Women's Basketball

Ball State Moves to 2-0 in MAC Play; UMass Secures First MAC Win in Program History

Wednesday’s Women’s Basketball Results
Ball State 102, Akron 73
Miami 67, Kent State 63
UMass 70, Western Michigan 43
Ohio 85, Central Michigan 83 (OT)
Toledo 79, Buffalo 46
Ball State 102, Akron 73
Box Score

AKRON, Ohio — Tessa Towers scored 22 points on 11-of-16 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds as Ball State rolled to a 102-73 win over Akron on Tuesday afternoon at James A. Rhodes Arena. The Cardinals shot 50% from the field and led wire-to-wire, improving to 10-4 overall and 2-0 in Mid-American Conference play.


Ball State built a 25-14 lead after one quarter and took control before halftime, outscoring the Zips 27-15 in the second to carry a 52-29 advantage into the break. The Cardinals used pace and pressure to fuel the run, turning Akron turnovers into 27 points and scoring 28 fast-break points in the game. Ball State stretched the margin to as many as 46 in the fourth quarter after a 34-point third period.

Karsyn Norman and Grace Kingery each added 11 points for Ball State, while Bree Salenbien scored 14 and Zhen Verburgt chipped in 11. Akron (3-10, 0-1 MAC) was led by Monique Mitchell’s 15 points, with Shaena Brew scoring 12. The Zips shot 40% overall and 30.8% from 3-point range and were outrebounded 50-35.

Miami 67, Kent State 63
Box Score

KENT, Ohio — Tamar Singer scored 16 points and added 11 rebounds, and Miami (Ohio) held off Kent State for a 67-63 win Tuesday afternoon at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center. The RedHawks shot 29.5% from the field but made 22 of 26 free throws to improve to 9-4 overall and 1-0 in Mid-American Conference play.

Miami led 38-33 at halftime and stretched the margin to 10 midway through the third quarter before Kent State clawed back. The Golden Flashes outscored the RedHawks 14-10 in the third to pull within one entering the fourth, then briefly took the lead early in the final period. Miami answered at the line and on the glass, finishing with a 22-10 advantage in second-chance points and leading for more than 30 minutes.

Amber Tretter finished with 14 points and seven rebounds for Miami, while Ilse de Vries added 15 points and Nuria Jurjo chipped in 11. Kent State (5-8, 0-2 MAC) was led by Tatiana Thomas with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Corynne Hauser scored 16. The Golden Flashes shot 39% overall but went 10 of 16 at the free-throw line in the loss.

UMass 70, Western Michigan 43
Box Score

AMHERST, Mass. — Chinenye Odenigbo scored 14 points and Massachusetts used a dominant second quarter to pull away for a 73-40 victory over Western Michigan on Tuesday afternoon at the Mullins Center. The Minutewomen improved to 9-2 overall and opened Mid-American Conference play at 1-0, while the Broncos fell to 3-8 and 0-1 in league action.

UMass led 18-11 after the first quarter, then broke the game open with a 23-9 surge in the second to take a 41-20 halftime advantage. The Minutewomen forced turnovers and controlled the paint, outscoring Western Michigan 18-0 off turnovers in the opening half and building a lead that reached 23 before the break. UMass extended the margin to as many as 35 points in the third quarter.

Megan Olbrys added 12 points for UMass, while Allie Palmieri scored 11 and Lilly Ferguson chipped in seven points and 10 rebounds off the bench. Western Michigan was led by Alli Carlson with 16 points. The Broncos shot 27.1% from the field and were held to just four points in the third quarter, while UMass finished with a 44-31 rebounding advantage.

Ohio 85, Central Michigan 83 (OT)
Box Score

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The Ohio women's basketball team (7-4, 1-0 MAC) kicked off MAC play with a thrilling 85-83 overtime victory at Central Michigan (7-5, 1-1 MAC) on Wednesday, Dec. 31.
 
Ohio shot 44.8 percent from the field, 37.9 percent from the arc and 56.0 percent from the line. The Bobcats finished with 37 rebounds, 14 assists, 13 steals and four blocks.
 
Two Bobcats recorded 20 point games with redshirt sophomore Bella Ranallo (Lake Forest, Ill.) scoring a career-high 22 points and junior Bailey Tabeling (Seymour, Ind.) tallying a season-high 20 points. Ranallo shot 7-for-18 from the field, 3-for-10 from the arc and 5-for-8 from the line. Tabeling shot 8-for-17 from the field and 4-for-9 from the arc. Ranallo and Tabeling also finished with a team-high three steals each.
 
Junior Asiah Baxter (Indianapolis, Ind.) and sophomore Danni Scully (Park Ridge, Ill.) led the team in rebounding. Both players finished with a total of eight boards.
 
Graduate student Elli Garnett (Lakewood, Colo.) led the team in assists with a total of five.
 
