2009-2010 Schedule Announced

2009-2010 Tri-Captains: Maggie Hennegan, Sarah Clapper, and Tara Breske

The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team will play at least six games against teams that advanced to national postseason play last March. Falcon head coach Curt Miller recently announced the 2009-10 schedule for the five-time defending Mid-American Conference champions.

“I am excited about our 2009-10 schedule,” said Miller. “This is arguably the toughest non-conference schedule we have had during our coaching staff’s tenure at BGSU.

“Our scheduling philosophy is simple: play a challenging non-league schedule that will help prepare our team for the grind of Mid-American Conference play. With this year’s list of non-league opponents, we feel we have done just that.”

BGSU will play at least 10 games against teams that posted 18 or more wins a year ago, including at least six games vs. schools that won 20 or more games. Two of BG’s opponents advanced to the NCAA Championships in 2008-09, while four other Falcon foes – like BG – were invited to the WNIT in March.

After advancing to the third round of last season’s Postseason WNIT, Miller’s Falcons will begin the 2009-10 season in the Preseason WNIT. The Falcons are guaranteed at least three games in the 16-team tournament, beginning with a first-round game vs. Chicago State at venerable Anderson Arena.

The winner of the BGSU-CSU game will face the Eastern Illinois-Ohio State winner in the second round, at a site to be determined on the following Sunday or Monday (Nov. 15-16). The Buckeyes, like the Falcons, posted 29 wins a year ago, while EIU picked up a total of 24 victories last season.

Under the Preseason WNIT format, participating teams are guaranteed at least three games. The tourney involves 16 teams from 16 different conferences that were included by invitation only.

The BGSU-CSU loser will be regrouped into a ‘Consolation Bracket quad,’ which will be a four-team pool, and will play two games at a site to be determined.

“We are honored to be able to participate in the prestigious Preseason WNIT, joining some of the elite programs in the country,” said Miller. “We are truly excited to play at least 13 games in front of our outstanding fan base at Anderson Arena. And, our schedule also includes numerous road trips where we will play teams that have enjoyed great tradition and success.”

Following the Preseason WNIT, the Falcons will head north to face Oakland University on Tuesday, Nov. 24. The Golden Grizzlies won 26 games, a school record for the Division-I Era, and advanced to the WNIT. The BGSU-OU matchup features schools that went a combined 55-12 a year ago.

The Falcons then return home for a pair of games, facing UNC-Greensboro on the day after Thanksgiving (Nov. 27) before opening December against Saint Francis (Pa.). Both games are return matches from a season ago, when the Brown and Orange faced both clubs during a week-long sojourn over Thanksgiving break. The Red Flash and Spartans were the second and fourth victims, respectively, in BGSU’s school-record 25-game winning streak.

Following the SFU game, the Falcons will head to Nashville for a tough test against Vanderbilt (Dec. 4). That game is a rematch of one of the biggest wins in BGSU history, a victory over the Commodores in the second round of the 2007 NCAA Championships in East Lansing, Mich. That win sent the Brown and Orange on to the ‘Sweet 16’ for the first time in program history.

The Vanderbilt game is the first of five-straight road contests, including trips to Detroit (Dec. 9), Saint Bonaventure (Dec. 12), Canisius (Dec. 19) and Youngstown State (Dec. 21). Both of the New York foes had stellar seasons a year ago, setting school records for wins. The Bonnies won 23 games and advanced to the quarterfinal round of the WNIT, while the Golden Griffins had 24 victories, a school record for their Division-I Era, and were one win away from playing at BGSU in March. Canisius lost to Syracuse in the first round of the WNIT, with the Orange advancing to face the Falcons.

The Canisius and YSU games are part of a stretch that sees the Falcons play three times in a five-day span. Last-minute Christmas shopping will have to be put on hold as BGSU hosts Appalachian State on Dec. 23, marking the first-ever meeting between the two programs. The Mountaineers are one of two first-time opponents on the 2009-10 schedule (Canisius is the other).

Following the holidays, the Falcons head East for another tough test, taking on Hartford (Dec. 30) in a rematch of a narrow BGSU win at Anderson last season. The Hawks went on to win 20 games against a grueling schedule, advancing to the WNIT.

