FIRST PITCH...
• The BGSU softball team heads to South Carolina to begin the 2025 season at the Spartan Classic, hosted by USC Upstate. Head coach Michelle Gardner and the Falcons are scheduled to play two games each against the host school and Monmouth, as well as one game against Akron.

• The Falcons' season-opening contest is slated to begin at 3:00 p.m. on Friday (Feb. 7), as BGSU takes on the host school. That game will be streamed on ESPN+. BG then turns around and plays Monmouth in a 5:30 p.m. start.

• Saturday's schedule (Feb. 8) will see BGSU again play back-to-back games, as the Orange and Brown will meet Monmouth at 12:30 p.m., followed by a 3:00 p.m. first pitch vs. Upstate. On Sunday (Feb. 9), the Falcons will face a familiar foe, meeting Akron in a 10:00 a.m. start.

• All games will take place at Cyrill Stadium, and live stats are scheduled to be available for each of the 10 tournament contests.

SPARTAN CLASSIC
(all games at Cyrill Stadium; Spartanburg, S.C.)
Friday, Feb. 7
Akron vs. Monmouth, 10:00 a.m.
Akron at USC Upstate, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Bowling Green at USC Upstate, 3:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Bowling Green vs. Monmouth, 5:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 8
Akron vs. Monmouth, 10:00 a.m.
Bowling Green vs. Monmouth, 12:30 p.m.
Bowling Green at USC Upstate, 3:00 p.m.
Akron at USC Upstate, 5:30 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 9
Bowling Green vs. Akron, 10:00 a.m.
Monmouth at USC Upstate, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

WELCOME (BACK)!
• Michelle Gardner makes her official Falcon head-coaching debut on Friday, but she is certainly no stranger to Bowling Green. Gardner's coaching career began at BGSU in 1992, as an assistant under head coach Jacquie Joseph.

• That 1992 team went 37-16 overall, setting school records for wins and winning percentage (.698). The '92 squad is still tied for the most wins in a season in BGSU history, while the winning percentage ranks second.

• The '92 team finished second in the MAC, and the 1993 season saw Joseph, Gardner and the Falcons win a MAC title and advance to the NCAA Championships. That team went 34-18 overall and 26-9 in conference play.

• Gardner's wealth of coaching experience includes head-coaching tenures at both Nevada (2003-08) and Indiana (2009-17), as well as time on the staffs at Arizona State, Florida State and Coastal Carolina.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
• Michelle Gardner and her staff – Greg McQuillin, Tegan Cortelletti and Indya Smith – have 15 returning letterwinners, including four positional starters, from the 2024 club. Additionally, five of the seven pitchers from a season ago are on the '25 roster.

• A total of 10 returnees made at least 10 starts last spring. Sophomore Cameron Kaufman and Taylor Behrendt started 40 and 28 games, respectively, as freshmen a year ago. Kaufman, a shortstop, hit .234 to lead the BG returnees. Wynnie Reid (26), Ashley Chevalier (24) and Scarlet Anderson (22) each made over 20 starts in '24.

• In the circle, Mackenzie Krafcik made 16 appearances, including 12 starts, and threw 58 2/3 innings last season, leading the returning pitchers in all three categories.

THE OPPONENTS / THE SERIES
• USC Upstate was picked to win the Big South Conference in 2025 after winning the league title in '24. Sierra Maness was named the league's preseason Pitcher of the Year, with Alanna Deal, Denver Lauer and Taliyah Thomas joining her on the preseason all-conference team. Last year, coach Chris Hawkins and the Spartans went 30-23 overall and 13-5 in league play, winning both the Big South regular-season and tournament titles.

• Monmouth was picked to finish eighth in the 12-team Coastal Athletic Association, with junior Savannah Simons named to the Preseason All-CAA Team. Simons hit a team-leading .323 a year ago. Last season, the Hawks finished with records of 18-33 overall and 10-15 in CAA play. Morgan Royer begins her first season at the Monmouth helm.

• Akron went 23-29 overall a year ago, finishing with a MAC record of 11-14 under head coach Craig Nicholson. Meagan Lee returns after hitting .438 a season ago, while Macy Walters and Haley Croyle each are back after throwing more than 100 innings apiece in the circle. Walters was 9-9 with a 3.73 ERA, while Croyle went 7-10 with a 4.52 ERA. The Zips were picked to finish seventh in the MAC in 2025, according to the league's preseason poll.

• The Falcons trail USC Upstate 1-0, in the all-time series. The lone previous meeting saw the host Spartans pick up a 4-2 win at the Upstate Classic on opening day of the 2019 season (Feb. 15, 2019).

• BGSU leads Monmouth, 1-0, in that series. The Falcons posted a 3-1 win over the Hawks at the Rebel Spring Games in Orlando, Fla., on March 12, 2002.

• MAC foes BGSU and Akron are certainly no strangers to one another. BG leads the series with the Zips, 64-35-1, and the Falcons are 8-1 in all-time meetings at neutral sites. Last year, the Zips captured two of three meetings at Meserve Field, with BGSU earning a 7-6, walk-off win in the final game of the weekend series (April 7, 2024).

DOWN THE ROAD
• BGSU will venture to Oklahoma to participate in the Norman Tournament, hosted by four-time defending national champion OU (Feb. 21-23). The Falcons are slated to play two games each against Tulsa and Wichita State, as well as one contest vs. the Sooners.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• For more information on the BGSU softball team, follow the Falcons on Twitter/X (@BGAthletics and @BGSUSoftball) and Instagram (@bgsu_softball) as well as on the web at BGSUFalcons.com.
 

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