Falcons Face Mastodons in Sunday's Home Opener

Sunday, November 30

Bowling Green, Ohio

2 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

Purdue Fort Wayne

Tickets From $5 - $11

Photo by: Drake Harlett, BGSU Athletics

November 29, 2025 | Women's Basketball

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Purdue Fort Wayne Comes to the Stroh for a 2:00 p.m. Matchup

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2025 | 2:00 P.M. | STROH CENTER | BOWLING GREEN, OHIO

BOWLING GREEN
FALCONS
(2-4, 0-0 MAC)

vs.

PURDUE FORT WAYNE
MASTODONS
(4-3, 0-0 Horizon)


WATCH: ESPN+ \| LISTEN: Falcon Media Sports \| LIVE STATS: BGSU-PFW \| TWITTER/X: @BGSUwbb \| INSTAGRAM: bgsuwbb

WHAT, WHEN & WHERE
• After beginning the 2025-26 season with six consecutive games away from home, the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team starts a six-game homestand this weekend. Head coach Fred Chmiel and the Falcons face Purdue Fort Wayne on Sunday (Nov. 30), in a 2:00 p.m. start at the Stroh Center.

WHERE TO WATCH / LISTEN
• Sunday's Purdue Fort Wayne contest will be streamed via ESPN+, with Brad Woznicki handling play-by-play duties. All 2025-26 games will have an audio stream as well, thanks to Falcon Media Sports Network. Lucas Kleimeyer and Adam Duffin are scheduled to be on the call.

STATS & SOCIAL MEDIA
• Links to audio, video and live stats for all 2025-26 games can always be found on the web at BGSUFalcons.com – both on the women's basketball schedule page and in the right column on the main page – on game day.

GONE TILL NOVEMBER (30TH)
• The Falcons definitely racked up the frequent flyer miles during the month of November, as BGSU opened the 2025-26 season with six consecutive games away from home.

• That six-game odyssey included trips to the states of Louisiana, South Carolina (to face the #2/2-ranked Gamecocks), and Wisconsin, before BGSU headed all the way to Alaska for a pair of games in the ASRC/ConocoPhillips Great Alaska Shootout.

• Finally, the Falcons open the home portion of the season on Sunday (Nov. 30), when Purdue Fort Wayne comes to the Stroh Center.

DONAHUE IS DOMINANT
• Sophomore Johnea Donahue had one of the best games of her young career when the Falcons took on Wisconsin on Nov. 12. The guard set career bests in both points and assists, and stuffed the stat sheet in several other categories as well.

• Donahue led all players in scoring (24), rebounding (six – tied for game honors with Taya Ellis), assists (six) and steals (six). She went 8-for-16 from the field and a perfect 8-for-8 from the free-throw line.

• Two nights later, Donahue again led the Falcons in scoring, with 16 points at Marquette. She added four rebounds and three assists vs. the Golden Eagles.

• Donahue had well-rounded stats lines in each of BGSU's two games in Alaska as well, averaging 12.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.5 apg and 2.5 spg vs. UC Irvine and Alaska Anchorage.

• Through six games this season, Donahue is averaging a MAC-leading 3.17 steals per game, and she is tied for 10th in the conference in scoring and eighth in assists.

KOHLER NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-MAC TEAM
• Junior Paige Kohler was named to the 2025-26 Preseason All-Mid-American Conference First Team, which was determined via voting by the league's 13 head coaches.

• Kohler, a native of Olmsted Falls, Ohio (Olmsted Falls), earned All-MAC Honorable mention last season, and also was named to both the Academic All-MAC Team and the Academic All-District® Team, selected by College Sports Communicators. The guard started all 31 games, and averaged 35.0 minutes per contest. She finished second on the Falcons in both scoring and rebounding, with 13.6 points and 4.6 boards per game.

• Kohler made a team-leading 76 three-point field goals last winter, shooting 36.7% from the arc. She averaged 3.58 steals and had a 1.82 assist/turnover ratio, ranking second on the Falcons in both areas. Kohler was second in the entire MAC in both minutes per game and three-pointers made per game (2.5).

• In her first two seasons at BGSU (plus six games), Kohler has compiled impressive totals of 846 points, 297 rebounds, 244 assists and 127 three-point field goals made. She is currently ranked on the BGSU career lists for points per game (12th, 12.44), assists per game (eighth, 3.59), three-pointers made (tied for 18th) and three-pointers made per game (sixth, 1.87).

• Kohler has been in the starting lineup for all 68 of BGSU's games since she arrived on campus.

