Bowling Green State University Athletics
Thursday, October 1
Kent, Ohio
6 p.m.
Bowling Green State University
at
Kent State
Photo by: Lucas Segulin, BGSU Athletics
Bowling Green Hits the Road for Weekend Series at Kent State
September 30, 2026 | Volleyball
The Falcons Seek to Extend an 11-Match Win Streak Against the Golden Flashes
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team will continue MAC play with two matches at Kent State on Thursday (Oct. 1) and Friday (Oct. 2). Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. starts at the MAC Center in Kent, Ohio. Thursday's contest will air on ESPN+ while Friday's weekend finale will be available for viewing here.
Weekend Schedule
Thursday, October 1
Bowling Green at Kent State | 6 p.m. | ESPN+
Friday, October 2
Bowling Green at Kent State | 6 p.m. | Watch Here
First Serve
STINGY DEFENSE
Bowling Green has made it difficult for opponents to find offensive rhythm in 2026, holding opposing hitters to a combined .164 hitting percentage throughout the non-conference slate and the opening weekend of conference play. The Falcons have limited opponents to 597 kills while forcing 301 attacking errors on 1,808 attempts. BGSU has held opponents below the .200 mark on 10 occasions this season.
DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
One of the hallmarks of Bowling Green's success this season has been its defense. Through 13 matches, Falcon opponents are hitting just .164, the program's lowest opponent attack percentage through 13 matches since the 2020-21 season. During that COVID-shortened campaign, when BGSU played a MAC-only schedule, opponents hit just .157 through the first 13 matches. Since then, Falcon opponents have hit .200 (2021), .202 (2022), .220 (2023), .212 (2024), and .200 (2025) through 13 contests, making this year's mark the best defensive start for the program in six seasons.
OTTEN KEEPS ON CLIMBING
Senior setter Amanda Otten continues to climb Bowling Green's career assists list in her final season. Otten entered 2026 with 2,333 career assists after three seasons in the Orange and Brown and has since moved into fifth-most during the Rally Scoring Era and 9th-most all-time with 2,741 assists. The all-time record belongs to Linda Popovich, who recorded 4,406 assists from 1986-89 and Isabelle Marciniak's 3,916 assists (2016-19) are the most in the Rally Scoring Era. Otten's 2024 season, when she totaled 1,179 assists, ranks seventh on BGSU's Rally Scoring Era single-season list.
WILFORD'S BLOCKBUSTER SEASON
Few Falcons have made a bigger impact at the net than Helen Wilford. The redshirt junior enters this weekend with 223 career block assists, 28 career solo blocks, and 251 total career blocks, putting her within striking distance of several top-10 spots in the rally-scoring era record book. Wilford needs 24 block assists to move into the top 10, 18 total blocks to crack the top 10 in career blocks, and eight solo blocks to join the program's top 10 in that category. Her 14 solo blocks this season are already among the MAC leaders and leave her just six away from the rally-scoring era top 10 for a single season, held by Jelena Sunjic (2015).
PICK YOUR POISON
Bowling Green's offense has continued to produce at a high level, hitting at a .223-clip as a team with 688 kills, 271 errors and 1,872 attack attempts, while averaging 13.76 kills per set. BGSU has utilized a balanced offensive attack, led by Anastasija Bozic's 169 kills, Avery Hobson's 160 kills and Karli Molnau's 147 kills, giving the Falcons three players ranked among the team's top offensive contributors. The trio has combined for 476 of Bowling Green's 688 kills (69.2%), helping the Falcons maintain one of the MAC's most consistent attacks.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Bowling Green has recorded nine double-doubles this season, with three different Falcons reaching the milestone. Amanda Otten has tallied three double-doubles, highlighted by a 47-assist, 14-dig performance against Northern Kentucky (Aug. 29) and a 41-assist, 16-dig effort versus Arkansas State (Sept. 4). Anastasija Bozic leads the team with four double-doubles, including a 22-kill, 15-dig performance against Miami (OH) on Sept. 24, while Avery Hobson has added two double-doubles of her own. The Falcons also produced multiple double-doubles against Miami (OH) with Bozic and Hobson both accomplishing the feat. It marked the first time Bowling Green had two players record a double-double in the same match since Nov. 14, 2025, at Buffalo.
BGSU v. KENT STATE, ALL-TIME
Weekend Schedule
Thursday, October 1
Bowling Green at Kent State | 6 p.m. | ESPN+
Friday, October 2
Bowling Green at Kent State | 6 p.m. | Watch Here
First Serve
- The Falcons head on the road to open up their MAC road schedule with a pair of matches at Kent State on Thursday (Oct. 1) and Friday (Oct. 2), both slated for a 6 p.m. start.
- Bowling Green collected two wins over Miami (OH) last weekend, improving to 2-0 in conference play for the third consecutive season and for the seventh time in the past eight years.
- The Falcons lead the Mid-American Conference and rank 12th among the nation with 2.83 blocks per set. Redshirt junior Helen Wilford leads the way with 1.48 blocks per set.
- With victories on Thursday and Friday, Bowling Green would open MAC play with a 4-0 record for the third straight year and for the fifth time in the past six seasons.
- Opponents are hitting at a frigid .164-clip against the Falcons' who own the lowest opponent attack percentage in program history at this point in a season since the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign (.157). That .164 mark is the lowest by any MAC team and is the 29th-lowest in the nation.
