Nov. 24, 2007
Final Stats
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -
Eleven of senior Kate Achter's career-high 32 points came in the final two minutes of play as Bowling Green rallied from a nine-point second half deficit to notch a 68-61 victory over the St. Bonaventure women's basketball team on Saturday evening at Anderson Arena.
The loss snaps the Bonnies' five-game winning streak to open the 2007-08 campaign, while the Falcons improve to 4-0 for the second time in the last three seasons.
For the sixth straight time this season, sophomore Dana Mitchell paced the Brown and White offensive attack with 17 points, including 14 tallies in the opening 20 minutes. Junior classmates Tiara Johnson and Erica Schiefen also produced double figure scoring efforts for the Bonnies with 10 and 11 points, respectively. Schiefen added a game-high eight rebounds that tied her career-high set against Albany earlier this season.
With the Brown and White owning a 53-45 advantage with 6:13 remaining in the second stanza, the Falcons quickly tallied eight consecutive points on back-to-back triples from junior Lindsey Goldsberry and sophomore Tara Breske prior to another basket from Breske to knot the score at 53-53 with just over five minutes showing on the overhead scoreboard.
The Bonnies retaliated with six points in a row thanks to four combined free throws from freshman Cara Gustafson and Mitchell as well as a Gustafson runner from the right baseline that kissed off the glass just as the shot clock expired. However, Gustafson's field goal proved to be the club's final basket until a Johnson lay-up with one second remaining.
Just as she started the game with her team's first 10 points, Achter took over in the final two minutes of play with 11 of her club's final 15 tallies. Following a lay-up from senior Whitney Taylor to cut the Falcon's deficit to four points at 59-55 with 2:49 showing on the clock, Achter cruised to seven straight points, including a conventional three-point play that gave Bowling Green their first lead of the game since the opening minute of the second half at 60-59 with 1:58 left. The reigning MAC Eastern Division Co-Outstanding performer of the week continued her offensive outburst by connecting on four of her 15 freebies from the charity stripe.
Down by one following the opening half, the Brown and White stormed out of the locker room to the tune of a 15-5 run that saw the Bonnies take their largest lead of the game at 48-39 with just over 14 minutes showing on the clock. After an initial basket by the Falcons, the visiting Bonnies rallied for eight points in a row following triples on consecutive possessions from junior classmates Katelyn Murray and Schiefen from nearly the same spot on the arc to put their club on top 41-36.
Under a minute later, Schiefen connected on her second trifecta of the night coupled with a pair of free throws from sophomore Andrea Doneth following a technical foul on Bowling Green head coach Curt Miller that put the Bonnies ahead by eight points at 46-38. Johnson added to the lead with a slashing drive to the middle of the lane and a finish on a floater while drawing contact from the defender to push the lead to nine points with 14:03 remaining in the second stanza.
An even opening 20 minutes with back and forth basketball made up the first half as both clubs enjoyed a pair of runs to enter the locker room with Bowling Green ahead by a single point at 34-33.
Following the opening four minutes of play, the Falcons raced out to a 10-2 lead thanks to the play of Achter, who accounted for all of Bowling Green's points during the first three minutes of play.
With St. Bonaventure trailing 17-8 as 8:34 ticked off the clock, the Brown and White used a 7-0 spurt to pull within two points of the home team ignited by a slashing drive to the basket from Johnson for her first basket of the night. Just under a minute later, Mitchell converted on a nifty turnaround jumper from inside the paint, prior to a long distance triple from Doneth with just under nine minutes remaining in the half to cut the Bonnies' deficit to a deuce.
However, Bowling Green answered right back by scoring the contest's next seven points, including a retaliation triple from freshman Tracy Pontius and consecutive two-point goals to give the Falcons a seven-point cushion at 24-15 with 7:30 until the break.
The Brown and White offense really began to click in a four minute span towards the end of the first half as the visiting club used a 13-4 outburst that saw the Bonnies take their only lead of the half at 27-26 with 3:52 left on the scoreboard. Schiefen started an explosion of eight straight Brown and White points on a drop step from the right block prior to consecutive baskets from Gustafson and Doneth. Schiefen, Mitchell and freshman Armelia Horton combined for ten freebies over the final 5:25 to enter intermission trailing by one point at 34-33.
The Brown and White will return to action at the Florida Atlantic Holiday Classic with a pair of games in Boca Raton, Fla. this weekend. The Bonnies will begin the tournament with a 1:00 p.m. tip-off vs. nationally ranked West Virginia on Saturday, Dec.1, before taking on host Florida Atlantic at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday.
