Cardinals Shoot Past Falcons, 75-53, Saturday

Saturday, January 21

Bowling Green, OH

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

5-14, 1-6MAC

Ball State

13-6, 6-1MAC

Ball State

Bowling Green

Photo by: Bianca Garza, BGSU Marketing and Communications

January 21, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Lambert leads Brown & Orange with 15

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Visiting Ball State University used a pair of runs to take control of Saturday's (Jan. 21), and the Cardinals went on to a 75-53 win over the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team. The Mid-American Conference matchup was held at the Stroh Center.

The Falcons led, 16-12, after the first quarter, but the Cardinals (13-6, 6-1 MAC) scored nine consecutive points early in the second period to take the lead for good. Ball State led by eight points at the half, then scored 11-straight points to open up an 18-point lead late in the third period.

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Renee Bennett led the Cardinals with a double-double. She had 22 points and 12 rebounds to pace all players on Saturday. Eight of those points came in the fourth quarter, including BSU's final six points of the day.

Moriah Monaco and Frannie Frazier scored 15 and 11 points, respectively, for the Cardinals. Monaco hit a game-high five three-point field goals, while Frazier was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free-throw line.

Sophomore Sydney Lambert had 15 points for the Falcons, while junior Haley Puk added 10. The duo combined for six of BGSU's 11 three-pointers, as seven different players connected from beyond the arc for the Brown and Orange.

"We knew what they were going to do, but unfortunately we weren't able to get as many stops as we needed to, especially in the second and third quarters," said BGSU Head Coach Jennifer Roos. "We had some good looks, but we struggled to put the ball in the basket today. We just didn't have enough firepower against their changing defenses. Those defense disrupted us a little bit, but we still got good looks and just didn't knock down enough shots."

Freshman Andrea Cecil had eight points off the bench, while sophomore Carly Santoro scored seven points for the Falcons. Senior Ashley Tunstall led the Brown and Orange with eight rebounds and four assists, while both Santoro and senior Abby Siefker had seven boards as the Falcons held a 43-41 lead on the glass.

BGSU got off to a quick start on Saturday. After spotting Ball State a Bennett bucket, Lambert was fouled on a three-point try and hit all three shots from the stripe. Then, Siefker kicked the ball out to Puk for a three-pointer and a 6-2 lead. When Lambert came downcourt and flipped the ball to Siefker at the arc, the senior knocked down a long-range attempt of her own, giving the Brown and Orange a 9-0 run in a minute's time.

Calyn Hosea snapped that run with a layup, and Monaco hit a long-distance try. When Carmen Grande converted a three-point play, the Cards had an 8-0 run of their own. But, Lambert drained a three-pointer, and Puk answered a Frazier bucket with a hoop of her own, giving the hosts a 16-12 lead after 10 minutes.

After a Cecil jumper early in the second quarter, Bennett's free throws began a 9-0 run for the Cards. Another long-range shot by Monaco gave the visitors the lead for good, 19-18, and Grande followed a Destiny Washington layup with a pair of shots from the line.

Santoro, however, answered with a driving layup, and Cecil split a pair of free throws to get the Falcons within two points, 23-21, midway through the quarter. Then, after the visitors scored the next four points, Puk found Lambert for a three-ball. Again, the Cards put together a quick 4-0 run, but Puk took a Tunstall pass and knocked down a triple from the left wing, making it a 31-27 game.

But, Monaco hit a three-pointer with 1:37 left in the half, and after Santoro scored inside, another Monaco triple gave the Cards a 39-27 lead at the half.

Lambert hit a pair of triple tries in the first five-plus minutes of the third quarter, with the second long-distance shot putting BG within eight points. Bennett answered with a layup, but Santoro's trey cut the BSU lead to 47-40 with 3:43 left in the period. But, a Bennett layup began an 11-0 run, and by the time Puk hit a pair of shots from the line, BG trailed, 58-42, in the final minute of the period. The visitors opened the fourth period with a Frazier three-point play and a Jill Morrison triple to put the game away.

Grande had nine points and seven assists for the visitors, while Hosea had eight points, eight boards and four assists.

"It's disappointing when you have a great crowd like we did today, and like we've had here during this home stretch, and you're not able to get some more W's," said Roos. "But, our kids are playing hard and getting shots. We just need to string together more made shots and more stops. Ball State is a very good team, one of the most veteran teams in the conference with some of the most balanced scoring in the conference among their starting five. I liked our effort today, but we just need to play more consistently and string together more shots and stops."

BGSU now hits the road for the final two games of January, beginning with a Wednesday (Jan. 25) trip to Ypsilanti, Mich., to face Eastern Michigan University. That contest will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Convocation Center.