Falcons Foil Flashes, 73-69, in MAC Opener at the Stroh

Saturday, December 20

Bowling Green, Ohio

2 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

8-4,1-0MAC

Kent State

5-7,0-1MAC

Kent St.

Bowling Green

Photo by: Drake Harlett, BGSU Athletics

December 20, 2025 | Women's Basketball

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BGSU heads into the holidays with win over the preseason league favorite

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team opened the Mid-American Conference schedule on a successful note Saturday afternoon (Dec. 20), picking up a victory over the preseason league favorite. The Falcons topped Kent State University, 73-69, at the Stroh Center.

Johnea Donahue had a double-double for the Falcons (8-4, 1-0 MAC), who increased the current winning streak to seven games. The sophomore, who missed the last two games due to injury, had game-high totals of 19 points and 11 rebounds, and went 3-for-4 from three-point range.

Kaia Woods had 18 points and eight boards for the Falcons, with Paige Kohler scoring 14 points to round out BGSU's double-digit trio.

The Golden Flashes (5-7, 0-1 MAC) got 17 points from Corynne Hauser and 10 from Mya Babbitt.

KSU came out hot, scoring the game's first seven points, but BGSU battled back to take a two-point lead after the opening quarter. Then, the Orange and Brown forged ahead by as many as 15 points late in the second period, before taking a 14-point advantage into the half.

BGSU answered each third-quarter foray by the Flashes, and the Falcons led by 10 heading to the fourth. The visitors got within three points on three occasions in the game's last three minutes, but the hosts had an answer each time, as Lauren Gerken hit a layup and Donahue went 3-for-4 from the free-throw line in the game's final 14 seconds.

📹HIGHLIGHTS‼️📹

Some sights & sounds from Saturday at the Stroh!#AyZiggy | #EarnIt pic.twitter.com/jk28dJsaIY
— BGSU Women's Basketball (@BGSUWBB) December 21, 2025

FIRST QUARTER
• The Flashes, as mentioned, got off to a fast start, scoring the game's first seven points. And, after Paige Kohler got BG on the scoreboard with a driving layup, Mya Babbitt answered with a bucket of her own to give the visitors a 9-2 lead with just over two minutes gone.
• Jasmine Fearne knocked down a three-point try, and after a Riley Rismiller bucket, Fearne grabbed a teammate's miss and put the ball back up and in.
• Kaia Woods went 4-for-4 at the free-throw line in a span of under 90 seconds, and the fifth-year senior then hit a layup to tie the score at 13-13.
• Joniyah Bland-Fitzpatrick found Kohler ahead of the pack for a layup and a 15-13 lead, and after a pair of KSU free throws, Kohler's three-pointer put BG back in front. Lauren Gerken hit a pair of shots at the stripe before Rylee Kalocay's triple got the Flashes within two, 20-18, after 10 minutes of play.

SECOND QUARTER
• Gerken found Kohler for a layup on the opening possession of the quarter, and Woods took a Johnea Donahue pass and drained a three-point try for a 25-20 lead. Gerken fed Donahue for a layup, and a few minutes later, Woods grabbed a defensive rebound and went the length of the floor for a layup and a 30-22 lead.
• Anna Campanelli stopped that 5-0 BG run with a three-pointer, but the Falcons then scored the next six points, with a Woods triple giving the hosts a double-digit lead, 36-25. And, after Emory Klatt's jumper, BG scored six-straight points once again, with Laila Harrison's jumper giving the hosts a 15-point lead, the largest of the game. The Falcons led by 14 at the intermission.

THIRD QUARTER
• The Flashes scored four quick points to begin the second half, and when Corynne Hauser put back a teammate's missed shot, BG's lead was down to eight.
• After a timeout, Donahue hit a driving layup, and after the lead got down to seven points, Donahue knocked down a right-wing three-pointer for a 51-41 BG lead.
• BGSU answered KSU points with buckets, as first Woods, then Donahue, went coast to coast for layups, with the latter shot making it a 55-45 game. The lead was still 10 points, at 57-47, after 30 minutes.

FOURTH QUARTER
• Jaedyn Cook made the most of her minutes on Saturday. After hitting a pair of free throws late in the third quarter, she fought for an offensive rebound on the first possession of the fourth, then kicked the ball out to Kohler for a second-chance three-pointer. Then, Cook showed nice touch around the basket, with a layup that gave the Falcons a 62-49 lead.
• The Flsahes, however, then sent on a run, scoring 12 of the game's next 15 points. Tatiana Thomas powered inside for a layup, and Babbitt's bucket cut the BGSU lead to just four points, 65-61, with five minutes to go.
• Bland-Fitzpatrick found Gerken for a layup, but the Flashes kept coming, and a Rismiller putback with just under three minutes left cut BG's lead to one possession, at 68-65.
• BGSU turned the ball over, but the Falcons got a stop, and Kohler's nifty bounce pass found a cutting Gerken for a baseline layup and a five-point lead with 1:59 remaining.
• The Flashes used all of the shot clock on the next possession, but a shot was off the mark with Donahue grabbing the rebound. A BG jumper would not drop, but KSU missed a three-point try, and Donahue again cleared the boards. A Falcon turnover gave the ball back to the visitors, and Kalocay's jumper cut the lead to three points with 18.9 seconds to go.
• KSU fouled several times to get the Falcons to the line, and Donahue hit both shot attempts for a 72-67 lead with 13.6 seconds remaining. Hauser knocked down a jumper with 5.3 seconds left, and after a timeout, BGSU inbounded the ball just over midcourt. The Flashes fouled Donahue, who missed her first charity toss, but hit the second to make it a two-possession game with just 1.6 seconds left.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons will take a break for the holidays, before returning to action on Tuesday, Dec. 30, at Eastern Michigan on Dec. 30 in Ypsilanti. That game will begin at 5:00 p.m. at the George Gervin GameAbove Center.
• Then, the Orange and Brown will begin the 2026 calendar year with a home contest against Central Michigan. Starting time is set for 2:00 p.m. at the Stroh.

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 on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.