BOWLING GREEN — After a strong first half, Bowling Green’s women’s basketball team was unable to close out against Akron in an 83-73 loss Wednesday.
Andrea Cecil led the Falcons with 24 points and 14 rebounds. Kadie Hempfling added 19 points, Morgan McMillen had 11, and Sydney Lambert 10.
Shaunay Edmonds had a game-high 33 for Akron.
Offensively, BG had a better shooting night than Akron — the Falcons made 47.5 percent of their field goals, while the Zips connected on 38.8 percent. But the major difference came at the foul line, as Akron made 24 of its 30 attempts. The Falcons shot just 12 free throws as a team, making 10.
VIDEO: Akron 83, BGSU 73
Along with the free-throw disparity, Akron also had a timely run to end the game.
The Zips went on a 9-0 run to go up 73-62 with only 51 seconds remaining.
The Falcons started off the game with momentum on their side, building up an eight-point lead after a 14-6 run that was capped by a jumper from Lambert.
Defensively, BG (8-18, 1-14 MAC) held Akron to just 3-of-15 shooting in the first quarter.
But in the final 43 seconds of the quarter, the Zips closed on a 5-0 run thanks to a jumper from Edmonds and three free throws from Shayna Harmon.
Akron started the second on a 6-2 run, taking their first lead of the game on a layup from Caitlin Vari at the 7:43 mark. Edmonds and Vari scored all of Akron’s points in the quarter.
Cecil had seven of her own to give the Falcons a slim 24-22 lead at halftime.
The Falcons built their lead up to seven in the third thanks to a layup and a 3-pointer from Hempfling.
But the Zips found an offensive groove as Edmonds scored 11 points, and Akron retook the lead heading to the fourth, 46-44.
The Zips expanded their lead to six by scoring the first two baskets of the fourth, but the Falcons continued to fight back and pulled to within one when Cecil went on a 7-0 run by herself. But ultimately, Akron’s late run would be the final momentum shift of the night.
Bowling Green hosts Kent State at 1 p.m. Saturday.
First Published February 28, 2019, 2:48 a.m.
