's 15-1 record continues the best start in school history.
* The Falcons' 15-game winning streak is tied for the longest in the nation ... Duke and Miami (Fla.) each have won 15 consecutive games as well, and both teams play on Friday ... Duke will travel to Florida State, while Miami hosts Clemson.
* BGSU now leads Akron, 45-2, in the all-time series between the teams, and the Falcons have won 16 consecutive meetings with the Zips ... BG is a perfect 24-0 in home games vs. UA through the years.
* Prochaska has scored 20 or more points in a game 10 times this season and 43 times in her BGSU career.
FINAL STATS - HTML | BOXSCORE - PDF
POSTGAME AUDIO: Curt Miller | Tracy Pontius & Lauren Prochaska
PHOTO GALLERY (courtesy Craig Bell, BGSU Photo Services)
With the victory, the Falcons are now 15-1 overall and 3-0 in MAC play. BGSU has won 15 consecutive games. The Zips drop to 8-7 and 1-2, respectively.
Prochaska drove the lane and hit a runner with just over eight minutes gone in the first half, in the process surpassing the 2,000-point mark for her career. The senior is just the second player in BGSU history, and the 10th in MAC annals, to reach 2,000 career points.
Prochaska was one of four Falcons to reach double digits in the scoring column on Wednesday night. Sophomore Chrissy Steffen had a career-high 17 points, while senior Tracy Pontius added 15. Senior Maggie Hennegan had 10 points for the Brown and Orange.
Akron had four players in double figures as well, led by Rachel Tecca. Tecca had a double-double, with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.Taylor Ruper added 15 points, Carly Young 14 and Kara Murphy 10 for the Zips.
The Falcons shot a season-high 58.8 percent -- from both the floor and beyond the three-point line -- but could not put away the Zips until the very end. BGSU shot 62.5% from the field in the opening half, taking a 47-35 lead into the intermission.
For the game, the Falcons went 10-of-17 from long range. Pontius was 5-of-7 from behind the arc, while Prochaska went 4-of-7. Overall, Prochaska made 11 of 16 shots on the night.
For their part, the Zips went 10-of-19 from long distance, led by Young's 4-of-7 effort. UA's 48.3% overall field-goal rate included a 14-of-28 (50.0%) second-half performance.
Falcon senior Chelsea Albert chipped in with eight points off the bench, while classmate Jen Uhl and sophomore Allison Papenfuss had six apiece.
The Falcons spotted the Zips an early 2-0 lead, but Prochaska hit a baseline jumper to tie the score, then fed Pontius for a three-pointer that gave the home team a 5-2 advantage with 1:12 gone.
Tecca, who scored 26 points against BGSU in the teams' 2009-10 meeting at Anderson, hit layups on back-to-back possessions to give the Zips a 6-5 lead. Tecca had the Zips' first six points of the game.
The Falcons responded, however, as Pontius hit a three-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer, giving BGSU an 8-6 lead. The Falcons had the lead for good, but BG could not pull away from the young Zips until the final moments.
Prochaska's three-pointer from the right elbow gave the Falcons an 11-6 advantage, and gave the BG senior 1,999 career points. Young hit her first three-pointer of the night, but Steffen got a driving finger-roll layup try to drop, then split a pair of free throws for a 14-9 BG lead.
With 11:56 remaining in the half, Prochaska's runner put her over the 2,000-point mark for her storied career. As mentioned, she is only the second player in BGSU history to reach that milestone, joining the legendary Jackie Motycka (2,122 career points).
At the other end of the court, however, Young was hot. The UA freshman hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, sandwiched around Prochaska's historic shot. After Young's second trey in that span, the Falcons' lead was just two points, 19-17.
Each team had a pair of unsuccessful possessions before Pontius connected. The senior took a pass from Papenfuss and drained a straightaway three with 10:14 left before halftime. Pontius returned the favor, finding Papenfuss inside for a layup and a 24-17 lead.
Tecca knocked down a jumper, but Papenfuss got herself to the line, making both free throws. Kacie Cassell's three-ball brought the Zips within four points, 26-22, before Steffen made two charity tosses. Then, Pontius hit another triple after another pass from Papenfuss, and the Falcons had a nine-point lead with 7:37 left in the half.
After two Tecca free throws, the home team went on an 8-0 run, with four different players scoring during that time. Albert canned a jumper, Steffen split a pair of tosses and Prochaska nailed a transition three-pointer after a Pontius steal. When Albert's pass hit Uhl in stride for a layup, the Falcons had a 39-26 lead with four-plus minutes remaining before intermission.
Young snapped that run with a jumper, but Prochaska scored four-straight points to give BG a 15-point lead, the largest of the half. The Zips cut the lead to 10 points before Steffen's layup in the final seconds of the period.
