Falcons Feast on Mountain Hawk in Thanksgiving-Day Win

SAVANNAH, Ga. – Four players scored in double digits as the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team picked up an 85-73 win over Lehigh University on Thanksgiving morning (Nov. 23). The game, part of second-day action at the Savannah Hoops Invitational, was held at Enmarket Arena.

Lexi Fleming had a game-high 22 points for the Falcons (4-1), who went 2-0 in the tournament and have won three-straight games. Erika Porter scored 20 points on 10-of-13 shooting, and Fleming (seven) and Porter (six) combined for 13 rebounds along with those 42 points.

Thursday's game also marked the return of Morgan Sharps. Sharps, in her first game since being injured in a win over Toledo in January, scored 15 points on Thursday, going 4-for-8 from three-point range.

Amy Velasco had 14 points for the Orange and Brown. Velasco has scored in double digits in all five games this season to date, and in seven consecutive games dating to March.

Colleen McQuillen had 19 points for the Mountain Hawks (5-1), who lost for the first time this season. Lily Fandre had 13 points, Meghan O'Brien 12 and Jamie Behar 10 to round out Lehigh's double-figure scorers.

The Falcons fell behind by nine points late in the first quarter, but BGSU used a 15-2 run to go up by seven late in the opening half. The Mountain Hawks, however, hit a three-pointer to end the half, then scored eight quick points to begin the third quarter.

Moments later, though, Fleming's driving layup tied the score and began a 10-0 run for the Falcons. Porter's layup gave BG the lead for good, and after a Velasco driving layup, Sharps hit a three-pointer, then stole the ball, was fouled and knocked down a free-throw try for a 60-52 lead late in the third.

Lehigh got back within two points on an O'Brien triple with 7:20 left in the game, but Sharps responded with another trey. Still another long-range make by Sharps extended the BG lead to double digits with 4:25 to go, and Lehigh got no closer than six thereafter.

BGSU went 8-for-8 at the free-throw line in the game's final 1:36, with Kohler hitting four in a row and Velasco and Fleming each making a pair.

The Falcons shot 52.5 percent from the field in the win, going 31-of-59. Lehigh, after going 12-of-18 (66.7%) in the first quarter, shot just 32.1% (9-of-28) in the second half and 44.8% for the game.

BGSU was +11 on the boards, with 37 rebounds to Lehigh's 26, and the Falcons had a 13-4 lead in second-chance points.

Gallery: (11-23-2023) 112323 wbk v Lehigh - Bradley Trombley

FIRST QUARTER
• Both teams got off to red-hot shooting starts. The teams combined for 34 points before the game's first media timeout, with the lead changing hands four times in that span.
• That five-and-a-half-minute stretch saw Lehigh make 8-of-12 shots while the Falcons went 7-for-11 from the floor.
• BGSU took an 8-5 lead when Lexi Fleming hit her second layup of the day, but a Lily Fandre layup began a 7-0 run for the Mountain Hawks. Colleen McQuillen's three-pointer gave Lehigh a 12-8 lead.
• Amy Velasco countered with a triple of her own, and Fleming, after assisting Velasco on that triple, hit a floater, but the Falcons could not stop LU at the other end. Erika Porter's layup cut the BG deficit to one point, but Ella Stemmer came right back with a trey to give her team a 19-15 lead.
• That lead reached six points, and after Porter hit a turnaround jumper, back-to-back buckets by Jamie Behar, including a three-pointer, gave the Mountain Hawks a 26-17 lead.
• The Falcons began to chip away, as Fleming drove and found Porter for a layup, and Morgan Sharps – making her first game appearance in over nine month – found Sophie Dziekan for a bucket.
• Behar hit another triple, but Olivia Hill kicked the ball out to Sharps for a three-ball, and the Falcons trailed by five, 29-24, after 10 minutes.
• Porter had 10 points on perfect 5-for-5 shooting in the first quarter.

SECOND QUARTER
• BG got layups by Porter and Hill in the first few minutes of the second quarter, but the Mountain Hawks answered each time. Then, however, Velasco made back-to-back layups, and after a timeout, Velasco spotted Fleming for a straightaway trey and a 35-34 lead.
• Stemmer's hoop snapped BG's 7-0 run, but the Falcons then proceeded to score eight-straight points. Fleming had a three-point play, then a long-distance shot, and Paige Kohler drove, was fouled and hit both of the ensuing free-throw tries for a 40-36 advantage.
• The Falcons force a shot-clock violation before Kohler lobbed the ball to Porter for a layup and a 43-36 lead. Kohler hit a layup with a minute to go, but Stemmer's triple cut the BG margin to four points, 45-41, at the half.

THIRD QUARTER
• The Mountain Hawks came out hot to begin the second half. Lehigh scored eight quick points, with another Stemmer three-pointer putting the Falcons down by four, 49-45.
• Hill hit a long two-pointer, and Fleming's second three-point play of the day gave BG the lead. Meghan O'Brien answered with a long-distance make, but Fleming's layup tied the score, and a Porter reverse layup gave the Falcons the lead for good. Velasco's layup was followed by a Sharps three-ball, and BGSU's lead was 59-52. A Sharps free throw moments later capped a 10-0 run.
• Lehigh got back within five, but Fleming hit a three near the top of the arc to give the Falcons a 63-55 lead after 30 minutes.

FOURTH QUARTER
• Porter hit a nifty layup in traffic in the opening minute of the quarter, but Lehigh chipped away and cut BG's lead to just two points on an O'Brien triple with 7:20 to go. But, Sharps took a Fleming pass and hit a catch-and-shoot three, and Velasco was fouled with the shot clock winding down. Velasco's free throws gave the Orange and Brown a 70-63 lead with 5:10 remaining.
• Then, Fleming stole the ball and fired it ahead to Sharps for a layup and a nine-point advantage.
• BGSU took a double-digit lead for the first time on a Sharps three-ointer with 4:25 on the clock, and after a Fandre layup, Porter hit a layup with 3:21 remaining.
• The Mountain Hawks got within seven, then missed an open layup that would have cut the BG lead to five. Sharps grabbed the rebound and the Falcons used some clock. Porter came up with a pair of offensive boards, and the possession ended with two Velasco free throws and a 79-70 lead with 1:36 left.
• McQuillen's three-point play cut the lead to six, and the Mountain Hawks avoided fouling Velasco, then purposely fouled Kohler the second Velasco passed her the ball. The freshman hit both free-throw tries with 35.9 seconds to go.
• Then, Fleming blocked Stemmer's three-point attempt, and the BG guard poked the ball past Stemmer and grabbed the rebound. The ensuing BG possession also ended with two Kohler charity tossed, and after a Lehigh turnover, Fleming's free throws capped the scoring.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons return home to face Duquesne on Monday evening (Nov. 27), with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

• BGSU then will play four games in the month of December, including three against teams currently ranked in the top 20 in the nation. The month begins with a matchup at Iowa on Saturday, Dec. 2.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
• For more information on all things BGSU women's basketball, follow the Falcons on Facebook (@BGWBB), Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUWBB) and Instagram (@bgsuwbb), as well as right here at BGSUFalcons.com.

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Lexi Fleming

Erika Porter

Morgan Sharps

Amy Velasco

Players Mentioned

Sophie Dziekan