Virginia Snaps Falcons' Three-Game Winning Streak Sunday Afternoon

Sunday, December 4

Bowling Green, OH

2:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

3-5

Virginia

6-2

Virginia

Bowling Green

Photo by: Bianca Garza, BGSU Marketing and Communications

Virginia Snaps Falcons' Three-Game Winning Streak Sunday Afternoon

December 04, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Cavaliers rally back from second-quarter deficit to post 67-47 win

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The University of Virginia rallied back from a second-quarter deficit on Sunday afternoon (Dec. 4), and the Cavaliers went on to post a 67-47 win over the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team. The non-conference game was held at the Stroh Center.

The Falcons, now 3-5, led by five points after the first quarter, but an 11-0 UVA run to start the second period gave the visitors the lead for good.

The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Orange and Brown.

Junior Haley Puk had 10 points for the Falcons, while classmate Rachel Myers and sophomore Carly Santoro scored eight apiece. All three players hit two three-point field goals on the afternoon, with Myers going a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

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AUDIO: Puk | Coach Roos
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PHOTO GALLERY: Bianca Garza, BGSU Mkt, & Comm.

BGSU was outrebounded for the first time this season, as UVA (6-2) had a slim 30-29 advantage on the boards.

Breyana Mason led the Cavaliers with 16 points, while Dominique Toussaint and J'Kyra Brown scored 10 apiece. Virginia is receiving votes in the latest USA Today Top-25 Coaches' Poll.

Before a large crowd that included the entire Falcon Marching Band, the Falcons had an 18-13 lead after an entertaining first quarter. The Falcons shot 54.5 percent from the field in the opening 10 minutes, with BG's 6-for-11 effort from the field including a 4-for-8 performance from three-point range.

Puk opened the game's scoring, hitting a three-pointer from NBA range as the shot-clock horn sounded. Jocelyn Willoughby answered with a bucket, but senior Abby Siefker kicked the ball out to Santoro for another BG triple. Then, Siefker was fouled on a drive to the hoop and knocked down both of the ensuing free-throw attempts for an 8-2 lead.

The visitors crept back to within two points, but sophomore Sydney Lambert corralled a Virginia miss, dribbled downcourt and knocked down a long-range shot for an 11-6 advantage. Myers answered Mason's bucket with one of her own, but Brown's three-pointer got the 'Hoos within two points once again.

Freshman Caterrion Thompson stole the ball from Brown and hit a layup with 30 seconds left in the half, but Felicia Alyeotan answered with a quick layup for the visitors. But, as the final seconds ticked away, senior Rachel Konieczki found Myers in the corner. Myers proceeded to drain a three-pointer as the buzzer sounded and the crowd erupted. The Falcons led by five after one quarter.

But, the Cavaliers outscored BGSU by an 18-7 count in the second period, beginning the quarter with an 11-0 run. Neither team scored for close to three minutes, but Mason hit a long-range shot, and Toussaint hit two free throws, then a jumper. When Brown banked home a shot in the paint, UVA had a 22-18 lead

The lead reached six points on a Lauren Moses layup with 3:43 left in the half. Moses had nine points and a game-high eight rebounds, while Aiyeotan also scored nine points on Sunday.

Myers took a Lambert pass and drilled a three-point try from the right corner, and Siefker lobbed the ball inside to sophomore Maddie Cole, who scored despite being surrounded by several taller UVA players. BG trailed by a single point with 2:39 left in the half.

But, the visitors scored the next seven points, then got the ball back and looked to take a double-digit lead in the final minute of the half. BG forced Moses to Miss a layup try, though, and Cole was fouled as she battled for the rebound. The sophomore hit two free throws with just 4.1 seconds left, cutting BG's deficit to 31-25 at the intermission.

BG cut that six-point margin in half on the opening possession of the second half, as Puk found Santoro at the top of the arc for a three-pointer. But, UVA shot a blistering 63.6% in the third quarter, going 7-for-11 from the field, to pull away. After Willoughby hit a pair of shots from the line, a Moses layup gave the 'Hoos a 35-28 lead. Santoro went coast to coast through the entire Virginia team for a layup, but Mason countered with a layup, and Brown scored four-straight points, including a three-point play, to give her team a 41-30 lead. Then, Aliyah Huland El converted a three-point play of her own, and Lisa Jablonowski's layup put the Cavaliers ahead by 16.

Puk got a layup to go, and freshman Clare Glowniak rebounded a teammate's miss in traffic and put the ball back up and in, but a layup by Aiyeotan was followed by a Mason triple with just 6.5 seconds left in the quarter, and the visitors held a 52-34 lead after 30 minutes. BG got within 15 points as Thompson fed Puk for a three-ball in the first minute of the fourth period, but the Brown and Orange would draw no closer.

Puk, making her first start of the season, hit double digits in the scoring column for the second time in three games. Glowniak scored six points off the bench, while Lambert had five points and Cole four against the 'Hoos. Lambert and Cole tied for team rebounding honors with five apiece.

For the game, Virginia shot 52.0% from the floor, including a 13-for-23 performance in the second half. The Falcons shot 31.8% from the field on the day. BGSU made seven three-pointers to the Cavaliers' three, and both teams hit 12 free throws, with the home team going 12-for-16 and the visitors 12-of-21 at the stripe.

The Falcons return to action on Wednesday (Dec. 7), hosting Ohio Valley to conclude a three-game homestand. Wednesday's game will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Stroh.