Musketeers Fall at Bowling Green on Saturday Night

Saturday, December 7

Bowling Green, Ohio

7 p.m.

Xavier University

4-5,0-1Big East

Bowling Green

5-4,0-0MAC

Xavier

Bowling Green

Musketeers Fall at Bowling Green on Saturday Night

12.07.24 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Season Stats (PDF)

Meri Kanerva led the Musketeers in scoring with 15 points

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Xavier women's basketball dropped a 78-59 road contest at Bowling Green on Saturday night at the Stroh Center.

The Musketeers moved to 4-5 on the year, while the Falcons improved o 5-4.

Xavier returns to action vs crosstown rival Cincinnati in the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout on Sunday, Dec. 15. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. from Cintas Center.

NOTABLE

The first quarter was back-and-forth with four lead changes and two ties. With the game tied at 13-13 with 3:58 left in the first quarter, the Falcons went on a 10-2 run to end the frame - taking an eight-point lead (23-15). Bowling Green scored seven straight points to open the second quarter, taking a 30-15 advantage and forcing a Xavier timeout. The Falcons outscored Xavier, 19-9, in the second quarter - taking an 18-point advantage into the locker room (42-24).
Meri Kanerva had a team-high 10 points and three rebounds at the break. Loren Christie added six points, two rebounds and three blocks.
Xavier opened the second half on a 5-0 run on back-to-back baskets by Meri Kanerva and Tae'lor Purvis. Bowling Green responded by scoring 13 straight points, taking a 55-29 lead with 5:38 on the clock. The Falcons outscored Xavier, 22-17, in the third frame to take a 64-41 lead into the final quarter.
Xavier scored nine straight points to open the fourth quarter to close within 14 points (64-50) with 7:49 left in regulation. Bowling Green responded by scoring seven straight points to force a Xavier timeout and take a 21-point lead (71-50) with 4:09 on the clock. The Falcons outscored Xavier, 14-9, down the stretch to pull away for the 78-59 victory.
Meri Kanerva scored a team-high 15 points on 6-for-15 shooting. The freshman guard added five rebounds and two assists. She has scored in double figures six times this season.
Loren Christie added nine points and a team-high six rebounds. The forward matched her career high in blocks with four.
Daniela López scored 14 points on 7-for-14 shooting in 31 minutes of action off the bench. She has scored in double figures nine times in her career. The guard added three rebounds and two assists.
Aizhanique Mayo finished with 11 points, two assists and two steals. The guard now has 12 career double-figure scoring games. She knocked down a team-high three 3-pointers.
Tae'lor Purvis added seven points and four rebounds. Júlia Garcia Roig had two assists and two steals.
Xavier posted a .397 field-goal percentage (23-for-58) and went 7-for-28 from behind the arc. The Musketeers were also 6-for-9 from the foul line.
Bowling Green won the battle on the glass, 45-25, and held a 40-26 advantage in points in the paint. The Falcons also scored five more points off of turnovers (21-16) and had seven more second-chance points (7-0).
Xavier scored seven more fastbreak points (14-7) than Bowling Green and held a 28-26 advantage in bench points.
Amy Velasco led four Falcons in double figures with 19 points. The Falcons hit 48.4 percent (31-for-64) of their shot attempts and went 8-for-20 from behind the arc. Bowling Green also went 8-for-12 from the foul line.
Xavier has now lost 26 straight road games. The Musketeers have not won a road game since Nov. 27, 2022 at SIUE (W, 73-65).