- BGSU has already racked up 141.5 blocks, out-blocking opponents by a 141.5-128.0 margin.
- Bowling Green has posted 10-or-more team blocks in seven matches, including both outings against Miami (OH).
- Senior Avery Hobson was one of two to be named BGSU Athlete of the Week after recording 32 kills across two matches last weekend, registering a season-high 19 kills in Friday's sweep of the RedHawks.
STINGY DEFENSE
Bowling Green has made it difficult for opponents to find offensive rhythm in 2026, holding opposing hitters to a combined .164 hitting percentage throughout the non-conference slate and the opening weekend of conference play. The Falcons have limited opponents to 597 kills while forcing 301 attacking errors on 1,808 attempts. BGSU has held opponents below the .200 mark on 10 occasions this season.
DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
One of the hallmarks of Bowling Green's success this season has been its defense. Through 13 matches, Falcon opponents are hitting just .164, the program's lowest opponent attack percentage through 13 matches since the 2020-21 season. During that COVID-shortened campaign, when BGSU played a MAC-only schedule, opponents hit just .157 through the first 13 matches. Since then, Falcon opponents have hit .200 (2021), .202 (2022), .220 (2023), .212 (2024), and .200 (2025) through 13 contests, making this year's mark the best defensive start for the program in six seasons.
OTTEN KEEPS ON CLIMBING
Senior setter Amanda Otten continues to climb Bowling Green's career assists list in her final season. Otten entered 2026 with 2,333 career assists after three seasons in the Orange and Brown and has since moved into fifth-most during the Rally Scoring Era and 9th-most all-time with 2,741 assists. The all-time record belongs to Linda Popovich, who recorded 4,406 assists from 1986-89 and Isabelle Marciniak's 3,916 assists (2016-19) are the most in the Rally Scoring Era. Otten's 2024 season, when she totaled 1,179 assists, ranks seventh on BGSU's Rally Scoring Era single-season list.
WILFORD'S BLOCKBUSTER SEASON
Few Falcons have made a bigger impact at the net than Helen Wilford. The redshirt junior enters this weekend with 223 career block assists, 28 career solo blocks, and 251 total career blocks, putting her within striking distance of several top-10 spots in the rally-scoring era record book. Wilford needs 24 block assists to move into the top 10, 18 total blocks to crack the top 10 in career blocks, and eight solo blocks to join the program's top 10 in that category. Her 14 solo blocks this season are already among the MAC leaders and leave her just six away from the rally-scoring era top 10 for a single season, held by Jelena Sunjic (2015).
PICK YOUR POISON
Bowling Green's offense has continued to produce at a high level, hitting at a .223-clip as a team with 688 kills, 271 errors and 1,872 attack attempts, while averaging 13.76 kills per set. BGSU has utilized a balanced offensive attack, led by Anastasija Bozic's 169 kills, Avery Hobson's 160 kills and Karli Molnau's 147 kills, giving the Falcons three players ranked among the team's top offensive contributors. The trio has combined for 476 of Bowling Green's 688 kills (69.2%), helping the Falcons maintain one of the MAC's most consistent attacks.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Bowling Green has recorded nine double-doubles this season, with three different Falcons reaching the milestone. Amanda Otten has tallied three double-doubles, highlighted by a 47-assist, 14-dig performance against Northern Kentucky (Aug. 29) and a 41-assist, 16-dig effort versus Arkansas State (Sept. 4). Anastasija Bozic leads the team with four double-doubles, including a 22-kill, 15-dig performance against Miami (OH) on Sept. 24, while Avery Hobson has added two double-doubles of her own. The Falcons also produced multiple double-doubles against Miami (OH) with Bozic and Hobson both accomplishing the feat. It marked the first time Bowling Green had two players record a double-double in the same match since Nov. 14, 2025, at Buffalo.
BGSU v. KENT STATE, ALL-TIME
The Falcons own a 70-24 all-time record against Kent State and carry an 11-match winning streak into the weekend, their longest active streak against any current MAC opponent. During the run, Bowling Green has dropped just seven total sets to the Golden Flashes. The Falcons most recently defeated the Golden Flashes in straight sets on Sept. 26, 2025, and will look to extend their winning streak in a series that began on Nov. 4, 1977, which is the third oldest all-time series against a current MAC opponent, behind Toledo and Ohio.
UP NEXT
The Falcons return home to face Ohio on Oct. 9-10 inside the Stroh Center. Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons volleyball team on social media:
Twitter - @BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUVolleyball
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgsuvolleyball'
Facebook - 'BGSU Athletics' and 'Bowling Green State University Volleyball'
TikTok - @bgsuvolleyball
YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'
UP NEXT
The Falcons return home to face Ohio on Oct. 9-10 inside the Stroh Center. Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons volleyball team on social media:
Twitter - @BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUVolleyball
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgsuvolleyball'
Facebook - 'BGSU Athletics' and 'Bowling Green State University Volleyball'
TikTok - @bgsuvolleyball
YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OPP/MB
/ Volleyball
S/RS
/ Volleyball
MB
/ VolleyballSaturday, September 26
Friday, September 25
Saturday, September 19
Saturday, September 19