SPEAKING OF THE STARTING LINEUP
• On Saturday (Nov. 22), a pair of fourth-year Falcons were in the starting lineup for the first time in their respective collegiate careers. Senior Emily Siesel and redshirt junior Jasmine Fearne joined juniors Paige Kohler and Taya Ellis and sophomore Johnea Donahue on the court for tipoff of the Alaska Anchorage game.

• That duo ranked 1-2 on the Falcons in minutes played vs. the Seawolves. Fearne played a total of 34:12, topping her previous career high by nearly eight minutes. Siesel, who had never played more than 21:45 in a game with the Orange and Brown, was on the court for 33:26 at UAA.

• And, the tandem made the most of their time. Siesel scored a career-high eight points, and also set or tied her career bests in rebounds, field goals made and attempted, assists and steals. She had four boards, three dimes and three steals.

• Fearne had nine points for the second-straight night, and tied her career best with four assists vs. UAA.

LAST TIME OUT: FALCONS TOP UAA, 67-63
• The Falcons got contributions from multiple players down the stretch Saturday night (Nov. 22), picking up a 67-63 win over Alaska Anchorage. The game, part of second-day action at the ASRC/ConocoPhillips Great Alaska Shootout, was held at the Alaska Airlines Center.

• Junior Paige Kohler scored 10 of her team-high 19 points in the fourth quarter, including a bucket with just under a minute to go that gave the Falcons (2-4) the lead for good. Kohler was named to the All-Tournament Team.

• Sophomore Johnea Donahue had 14 points, while fourth-year Falcons Jasmine Fearne and Emily Siesel scored nine and eight points, respectively. Both Fearne and Siesel were in the starting lineup for the first time in their collegiate careers.

• After Kohler's hoop gave BG a 64-62 lead, Mylee Anderson split a pair of free throws for the Seawolves with 46.2 seconds to go. The Falcons used a timeout, then used all of the shot clock on the ensuing possession. A shot was off the mark, and for a split second it appeared that a UAA player had corralled the rebound, but Siesel ripped the ball away and was fouled with 16.2 seconds to go. The senior's free throw gave the Falcons a 65-63 advantage.

• The ensuing possession saw the hosts miss a shot in the paint, with Ky'Aira Miller tying up a UAA player in the battle for the rebound. The possession arrow favored the Falcons with 8.2 seconds remaining.

• Kohler's inbound pass found Donahue, who was fouled and made both free-throw attempts to give the Falcons a four-point lead with 7.4 seconds to go, and a three-point try was off the mark for the Seawolves as the final horn sounded.

• Donahue, Fearne and Kohler each had four assists, while Siesel had three assists and a team-leading three steals. Donahue, Fearne and Taya Ellis each had a plus/minus rating of +15 in the win.

THE FALCONS: A QUICK OVERVIEW
• Head coach Fred Chmiel and his staff returned a total of nine players, including eight letterwinners, from last season's roster. The Falcons went 18-13 overall last season, finishing with an 11-7 record in Mid-American Conference play. BGSU ended the 2024-25 regular-season schedule by winning nine of 11 games.

• The list of returnees includes junior Paige Kohler, who was named to the Preseason All-MAC First Team. Kohler finished second on the Falcons in both scoring and rebounding, with 13.6 points and 4.6 boards per game a year ago.

• Sophomore Johnea Donahue also returns after starting 17 contests last season. Donahue was named to the MAC's All-Freshman Team last season, and also was chosen to the MAC All-Defensive Team in her first year in the Orange and Brown. She led the entire conference in steals per game (2.46 spg).

• Other returnees include a pair of fourth-year Falcons in senior Emily Siesel and redshirt junior Jasmine Fearne. Siesel and Fearne each played in 28 of BGSU's 31 games off the bench, and Fearne finished fourth on the team with 20 three-point field goals made. Another senior, Kendal Moxey, is back for her second season in the Orange and Brown. She shot an even 50 percent from the field last winter.

• Junior Taya Ellis started five games last year, averaging nearly four points and leading the Falcons in blocked shots, while sophomore Laila Harrison was penciled into the starting lineup four times in her freshman campaign. Another sophomore, Lauren Gerken, returns after averaging 7.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per contest in 10 games last year. Gerken had a 20-point game in a win over Stetson, and started her final five games before suffering an injury in December and missing the remainder of the season.

• Redshirt freshman Sofia Moschen is back after joining the team for the Spring 2025 semester. She did not see game action in '24-25.

