INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler Bulldogs will advance to the second round of the WNIT after claiming a 75-63 victory over visiting Bowling Green on Thursday night. The win moves Butler to 15-16 on the year and sets up a game against Purdue on Monday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
 
Butler made four of their first five shots on Thursday night to grab an 11-2 lead. Three of the four makes came from behind the arc and the Bulldogs would jump out to a 12-point advantage over the Falcons before a BGSU timeout.
 
All five BU starters scored before the first stoppage of the game, but Bowling Green battled back after the sideline huddle to get within two of BU at 15-13. Amy Velasco led the charge for BGSU with seven first quarter points but the Bulldogs would end the opening frame on a 9-2 run to own a 26-17 lead after one.
 
Butler scored 14 points off seven Bowling Green turnovers in the opening quarter. That proved to be the difference early as BGSU only missed four shots at the start of the game (63%). The Bulldogs opened the second quarter on a 13-5 scoring run to hold a 39-22 lead at the midway point.
 
The first half would end with each team scoring 16 points in the second frame giving BU a nine-point cushion at the half. Caroline Strande led BU with eight points and Erika Porter had a game-high 15 for BGSU.
 
BU outscored BGSU 8-4 at the start of the second half to reach 50 points first. The 'Dawgs kept their foot on the gas and outscored the visitors 18-14 in the third to keep their double digit lead. The fourth quarter was more of the same action as BU outscored the Falcons 8-2 to help eliminate any chance of a Falcon comeback. The victory tonight was Butler's first in the WNIT since March 23, 2019.
 
Inside the Box Score
- Caroline Strande scored a team-high 25 points and added five assists, five rebounds and two steals
- Sydney Jaynes came off the bench to supply BU with 11 points, two steals and two assists
- Ari Wiggins had five assists and zero turnovers
- Riley Makalusky was in double figures with 10 points
- Karsyn Norman had nine points and three steals
- Cristen Carter impacted the game with seven points, a block and four rebounds
- Butler never trailed in the contest
- BU scored 26 first quarter points
- The Bulldogs shot 45 percent from 3 and from the floor
- Butler only had five turnovers
- The Bulldogs scored 23 points off 18 BGSU turnovers
- BU limited Morgan Sharps to just three points on four shots
- Erika Porter scored a game-high 32 points for the Falcons
 
Up Next
Butler will advance to the second round of the WNIT and host Purdue on Monday, March 25. The home game at Hinkle Fieldhouse will get started at 7 PM.