BOWLING GREEN — Emily Siesel has been thrown into a significantly bigger role for Bowling Green State University’s women’s basketball team this season.
With each passing game and each minute on the court with her teammates, the sophomore’s confidence continues to grow.
“I think part of that has to do with the team and everyone around me. Knowing that they believe in me, that has to do a lot with it, and just that they all support me, especially the coaches,” Siesel said. “Every day in practice, they’re pushing me, always telling me something that I can work on.
“I really appreciate and value that, so I think that can help boost my confidence within myself.”
After playing just 16 total minutes in five games as a freshman last year when she joined BGSU’s program as a preferred walk-on, Siesel has been a regular off the bench for the Falcons (14-11, 8-6 Mid-American Conference) this season. The 5-foot-6 guard has appeared in 20 of BGSU’s 25 games, including the past 15 and all 14 MAC games.
Siesel averages a little less than eight minutes per game this year and has played at least 10 minutes on eight occasions. She has averaged 13 minutes in her past seven games.
With injuries taking a toll on BGSU — a handful of guards are currently out and most have missed a decent portion of the season — Siesel has provided valuable time with her presence on the court.
“The thing that sticks out to me the most is her willingness to learn and make adjustments,” first-year BGSU coach Fred Chmiel said. “Also, she was one of the first people in the gym this summer. She would drive here on her off days and work out in the gym and get a workout from one of the coaches.
“She’s made herself a valuable piece to the team, especially with the numbers the way they are. She’s doing the right things. At first, she wanted to make an impact every time the ball hit her hands, and we just had a conversation, you don’t have to do that. You’re going to make an impact just by being out there and being a reliable piece of the puzzle.”
In 19 minutes during BGSU’s 82-73 MAC victory at Northern Illinois on Saturday, Siesel knocked down a 3-pointer early in the second quarter and added two rebounds and two assists. She’s had four games with multiple rebounds, four with multiple assists, and three with multiple steals.
After tallying four assists, two rebounds, and a steal last season, Siesel has contributed 11 points, 14 assists, 13 rebounds, and eight steals so far this year.
“I try to stay pretty level-headed whether I’m playing a lot or not. Just trying to do what I can do and control what I can, and just step up and try to fill the gap where needed,” Siesel said. “But I would say definitely, just with the adversity that we faced and so many people going down, I do feel, in a sense, an extra responsibility to try to pick up what we’ve lost.
“I know I can’t personally do that all myself by any means, but just kind of standing in that gap, I do take pride in and try to work on it every day in practice and perform to my best ability.”
Senior guard Morgan Sharps, BGSU’s leading scorer at 15 points per game, said Siesel understands her role this year after spending most of last year on scout team. She added that Siesel performed well against a lot of good players on a loaded 2022-23 BGSU team that went 31-7 and reached the Women’s National Invitation Tournament semifinals for the first time.
“She held her own last year, and this year, she just kind of put it all together. Obviously with our scenario, she got put into the fire, but she was also ready at the same time,” Sharps said. “She’s a super hard worker, she’s always showing up ready to play.
“As a walk-on, she could have just kind of done the bare minimum and just shown up. But she shows up ready to work every single day, and I think that’s just a testament to her character and her love for the game and our team. She’s been doing exactly what she does best: playing her role. I think she’s really thriving in it right now.”
Siesel came to BGSU after a decorated high school career where she surpassed 1,000 career points despite missing her sophomore year due to injury. She spent her final two years at Buckeye Central High School in New Washington, a small village of around 900 people that is 60 miles southeast of Bowling Green.
As a senior during the 2021-22 season, Siesel averaged 17.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and a staggering 6.4 steals per game in being named the Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association Division IV player of the year. She helped the Bucks finish 26-2 and reach the Division IV state semifinals.
Siesel had college looks and attention from the Division II and NAIA levels, but wanted to go to a bigger school. She committed to BGSU late in her senior year.
“It was definitely kind of a weird experience,” Siesel said of the recruiting process. “I knew I wanted to play, but I didn’t really know where or anything like that. I had some offers, but I come from a small town, so I wanted something a little bigger and just to be at a bigger campus.”
Former BGSU coach Robyn Fralick, who took over as Michigan State’s coach this season after spending the previous five years in northwest Ohio, added Siesel to the Falcons’ roster in the summer of 2022.
As Siesel’s young career continues, she is thankful for the chance to represent BGSU and contribute for the Falcons.
“I’m extremely grateful. I think that everything happens for a reason and how it’s supposed to,” Siesel said. “So just to know that even when I didn’t know what I was going to do in high school for college, just to know that everything works out in the end and just to know that coach Fralick trusted me and allowed me to be on this team, and then for these coaches to put so much trust in me, it’s been pretty cool.”
First Published February 26, 2024, 10:44 p.m.