In that first half, both Pontius and Young went 4-for-4 from three-point land. The Falcons were 6-of-10 from long distance in the opening 20 minutes, while the Zips went 5-of-8.
The teams traded points in the early moments of the second half. Prochaska drove the lane and whipped a pass to Hennegan for a layup and a 51-40 lead, and that lead was again at 11 points after Uhl's layup at the 17:33 mark. But, the Zips got a jumper from Tecca and a three-pointer from Ruper, cutting BG's lead to 53-47.
The lead was still six points before Pontius hit her fifth triple in as many tries, draining a shot from out top with 14:49 remaining. BGSU's lead was 60-51.
Young finally missed a triple try for the visitors, and moments later, a crowd-pleasing sequence gave the Falcons a double-digit lead once again.
Prochaska blocked a shot attempt by UA's Jasmine Mushington, and Uhl dove to the ground to grab the ball and flip it to a teammate before sliding out of bounds. The Falcons were off and running, as Steffen drove and fed Hennegan for a layup and a 62-51 lead, prompting a UA timeout.
After the timeout, however, Akron turned the ball over, and Prochaska took an inbounds pass from Pontius and hit a triple with 12:59 on the clock, giving BG a 65-51 lead.
Murphy scored three-straight points for the Zips, but a nifty pass by Prochaska led to another Hennegan layup. The lead fluctuated between 10 and 12 points before Ruper's three-pointer cut the Zips' deficit back into single digits, 72-63, with 8:14 left.
Steffen answered Ruper's shot, however, with a three-pointer of her own, knocking down a shot after Uhl had grabbed an offensive rebound. Then, Albert's offensive board and slick putback resulted in a layup and Tecca's fourth foul. Albert completed the three-point play, with her free throw giving the Falcons a 78-63 lead with 6:43 remaining.
A 5-1 run by the Zips cut the Falcons' lead to 11 points, and after a BG miss, UA had the ball back as the clock wound down toward the four-minute mark. But, Steffen stole a Natasha Williams pass and hit a layup on the break, giving the Falcons an 81-68 lead.
Williams bounced back with a three-pointer, but Prochaska hit a jumper, then came up with a steal that led to a Papenfuss layup with 2:27 left. That was part of a 9-0 run that finally sealed the win.
Prochaska's three-pointer and Uhl's layup gave BG a 90-71 lead, before Ti'eshia Stubbs split a pair of shots from the line to close the scoring.
For the second game in a row, the Falcons had a large advantage in points off turnovers. BG forced 22 UA turnovers, scoring 37 points on the ensuing possessions. UA had nine points off of 15 Falcon turnovers.
The Zips, paced by Tecca's 10 rebounds, had a 32-25 advantage on the boards. No Falcon had more than four rebounds in the game.
Pontius led all players with six assists in the win, while Prochaska and Steffen each had three of BGSU's 10 steals.
The Falcons will play back-to-back road games, beginning with a Saturday (Jan. 15) contest with Kent State in a battle of MAC unbeatens. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at the M.A.C. Center in Kent, Ohio.
FALCON NOTES
* BGSU senior Lauren Prochaska now has a career total of 2,022 points ... she ranks ninth in MAC history, having moved past former Kent State standout Amy Sherry (2,014 pts. from 1991-96) in Wednesday night's game.
* Prochaska is now exactly 100 points shy of the BGSU career scoring leader, Jackie Motycka ... Motycka had a career total of 2,122 points during her stellar career (1985-89).
* In the last two games, BGSU has enjoyed a 77-12 advantage in points off turnovers ... on Saturday (Jan. 8), the Falcons had a 40-3 margin in that category in a win over Miami ... Wednesday night, BG had 37 points off turnovers to Akron's nine.
* BGSU is now 9-0 at Anderson Arena this season ... the Falcons have won 22 consecutive home games, and BG has won 38-straight regular-season home games at 'The House That Roars' ... the Falcons' last regular-season loss at Anderson Arena came vs. Western Michigan nearly three years ago, on Jan. 30, 2008.
* Overall, BGSU has won 41 of the last 42 home games ... the lone loss in that time came to Indiana in the third round of the 2009 WNIT ... BG had won 19-straight games before losing to IU, and beginning the current 22-game streak.
* BGSU's 15-1 record continues the best start in school history.
* The Falcons' 15-game winning streak is tied for the longest in the nation ... Duke and Miami (Fla.) each have won 15 consecutive games as well, and both teams play on Friday ... Duke will travel to Florida State, while Miami hosts Clemson.
* BGSU now leads Akron, 45-2, in the all-time series between the teams, and the Falcons have won 16 consecutive meetings with the Zips ... BG is a perfect 24-0 in home games vs. UA through the years.
* Prochaska has scored 20 or more points in a game 10 times this season and 43 times in her BGSU career.
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