Falcons Post Senior-Day Win over NIU, 77-66

Saturday, March 7

Bowling Green, Ohio

2 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

17-13,9-9MAC

Northern Illinois

7-23,4-14MAC

NIU

Bowling Green

Photo by: Drake Harlett, BGSU Athletics

March 07, 2026 | Women's Basketball

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BGSU now prepares for Wednesday's MAC Tournament quarterfinal

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team closed the first half on an 11-0 run to take control Saturday afternoon (March 7), and the Falcons posted a 77-66 win over Northern Illinois University in Mid-American Conference action at the Stroh Center.

Junior Paige Kohler had 20 points to pace four double-digit scorers for the Falcons (17-13, 9-9 MAC), who ended the regular season with four wins in the final five games.

Sophomore Lauren Gerken came off the bench to score 17 points, while junior Jaedyn Cook and sophomore Johnea Donahue had 12 apiece.

Cook's point total was her highest in MAC play this season, while Gerken was just one point shy of her season best.

Donahue had another well-rounded contest, with a team-high eight rebounds and game-best totals of seven assists and six steals in the win.

Senior Emily Siesel scored six points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting from the arc. Siesel, Cook, Donahue and Gerken all had a plus/minus rating of +12 in the contest.

Nevaeh Wingate had game-best totals of 21 points and nine rebounds for the Huskies (7-23, 4-14 MAC), who see the season come to an end. Saturday was NIU's final MAC game, as the Huskies will join the Horizon League on July 1.

The first half saw each team post multiple scoring runs, with the last – and the biggest – belonging to the Falcons. With the game tied at 26, a Gerken three-pointer began a span in which BG scored 11 points in under two minutes. A Kohler three-point play was followed by back-to-back buckets from Cook, with the last being of the 'and-one' variety. Cook's free throw gave the Falcons a 37-26 lead at the half, and Donahue began the second-half scoring with a pair of charity tosses.

NIU cut BG's 13-point lead to eight with a quick run, and the Huskies got as close as seven on a Maria Serracanta jumper midway through the quarter, but the visitors would draw no closer. With the margin still at seven early in the fourth period, the Falcons went on a 7-0 run to take a 60-46 lead with 7:15 to go.

The Falcons had a whopping 47-10 advantage in bench scoring in Saturday's win.

NOTE OF THE DAY: NUMBER THREE MOVES INTO THE NUMBER-THREE SPOT
• With six more steals on Saturday, sophomore Johnea Donahue extended her single-season school-record total to 113.
• Donahue, who has missed three games this season, has moved into third place on the MAC's single-season steals list. She trails only Western Michigan's Maria Jilian (124 in 2002-03) and Toledo's Mitzi Hallinan (123 in 1982-83) on that chart.

BONUS NOTE OF THE DAY: PROTECT THE STROH
• BGSU finished the regular season with a 12-3 record in home games, including a 6-3 mark vs. MAC teams at the Stroh.
• Over the last six seasons, the Falcons are 64-20 at home (.762), with a 40-16 record (.714) vs. conference foes in that time.

FIRST QUARTER
• On Senior Day, BGSU took an early lead when senior Emily Siesel's three-point try found nothing but net as the shot clock was winding down. Paige Kohler, who had fed Siesel for that bucket, then hit a triple of her own to give BGSU a 6-0 lead.
• The Huskies battled right back, scoring the next six points to tie the game on a Nevaeh Wingate hoop. When Marta Hermoso's three-point try found the net, Northern had a 9-0 run and a three-point lead.
• But, back came the Falcons, with the game's next nine points. Lauren Gerken hit a layup, then a three-pointer, and buckets by Johnea Donahue and Kohler gave the hosts a 15-9 lead.
• The teams traded free throws, then traded three-pointers, with a Kaia Woods trey giving the hosts a 20-14 lead. But, a Wingate shot from the arc cut that lead in half.
• Wingate had nine points for the Huskies in the opening quarter, while five Falcons scored three or more points in the period.