• BGSU's four newcomers include three transfers and a freshman. Senior Kaia Woods began her career at Washington State, and played for fellow MAC member Akron two years ago. Junior Joniyah Bland-Fitzpatrick spent the last two seasons at Seton Hall, playing in a total of 37 games for the Pirates, while fellow junior Jaedyn Cook spent the 2024-25 season at Odessa (Texas) College after beginning her career at East Carolina.

• Ky'Aira Miller, a Cincinnati native and the lone true freshman on the 2025-26 roster, joins the Falcons after helping Purcell Marian H.S. to four state championships and graduating as the program's assists leader.

• On the bench, assistant coaches Maggie Lucas and John Nicolais return for their third and second seasons, respectively, with the Falcons. They are joined by former Falcon great Kadie Hempfling.

• Six games into the season, Kohler and Donahue rank 1-2 on the Falcons in scoring. Kohler has 14.5 points per game, with Donahue at 13.7 ppg.

• Donahue leads the Falcons in assists (3.7) and steals (a MAC-best 3.2 spg), while ranking second in rebounding (4.8 rpg). Kohler has 3.7 boards and 3.5 assists per game, and the duo is a combined 48-of-53 at the free-throw line.

• Woods has 5.5 ppg, while four Falcons have either 4.2 or 4.3 points per outing. That quartet includes Bland-Fitzpatrick, Ellis, Fearne and Gerkdn. Ellis has a team-leading 5.7 rpg and also paces the Falcons in blocks (1.0 bpg).

PROTECT THE STROH
• The Falcons went 11-2 in home games last winter. BGSU's home winning percentage (.846) in 2024-25 was the third best since the Stroh Center opened 14 years ago.

• The 2013-14 Falcons went 16-1 at home (.941), winning 16-straight games at the Stroh – including three WNIT victories – before losing to Rutgers in a WNIT quarterfinal-round game.

• The 2011-12 club, the first BG team to play at the Stroh, went 14-2 (.875), with the only losses each coming by one point, against #16/20 Purdue in the first women's game in the history of the building, and vs. VCU in the WNIT.

• Over the last five seasons, the Falcons have a record of 47-17 (.734) inside the Stroh.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE MASTADONS
• Purdue Fort Wayne enters Sunday's game at the Stroh Center with a record of 4-3. The Mastodons have won four out of the last five contests. The three losses have come against West Virginia, Xavier (by one point) and Nebraska, with the four victories including a 68-67 triumph at Purdue on Nov. 12. Most recently, PFW picked up a 77-68 win over Northwestern State on Tuesday (Nov. 25).

• Alana Nelson has a team-leading 14.6 points per game, while Jordan Reid (11.4 ppg) and Lili Krasovec (10.4 ppg) are also in double figures in the scoring column. Reid paces the 'Dons in both rebounds (5.9 rpg) and steals (2.7 spg), and is tied with Krasovec for the assists lead (2.4 apg).

• Head coach Maria Marchesano welcomed back three players from a 2024-25 team that went 27-9 overall and 18-2 in Horizon League play. The Mastodons finished second in the HL regular-season standings before advancing to both the league tournament championship game and the WNIT Great 8.

THE SERIES
• The Falcons lead Purdue Fort Wayne, 5-0, in the all-time series and the teams will be meeting for the first time in just over two decades. BGSU and the school then known as IPFW met for five consecutive seasons from 2001-05. The Falcons picked up three wins at venerable Anderson Arena and two in Fort Wayne, with the most recent matchup a 78-50 BGSU victory at "The House That Roars" on Nov. 18, 2005. That game, the season opener for both teams, saw Liz Honegger score 18 points and Ali Mann (14 points, nine rebounds) and Kate Achter (seven points, nine rebounds and 10 assists) flirt with a double-double and a triple-double, respectively. Amber Flynn came off the bench to score 13 points for a BGSU team that would go on to win the MAC regular-season and tournament titles for a second-straight season.

DOWN THE ROAD
• Following the Purdue Fort Wayne matchup, the Falcons' six-game homestand will continue with a Wednesday (Dec. 3) contest vs. Kentucky State. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will play home games against Defiance (Dec. 7), Lourdes (Dec. 14), Le Moyne (Dec. 16) and Kent State (Dec. 20), with the game vs. the Golden Flashes opening the Mid-American Conference portion of the schedule. BGSU's next road game is Dec. 30 at Eastern Michigan.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
For more information on BGSU women's hoops, be sure to follow the Falcons on Facebook (@BGWBB), Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUWBB) and Instagram (@bgsuwbb), as well as on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.