WBB Takes Down Toledo in Defensive Battle; Remains Undefeated in #MACtion

Wednesday, January 7

Muncie, Ind.

6:30 pm

Ball State University

12-4,4-0MAC

University of Toledo

6-7,1-2MAC

Toledo

Ball St.

WBB Takes Down Toledo in Defensive Battle; Remains Undefeated in #MACtion

January 07, 2026 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State women's basketball team (12-4, 4-0 MAC) took down Toledo (6-7, 1-2 MAC) by a score of 70-62 Wednesday night in Worthen Arena.

With the win, the Cardinals remain undefeated in Mid-American Conference action with a 4-0 ledger.

It comes to no surprise that the Cardinals and the Rockets would start the opening quarter with a heated back-and-forth battle which saw Toledo pull away from Ball State 15-9 at the 1:43 mark.

Fortunately, the Cardinals were able to regroup after a 3-pointer from Grace Kingery and a last second bucket from Tessa Towers that made it a 15-14 ball game at the end of the first quarter.

The up-and-down affair continued with both teams struggling to maintain possession as the Cardinals and the Rockets were plagued by some unforeseen errors throughout the second period. The Cardinals gained momentum after Aniss Tagayi stole the ball for a fast break layup to give BSU the 27-23 edge versus Toledo with 4:20 remaining in the first half.

After that, Towers scored four-straight points to propel the Cardinals to a 35-26 advantage over the Rockets at intermission.

The Cardinals opened the third frame with a defensive stop that resulted in a bucket from Karsyn Norman. Ball State led by as many as 13 (39-26) with just over a minute shaved off the clock. The Rockets weren't going to go away lightly, answering with an 8-0 run in a span of two minutes that cut BSU's lead back to five (39-34).

As the defensive battle continued, the Cardinals were still in control 44-38 by the third frame media timeout. The Rockets made it a three-point (49-46) ball game with under a minute left to play in the third, but Towers and Bree Salenbien were aggressive under the basket which gave Ball State the 53-46 third quarter edge against Toledo.

Tagayi's layup at the start of the fourth quarter pushed BSU's lead back up to 12 (58-46). Toledo kept it close, but Zhen Verburgt really stepped up in the final period answering for the Cardinals with a 3-pointer and a defensive rebound.

The Rockets inched closer as time was winding down but Towers stepped in with some plays under the basket that all-in-all allowed the Cardinals to seal their fourth MAC victory of the season.

For the game, Towers led Ball State with 17 points while Salenbien collected her fifth double-double of the season after a 14-point, 10 rebound-performance. Norman and Kingery finished the night with 11.

The Ball State women's basketball team will have a bye weekend this Saturday and will return to league play on Wednesday, Jan. 14, when it hosts Buffalo for a 6:30 pm tipoff in Worthen Arena.