BGSU closes the non-conference slate and opens the 2010 calendar year with a Jan. 2 vs. SIU Edwardsville, another return date from a 2008-09 game.

In league action, the Falcons, winners of the last five MAC regular-season titles, will play two games against each of the five other East Division schools, while facing each of the six West Division teams once apiece.

The East Division consists of Akron, Buffalo, Kent State, Miami and Ohio, in addition to the Brown and Orange. The Falcons will open the league slate with five games vs. East Division opponents, before playing six contests vs. West Division foes and concluding the regular-season schedule with five more games against the East.

Miller and the Falcons will begin their title defense with a home game vs. UA on Jan. 6, before heading to Athens to face Ohio three days later. The first swing through the East Division also sees the Falcons sandwich home dates vs. Buffalo (Jan. 13) and Miami (Jan. 19) around a trip to Kent State (Jan. 16).

The Miami matchup begins a three-game homestand for the Falcons, who will begin cross-divisional play by welcoming Eastern Michigan (Jan. 23) and Western Michigan (Jan. 27) to “The House That Roars.”

The annual battle of Northwest Ohio takes place in Savage Arena on Jan. 30, as the Falcons make the short trip north to take on Toledo.

February begins with a home date against Northern Illinois on Groundhog Day (Feb. 2), before the Falcons close the regular season with five of their last seven games on the road. BGSU will face Ball State in Muncie on Feb. 6, in a rematch of last year’s Kraft MAC Tournament championship game. The Cardinals pulled out a 55-51 victory at Quicken Loans Arena in downtown Cleveland to capture the tourney title.

A trip to Central Michigan (Feb. 10) closes out the six-game stretch against the West Division, and the Falcons then return home to face Ohio (Feb. 13). The second round-robin swing through the East includes three road games, at Akron (Feb. 20), Buffalo (Feb. 24) and Miami (March 2). BGSU will host Kent State on Feb. 27, when the Falcons’ senior class – Tara Breske, Laura Bugher, Sarah Clapper and Tamika Nurse – will be honored in pregame ‘Senior Day’ ceremonies.

Following the close of the regular season, the top-eight teams in the final standings will convene in Cleveland for the 2010 MAC Tournament. This is a change from recent years, when all teams made the conference tourney.

The Falcons are coming off a 29-5 season, in which Miller and Company went 15-1 in the MAC en route to that fifth-straight regular-season crown. BGSU returns 10 letterwinners from that team, plus a pair of NCAA Division-I transfers (Nurse and Maggie Hennegan) who sat out last year. Miller and his staff – associate head coach Jennifer Roos, assistants Brandi Poole and Kevin Eckert and director of basketball operations Monique Rosati – also welcome four talented freshmen to the Falcon fold.

The fun begins with a home exhibition game vs. Findlay on Nov. 4 at "The House That Roars."

The complete 2009-10 schedule follows. For the most up-to-date schedule throughout the season, click the schedule link on the women's basketball page, or consult the Calendar of Events here at BGSUFalcons.com.

Move In Weekend!

Coach Miller on Move In Weekend

It's an annual tradition for the Women's Basketball Coaching Staff and other campus groups to help with Move In Weekend. We get the opportunity to move in not only our new women's basketball team members, but also other new students. Don't let the pictures deceive you. Coach Miller did carry a couple of items to the fourth floor of Kriescher, but he remains a very good delegator/director! It's a day that we look forward to every fall. There is great excitement on campus for the new school year and we love meeting all the new Falcons!!

The other great part of move in weekend is having our entire team together again. We had our annual opening team meeting on Sunday night so that we could begin our preseason workouts this week. They had their first track test...the dreaded mile run...early on Tuesday morning. Everyone worked hard over the summer and posted great times. We were very happy with the effort. We can't wait to get back on the court!

Roll Along!!

Pura Vida!!

Hola from beautiful Costa Rica! Sorry for the delay in posts, but it has been a busy few days for the Falcons!

Day 1: We arrived in Costa Rica after an early morning flight. Upon arrival, we were met our our Sports Tours guide Emily and our local guide Melody. They have been with us everyday and teaching us all about the culture of Costa Rica. After a quick lunch we had our first practice at Liceo, a boys high school in downtown San Jose. For dinner, we went to a local restaurant where we had dinner and watched the Costa Rica vs. Honduras soccer game. It's basically the equivalent to the Super Bowl in America...it's a big rivalry and the whole country shuts down for the game!