SECOND QUARTER
• BGSU retook a six-point lead as Jasmine Fearne found Kohler for a three-ball to open the second-period scoring, and after Nadechka Laccen hit a pull-up jumper, Kohler connected from long distance once again to give the Falcons a 26-19 lead.
• But, BG would go scoreless for the next four-plus minutes, and the Huskies tied the game. NIU made only one field goal in that time – a Laccen layup midway through the period – but scored five points at the free-throw line, with a Wingate toss evening the score.
• But, after that scoring drought, the Falcons would score 11 points in just 1:55. Gerken hit a shot from the top of the arc, and a Jaedyn Cook steal led to a Kohler 'and-one' jumper. The ensuing free throw gave BG a 32-26 lead. Then, Siesel found Cook for a jumper, and Cook then finished through contact after receiving a lob pass from Gerken. Her free throw gave her five-straight points as the Falcons ended the half on an 11-0 run.
• Kohler had nine points and Cook five in the second period.

THIRD QUARTER
• After Donahue opened the third-period scoring with a pair of shots at the stripe, the Huskies scored five-straight points to narrow the margin to eight. Midway through the quarter, Maria Serracanta's pull-up jumper cut the lead to seven, 42-35.
• The margin was still seven points after a pair of Laccen free throws, before Cook hit a hook shot – BG's first field goal of the period – with 3:16 on the clock.
• The teams traded buckets, with Cook scoring inside once again and Gerken knocking down a long two-pointer, and after Hermoso hit a long-distance shot, Gerken did the same, with the latter bucket giving BG a 53-43 lead after 30 minutes.
• All 16 of BGSU's third-quarter points came from players who did not start Saturday's game.

FOURTH QUARTER
• A Serracanta triple opened the scoring in the final quarter, and the lead was back down to seven. But, two Donahue free throws began a 7-0 BG run, which included a triple by the sophomore, and when Taya Ellis converted at the stripe, BG had a 60-46 lead. Three Huskie free throws made a dent in that margin, before Siesel draned a three-point try that restored the Falcons' 14-point margin before the media timeout.
• The teams traded points before Emilie Sorensen scored five-straight points for the visitors, cutting the BG lead to nine with 2:25 to go. Moments later, Kohler scored on a driving layup, but another Sorenson triple made it an eight-point game, 71-63, with 1:27 on the clock.
• BGSU made three free throws, and after a Sa'Mahn Johnson trifecta, Sofia Moschen closed the scoring, taking a Laila Harrison pass and drilling a right-wing triple try.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons now prepare for the MAC Tournament. BGSU will be the number-seven seed for the tourney, and will take on second-seeded Ball State on Wednesday (March 11) in the quarterfinal round at Rocket Arena in downtown Cleveland. The BGSU-BSU game will be the third of the day, and is scheduled to begin at approximately 4:00 p.m.

• The MAC Tournament semifinals will be held on Friday (March 13), with the championship game set for next Saturday morning (March 14) at Rocket Arena. The complete tournament schedule is below...

2026 Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament
March 11, 13-14 | Cleveland, Ohio | Rocket Arena
Wednesday, March 11, 2026 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: No. 1 Miami vs. No. 8 Kent State, 11 AM ET (ESPN+)
Game 2: No. 4 Central Michigan vs. No. 5 Ohio, Time TBA* (ESPN+)
Game 3: No. 2 Ball State vs. No. 7 Bowling Green, Time TBA* (ESPN+)
Game 4: No. 3 Massachusetts vs. No. 6 Toledo, Time TBA* (ESPN+)

Friday, March 13, 2026 - Semifinals
Game 5: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner, 10 AM ET (ESPN+)
Game 6: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner, Time TBA* (ESPN+)

Saturday, March 14, 2026 – Championship
Game 7: Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner, 11 AM ET (CBS Sports Network)
* 30 minutes following the completion of the previous game

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
• For more information on 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.