Meyer, Laube, Walz return to BGSU volleyball for 5th year

Three Bowling Green State University volleyball players will utilize their fifth year of eligibility and compete for the Falcons in 2022.

Seniors Hanna Laube, Katelyn Meyer and Julia Walz will return this fall after guiding BGSU to an 82-36 overall record and 60-11 MAC record in the last four seasons. In those years, the Falcons have won the MAC East three times, earned a berth in the MAC Tournament Championship three times, qualified for the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament, and participated in the NIVC twice. In 2021, the Falcons were a perfect 10-0 at home, their first undefeated home season since 1979.

Meyer is an outside hitter from Pemberville and an Eastwood High School graduate.

The program’s first four-time All-MAC First Team honoree, Meyer ranks fifth in BGVB history with 1,442 career kills. She is second in attack attempts (4,243) and was named 2020-21 MAC Tournament MVP. Meyer is a five-time MAC Offensive Player of the Week and three-time Academic All-MAC selection. In 2021, she appeared in all 109 sets for the Orange and Brown, landing 358 kills, including a season-high 24 against Milwaukee at the Shamrock Invitational. For her efforts that weekend, she was named to the All-Tournament Team. Meyer also landed 16 kills on a career-best .517 attack percentage against Central Michigan.

Meyer logged a team-high 338 kills in 2020-21, ranking 14th in the NCAA. She also earned MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week and is a two-time MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete. In 2019, she registered a single-season best 459 kills on 1,374 attack attempts, the third-highest mark in program history. Her kill total of 28 against Eastern Michigan remains a career-high. She was named to the Golden Dome Invitational and Bowling Green Invitational All-Tournament Teams. In 2018, Meyer was named MAC Freshman of the Year after leading the team in kills with 267.

“I choose to stay my fifth year because I wanted to continue my journey with BGVB. I know staying a fifth year meant more challenges and sacrifices, but they are all so worth it to be a part of this group. I can’t wait to see what our team will accomplish together for another year,” Meyer said.

Walz is a Defensive Specialist/Libero from Brooklyn, Ohio. Laube is a setter from Burlington, Ontario.

Neuman wins 3rd straight singles match for Falcons

­WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y. – Bowling Green State University tennis fell to Buffalo on Friday 6-1.

BGSU competed with five players, with Buffalo earning a singles point by forfeit. Hannah Neuman won Bowling Green’s lone point with a singles win, her third consecutive victory. Neuman dropped the opening set, 2-6, but rallied for a 7-5 win in set two. In the tiebreaking set, she outlasted Ambre Amat for a 10-7 victory.

The sophomore improves to 4-4 in the MAC this season. This is the 30th combined victory of her career.

The Bulls opened by winning the doubles point, also taking a match by forfeit. Ioanna Tsadari and Maru Poppe each won a set in singles, playing at No. 2 and 3, respectively. The loss drops Bowling Green to 4-15 on the season, with a 1-7 mark in the MAC.

Singles

1. Hsin-Yuan Shih (UB) def. Selina Karg (BGSU) 7-5, 1-0 (retired)

2. Pia Schwarz (UB) def. Ioanna Tsadari (BGSU) 6-4, 3-6, 10-5

3. Gabriella Akopyan (UB) def. Maru Poppe (BGSU) 4-6, 6-0, 10-4

4. Azra Deniz Comlek (UB) def. Laura Maia Silveira (BGSU) 6-3, 6-1

5. Hannah Neuman (BGSU) def. Ambre Amat (UB) 2-6, 7-5, 10-6

6. Mariana Carvajal Torres (UB) win by forfeit

Doubles

1. Pia Schwarz / Azra Deniz Comlek (UB) def. Selina Karg / Hannah Neuman (BGSU) 6-2

2. Ambre Amat / Lolina Schietekat Sedas (UB) led Laura Maia Silveira / Maru Poppe (BGSU) 5-2 (incomplete)

3. Nikoleta Antoniou-Karademitrou / Gabriella Akopyan (UB) win by forfeit

Order of finish: Singles (1, 4, 2, 3, 5); Doubles (1)

The Falcons close the regular season with two home matches. BGSU welcomes Miami (OH) on Friday, before hosting Toledo on April 24. Both matches will start at 1 p.m. in the Perrysburg Tennis Center. Sunday is Senior Day and the Meserve Cup, and the match will be streamed on BCSN.

Back-to-back blasts by Gonzalez lift Falcons

Sarah Gonzalez homered in back-to-back at-bats, lifting Bowling Green State University softball to a 6-4 win over the University of Detroit Mercy on Tuesday at Meserve Field.

The win gave the Falcons (22-11) a sweep of the teams’ non-conference doubleheader. BGSU picked up a 3-0 win in the opening contest.

The Titans (1-29) took a pair of leads in the nightcap, including a 4-1 advantage on a Taryn Peru three-run homer in the third inning. But, Reagan Williamson answered with a two-run round-tripper in the bottom of the inning to tie the score.

Then, in the fourth inning, Gonzalez crushed a ball to left to give the Falcons the lead. That proved to be the game-winning RBI, but Gonzalez added some insurance with another homer in the sixth.

BGSU scored a third-inning run in the opener on a Williamson base hit, then added two more runs on Sophie Weber’s pinch-hit single in the fifth.

Payton Gottshall picked up the victory in game one, with six innings of four-hit shutout ball. She struck out 12 and did not walk a batter.

Freshman Madi Young, making her second career appearance, earned the save in the opening game, retiring the side in the seventh.

Sydney Stepp earned the win in the nightcap with three-and-two-thirds innings of stellar relief work. After allowing a homer to the first hitter she faced, Stepp proceeded to retire 11-straight hitters.

Kiara Hurley worked the seventh inning, picking up her fourth save of the season.

Greta L’Esperance had six hits in the twinbill, going 4-for-4 in game two. Both Williamson and Peyton Dolejs had three hits, while Makailah Dees had a hit in each game.