Bowling Green State University 5-foot-9 senior forward Kadie Hempfling already knew how to win when she
arrived from Ottawa-Glandorf High School.
O-G has reached the state final four five times, including two state runner-up finishes. Recruiting any
standout from the Putnam County school is a feather in any coach’s cap.
A three-time Western Buckeye League Player of the Year and three-time All-Ohioan, Hempfling led O-G to a
104-10 overall record and four regional titles during her prep career.
“O-G is a great high school program and when you grow up playing in a great program and playing on a
winning team and a winning program, that are just so many things going into being a winner that she, for
sure, got growing up,” BGSU coach Robyn Fralick said.
“We’re fortunate enough to have that here, too.”
A three-time letter winner for the Falcons, Hempfling is stamping her mark on the BGSU record book.
During the Falcons’ 82-66 loss to Buffalo, Hempfling made her 100th career start – and her 100th
consecutive start in a BGSU uniform.
After coming off the bench to make her collegiate debut (at Michigan State on Nov. 6, 2018), Hempfling
has started every BGSU contest since. Hempfling is just the 14th player in school history to start at
least 100 career games.
“Kadie is a tough kid. I love that — her 100th start at Bowling Green because she’s an all-in kid at BG
and she loves BG through and through. It’s only fitting for her to have that sort of recognition,”
Fralick said.
Hempfling credits Fralick for believing in her and taking her game to another level.
“I’m real thankful for the opportunities I’ve been given by coach Fralick and the whole coaching staff.
Starting my 100th career game — that is really awesome,” Hempflling said.
“I feel very blessed to be able to do that and I feel really grateful that I could get to be able to lead
this program into new endeavors and set the bar higher and higher each year that I have been here.”
Resilient starter, leader, mentor
Going back to BGSU’s 82-58 MAC win over Ball State, and Hempfling was playing in her 100th career game.
She now has started in 102 out of 103 games since she arrived at BGSU.
Hempfling scored a team-high 15 points with eight rebounds and two steals in the Falcons’ 92-68 victory
over Central Michigan Wednesday. At 5-9, she often has the assignment of playing in the low post against
players who stand over six feet tall.
“She’s just a unique player,” Fralick said.
“She can do so many things on the court, she’s a great creator, she can score inside-out, she plays with
a ton of enthusiasm, a ton of energy, competitiveness and all those things have been really good for our
team.”
There are more milestones. Hempfling, in the 99th game of her career, surpassed the 900-point mark as a
Falcon as she had a game-high 20 points vs. Tennessee-Martin.
Hempfling now has 957 career points and is among the top 30 in school history.
One more milestone puts her in the company of one of BGSU’s all-time greats.
In the first five decades of BGSU women’s basketball, only one player had amassed both 500 rebounds and
300 assists in her career. Last season, that list doubled.
Kate Achter had been the only player to achieve both of those milestones. But, midway through her third
season with the Falcons, Hempfling joined Achter on that list.
Hempfling reached both the 500-rebound and 300-assist milestones in January of 2021. She now has 708
boards along with 384 assists.
Achter (2004-08), a member of the BGSU Athletics Hall of Fame, had a school-record 688 assists and
exactly 500 rebounds in her storied Falcon career
Milestones aside, Hempfling wants to win more than anything — it is her O-G training.
The Falcons are trying to get back on track after two straight MAC losses and they took the first step
against the Chippewas to improve to 7-6 overall and 2-2 in the league.
However, Hempfling is of the belief that no loss should ever happen at the Stroh Center, even to a good
Buffalo (11-4, 5-0) team that is still unbeaten in the MAC.
“Playing Buffalo at home, that should be a great environment for us. The Stroh should be our sixth man,”
Hempfling said.
The same goes with the 79-69 loss to Akron, a team that is 7-5 and 4-2. A 9-0 run by the Zips broke a
third-quarter tie and lifted Akron during a Saturday afternoon contest at James A. Rhodes Arena.
“I have a lot of faith in this team, and I know one through 14 of us are very resilient and I’m really
excited to see our response from here on out,” Hempfling said.
Hard-core basketball
Fralick and Hempfling say the MAC is hard-core basketball. The Falcons found that out with the physical
play of Buffalo.
“I think that is fairly normal — night in and night out the league just has another level of
competitiveness to it,” Fralick said.
“Most of our team is young, so there is a difference between young and experience and I can say we have a
ton of experience, even with our young kids,” Fralick continued. “There are enough kids who have been
through the league who know what it is about, and we have to make sure that we get prepared.”
One of those “kids” who already knew what MAC basketball is like is Hempfling, who finds herself
mentoring the younger players.
“I was taught as a post player and I said, ‘You don’t understand how physical it is until you get into
the game,” Hempfling said.
“I played Buffalo like they are always a menace inside. They just go to town. We tried to explain, but
you have to almost see it to understand.”
One of the younger Falcons Hempfling mentors is 6-2 sophomore forward Sophie Dziekan, who hails from
Brighton, Michigan.
Even though Dziekan is five inches taller, in the loss to Buffalo she was Hempfling’s replacement when
the senior needed a break. Plus, Dziekan provided some height against a Bulls’ team that had six players
6-0 or taller, including two who were 6-3.
“I was so proud of her,” Hempfling said. “Sophie is one of the players on our team who is ready when
called upon.
“She puts the work in. She knows her role and she definitely shines in it. She’s prepared. ‘Next one up,’
that’s what coach always says. Always be ready no matter what and Sophie is always ready.”
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