The vast majority of pundits — maybe all of them — didn’t think that the Bowling Green women’s basketball
team would have very much success this season.
The Falcons last winning season was in 2013-14. The six straight losing seasons since then have been very
difficult with an overall record of 57 wins and 123 losses, including 20 wins and 88 loses in
Mid-American Conference play.
Current head coach Robyn Fralick had an outstanding record of 104-3 at Ashland College, before coming to
Bowling Green for the 2018-19 season. In her first two seasons, BG was 19-42 overall and 5-31 in
conference play.
With those numbers the Falcons were picked to finish 11th in the 12-team MAC this season.
However, Fralick and the Falcons have made those pundits look silly as Bowling Green has gone 17-4
overall, 13-3 in MAC play and won the regular season championship.
In the latest ESPN.com bracketology, Bowling Green would be seeded 12th when NCAA play starts.
“Just incredibly proud of the kids who stayed, the kids who came and their belief and their work ethic
and really, really grateful also for my staff, who’s dug into the trenches from day one and stayed the
course,” Fralick said after Saturday’s win to secure the championship.
BGSU beat Akron 79-64.
“You know, to be honest, I’ve never cared where we’ve been picked,” she added. “I don’t even think we’ve
ever talked about it as a team. That stuff to me doesn’t tell a story. Usually, it tells a story from
where you finish the year before. So, you know, our mission has never been out to prove people wrong.
“Our mission has been to get better. Our mission has been to do it together. Our mission has been for our
huddle to be really tight. So those things I feel really proud of and excited to see that when you do
those things, good things happen.”
While this has been a team effort with the players and the coaching staff, the Falcons have been winning
with three freshmen, one sophomore and one junior starting and three seniors coming off the bench.
That combination has proved to be very good as the Falcons have been playing winning basketball from the
beginning of the season.
“I think in our league every night you have a target, wherever you’re seeded, whatever your record is,
the league is, it’s what makes the match so good.” Fralick said. “The league is so good. There’s so many
good teams. So I see it more as every game we step into. We need to be prepared, and we need to be ready
to play it at a high level.”
Fralick said she never had a time frame on when the Falcons would be a more competitive team.
“There’s just been an idea of these are the things that we need to continue to do,” she said. “These are
the things we need to elevate and we need to spend time and do them right every day.
“Those kids have pulled on every single one of my heartstrings. I can’t think about them without feeling
emotional because they are the centerpiece of us being able to change through really hard times …
They’ve stayed the course and they’ve believed in Bowling Green. They’ve believed in what they can do.”
