Bowling Green State University womens basketball got four players into double figures on their way to defeating Eastern Michigan, 69-57, in Mid-American Conference action Wednesday at the Stroh Center.

“It was a true team win. We had contributions from a lot of people across the board,” said BGSU first-year coach Fred Chmiel.

“Four double-digit scorers, and I think everybody got a rebound and that is probably unheard of,” Chmiel said. “Turnovers, we kept to 12, and we knew they were a powerful interior and we did a good job of playing defense on the interior.

“We rotated a lot of people in, got some good experience, built the lead — that was one of the big things was just getting off to a quick start and making sure we took control of the game early.”

The Falcons never trailed while improving to 9-4 overall and staying a perfect 3-0 in the MAC. The Eagles fall to 4-9 and 1-2.

BGSU fifth-year senior guard Morgan Sharps was 6-for-10 from the field, including 2-for-3 from downtown, in scoring 15 points, plus she dished out five assists and had two steals.

The Falcons first two MAC wins, 65-64 over Central Michigan, and 75-69 over Western Michigan, were not decided until the final stretch, so Sharps said winning by double digits was a nice change of pace.

“We just talked a lot about having quick starts and having good starts because we dug ourselves in a hole the past couple games,” Sharps said.

“We’re really emphasizing our quick start so we don’t have to come back or make a run. We go on a run first and defend. That was a big emphasis and it showed today,” Sharps continued.

It started when BGSU junior guard Amy Velasco and Sharps hit back-to-back threes to end the first quarter and gave the Falcons a 20-13 lead, which they never relinquished.

The defense kicked in during an ugly fourth quarter that saw just 16 points scored, including eight by each team, and just two field goals by each team, but it prevented the Eagles from mounting a comeback.

Sharps joked that the double digit win was for the fans, too.

“We’ve had a lot of people say that we are stressing them out, so it’s nice, having a calm, cool collected game,” Sharps said.

“I think that just goes into our preparation — the emphasis on having the quick start and doing the little things so we don’t get in a hole to start the game.”

BGSU freshman guard Paige Kohler, who has stepped up nicely since the season ending injury to senior guard Lexi Fleming, led the Falcons with 15 points and six rebounds despite not having her best shooting night.

Kohler is getting used to stepping up her game in her first season of NCAA Division I basketball after leading Olmsted Falls to the Division I state championship game her senior of high school.

The first BGSU game after Fleming’s injury, she scored 28 points in BGSU’s first MAC win.

“Obviously, that (Fleming) is a huge loss from a leadership standpoint, a points standpoint, and actually across the board, defensively, too,” Kohler said. “I think I’m just trying to play my game, having confidence, doing what I do well and just trusting myself.”

As a team, the Falcons shot 45% (27-for-60) from the floor, made 6-of-20 three-point shots (30%), and 9-of-17 (53%) free throws.

However, Kohler was 5-for-18 from the field, including 1-for-9 from downtown, but Chmiel did not mind.

“The last two games the thing that sticks out to me is she has been composed,” Chmiel said. “She hasn’t been frantic. She hasn’t had the freshman jitters. She’s been pretty level-headed.

“Is she going to make mistakes? Yeah. But the way that she handles that and her composure throughout is the thing that I see the most,” Chmiel continued.

“Also, she hasn’t been reluctant to shoot the ball. It didn’t go in for her all the time, but the fact that she is shooting it and we’re not having to tell her to shoot it, and she is seeing those opportunities, is growth as well.”

Velasco had 13 points, four rebounds, six assists, and four steals and 6-foot-1 freshman forward Taya Ellis had 10 points and four rebounds for the Falcons. Velasco was 4-for-5 from the field and made both of her shots from the arc, and Ellis was 5-for-6 from the floor.

The Falcons outscored the taller Eagles, 32-24, in the paint, had a 40-32 edge in rebounding, outscored Eastern 16-4 in second chance points, and 12-2 in fast break points. BGSU had 12 turnovers to the Eagles’ 14.

Erika Porter, a 6-0 senior forward, just missed double figures, scoring nine points, but she had 10 rebounds and two steals for BGSU.

BGSU senior forward Olivia Hill scored five points, senior forward Jasmine Clerkley scored two points, and freshman forward Keiryn McGuff contributed one point and grabbed four rebounds.

Tayra Eke, a 6-3 junior center, was Eastern’s only player to reach double figures, getting a double-double 15 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and she blocked two shots, plus she was 7-for-10 from the charity stripe.

Eastern junior guard Lachelle Austin had nine points and two assists, freshman guard Cali Denson scored nine points, and senior guard Ashley Hassett scored eight points.

Kennedi Myles, a 6-2 senior center, had six points, five assists, and four rebounds, junior guard Olivia Westphal had four points and two assists, sophomore guard Olivia Smith scored four points, and junior guard Zaniya Nelson contributed two points and grabbed five rebounds for the Eagles.

Eastern shot 37% (20-for-54) from the field, 24% (4-for-17) from the arc, and made 13-of-18 (72%) from the stripe.