Day 2: The morning was relaxing with some pool time. The mornings are beautiful here. Mid morning, Melody picked us up for our tour of downtown San Jose. We learned alot about the cost of living here and the culture of the city. We saw the President's house (he is currently quarentined due to the swine flu!). It is a basic house that he has lived in his whole life. Security consisted of a camera, one man by the front gate, and two cops reading the paper in a car across the street! Not exactly the White House! We also saw a beautiful Catholic church in the city and their famous theater. We then had some time to shop in the market before heading to our pre game meal. We headed back to Liceo to play...it was an amazing experience. The gym is the oldest and first gym for basketball in the country. International rules are a little different but everyone adjusted and played well.

Day 3: Today was fantastic! We took the bus towards the Caribean side of the country for our white water rafting excursion on the Pacurae River. It started with a breakfast Costa Rican style (ie. rice and beans) at the base camp. Then we took a bus with our guide Danny till the bus could go no further. After a 15 min hike straight downhill...in the middle of nowhere...in the pouring rain...we made it to our rafts in the river. The scenery was amazing. There were waterfalls everywhere and neon blue butterflies and toucans in the trees. We all learned the commands for paddling, stopping, turning, and the most important command "Get Down" from our guides and then we were on our way. When Tara and Tracy fell out of the boat on the first set of Class 1 rapids, we knew we were in for a long day!! However, after their rescue they rallied and made it through the Class 4 and 5 rapids. It was a great day of team work and adventure. Only one coach fell into the river (Kevin), but I promised not to tell anyone. :)

We made it home then headed to a traditional Costa Rican dinner. The restaurant was on the side of a mountain overlooking the city. It was a beautiful view. After dinner, traditionaly Costa Rican dancers performed and even brought some members of the team onto the dance floor to show off their skills!

Day 4: Today we took a trip over to Jaco Beach. It was a day to relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Pacific coast. The water was warm and we all enjoyed swimming and laying in the sun for awhile. We then had a great lunch on the beach, did some shopping, and more swimming. It's only been 4 days and we have already done and seen so much!! We have much more to experience! Everyone is having a great time! For more details and more pictures, the super amazing Mike Cihon is blogging daily on the main webpage at : www.bgsufalcons.com

Enjoy! Now off to bed...two games tomorrow!!

Go Falcons!!

Coach Poole :)

Falcon Update

Team with Strength Coaching Staff
Team Flash Dance (the winners!) and the Gator!

Seniors...lookin tough

Juniors

Freshies...Members of Team Replacements and Team Indians

Hello Falcon Fans!

Sorry for the delay in blogs, but the coaching staff has had a busy month, while the players were here working hard in the weight room and classroom.

After 20 days on the road, hundreds of games, 5,000 miles, 25 cities, 2 bouts of pink eye, very little sleep and/or exercise, and one fender bender, we have all made it back to our own beds happily! However, we came home only to jump right into practice for the foreign tour!!

Practices have been great!! The upperclassmen are definitely working hard, hustling, making shots, communicating, and most importantly, having enthusiasm for each other! It has been fantastic to be back on the court with the team, even though Anderson gets a bit warm in August (we are used to seeing the snow drifts outside the doors and not having them open!! Can't wait for the new Stroh Center!!)

Also, last night the entire team had their annual summer's end Strong Woman competition. One of the players will blog in more detail later, but basically they are divided into 3 teams. The teams must have a theme and come ready to compete!! They compete in six different events designed by Coach Hillman, including bench press, stadium stairs, and pushing a tractor across the football field! Stay posted for a video coming soon of this quite entertaining, though tough event! I will say that surprisingly Team Flashdance dominated the Strong Woman competition and gets bragging rights for the next year! (They had 3 seniors so I think they had a little advantage!!)

Our countdown stands at 4 days for our Costa Rica departure!! We will be pulling out of Anderson Arena at 3:30 am (yes, am!) for the Detroit airport on Wednesday morning. Stay tuned for updates from San Jose...our first destination!

Roll Along!!

Coach Poole