Central Michigan got the scoring started with a three pointer in the first minute of the game. The Bobcats got on the board at 8:45 with a layup by redshirt sophomore Bella Ranallo (Lake Forest, Ill.). With 7:04 left on the clock, Ohio took a 9-8 lead over the Chippewas. The Bobcats continued to find their rhythm, extending their lead to 12-8 with 6:31 to go. Ohio pulled away slightly with a 6-0 scoring run near the end of the period. After 10 minutes of competition, Ohio led Central Michigan 23-16.
 
The Chippewas kicked off the second quarter with a 10-0 scoring run, while the Bobcats were unable to score for the first four minutes of the quarter. Sophomore Gigi Bower (Powell, Ohio) ended Ohio's scoring drought with a three pointer at 5:50 left on the clock. From there, the Bobcats found more success on offense. A three pointer by junior Asiah Baxter (Indianapolis, Ind.) tied the game at 35-35 with 1:18 to go. Both teams battled in the final minute of the half resulting in a tied 39-39 score heading into the locker room.
 
Both teams continued to battle in the third quarter, trading points back-and-forth. After five minutes of play, Ohio and Central Michigan were tied at 50-50. The Chippewas retook the lead, 52-51 with 3:27 left on the clock. Central Michigan held onto its lead as the Bobcats trailed the Chippewas, 59-54, heading into the final quarter of the game.
 
The fourth quarter was even more competitive than the previous period. Ohio just barely outscored Central Michigan 25-20. The highlight of the quarter was Tabeling's buzzer beater three pointer that sent the game into overtime. After one period of overtime, the Bobcats were victorious with an exciting 85-83 conference win.

Toledo 79, Buffalo 46
Box Score

TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo women's basketball team was dominant from start to finish, overwhelming Buffalo 79-46 in its Mid-American Conference opener at Savage Arena on Wednesday.

The Rockets (6-5, 1-0 MAC) vaulted out to a 41-19 lead at halftime behind a 22-6 second quarter in which Buffalo did not score until the 2:05 mark. The Rockets cruised through the second half, swelling the lead to as much as 37 in the third quarter.

The Rockets dominated once again on the glass, with a season-high 52 rebounds and a season-best +16 rebound margin. Toledo shot above 45% for the third-straight game, shooting 45.9% from the field while holding the Bulls to just 30.0%. The Rockets also held a 44-26 advantage in the paint.

Quoting Head Coach Ginny Boggess
"Proud of our execution from start to finish. I thought we did a tremendous of staying connected and competing. I like who we're becoming as a team. I've always loved our roster, always loved our kids. But I love who we're becoming. We're going to have a big test coming up (against Miami), but we're going to enjoy this one and have a safe and happy New Year.

Rocket Leaders
Patricia Anumgba – 21 points, 9-of-14 FG, 3-of-5 3-PT FG, 5 rebounds, 2 assists
Kendall Carruthers – 16 points, 6-of-9 FG, 3-of-4 FT, 5 rebounds, 3 assists
Faith Fedd-Robinson – 7 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3-of-5 FG, 2 assists

How It Happened
  • The Rockets took the lead in the opening minutes with a 7-0 run over 2:02 and went on another 8-0 run after the media timeout to open up a 16-7 advantage. The Rockets led 19-13 after the first quarter, with six different scorers in the period.
  • Toledo first pushed the lead to double digits with a 6-0 run to start the second quarter to go up 25-13 at the 7:35 mark, forcing a Buffalo timeout.
  • From there, the Rockets scored the next 11 points, punctuated by a Patricia Anumgba three, to swell the lead to 36-13. Toledo would not allow Buffalo to score for the first 7:55 of the quarter.
  • The Rockets continued their momentum after halftime, out-scoring Buffalo 26-11 in the third for a 67-30 lead. Four different Rockets scored at least five points in the quarter, as Toledo put the game beyond reach.
  • Game Notes
  • Patricia Anumgba's 21 points and nine field goals made were season highs. She is the third Rocket (Kendall Carruthers, Ella Weaver) to put up a 20-point performance this season.
  • The Rockets' 33-point margin of victory was its biggest margin of victory in a MAC game since winning by 46 on March 6, 2024 against Eastern Michigan.
  • Toledo's defense has held back-to-back opponent below 50 points for the first time since Feb. 21-24 2024, when the Rockets held both Miami and Ball State under 50.
  • The six points allowed in the second quarter matched UT's best defensive quarter of the season, done twice at Long Beach State.
  • Toledo's seven blocks as a team were a season high. Faith Fedd-Robinson's three rejections marked a new career high.
  • Points off turnovers favored Toledo, 17-8 and fast break points favored the Rockets, 18-5.
  • The Rockets committed just 10 personal fouls, a season-best.