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EVANSVILLE, Ind.—A furious second-half rally by the University of Evansville women’s basketball team fell short Thursday night at Roberts Stadium, as the visiting Drake Bulldogs held on for a 62-61 victory over the Purple Aces in Missouri Valley Conference action.
Evansville seniors Shannon Novosel, Robyn Jennings, and Ashley Austin led the second-half comeback, as the senior trio combined to score all but two of UE’s final 22 points during a rally which saw the Purple Aces trim a 52-39 deficit back to just one point, 62-61 with 46 seconds to play.
Evansville would then survive a pair of field goal misses by the Bulldogs and a missed free throw by Drake’s Monique’ Jones with 23 seconds to play to take possession of the ball down a single point with 18 seconds to play. But, UE could not find the final piece of the puzzle offensively, as Jones was able to block a last-second lay-up by Austin and Evansville committed a turnover on a crucial in-bounds play with 1.3 seconds to play to seal their fate and give the Bulldogs the victory.
Evansville came out on fire from the field in the first half, shooting 66.7 percent for much of the first 10 minutes on their way to a 27-14 lead midway through the half. The Purple Aces would score just five points for the final 9:27 of the half though, as Drake closed the half on a 16-5 run to trail by only two points, 32-30, at the half.
Drake would then use a 22-7 run out of the halftime locker room to grab their largest lead of the contest, 52-39, with 12:02 to play. That’s when UE’s seniors stepped up to try and rally the Purple Aces. Jennings and Austin would score seven points each in the final 11:15, with Novosel adding six of her game-high 16 points to trim the deficit back to one point. That would be as close as UE would come though.
Novosel and Jennings tied for game-high scoring honors with 16 points each, while Novosel added a game-high 11 rebounds. Austin and Gallagher each chipped in 12 points each for Evansville as well, with Austin swiping a career-high six steals.
Forward Kelsey Keizer and guard Jordann Plummer paced the Bulldogs with 12 points each, with Keizer going a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor while grabbing nine rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass. Jones also added 10 points, nine rebounds, and six assists for the Bulldogs, who out-rebounded Evansville, 49-40, in the contest, including grabbing 21 offensive rebounds. The rebounding margin led to a 21-13 edge in second chance points.
With the victory, Drake improves to 9-7 overall and 3-2 in the MVC. Evansville, meanwhile, slips to 8-7 overall and 1-3 in the Valley. Evansville will return to action on Saturday afternoon, as the Purple Aces will host the Creighton Bluejays at 4:00 p.m. at Roberts Stadium. The game will be the first part of a UE basketball doubleheader, with the UE men hosting Indiana State at 7:00 p.m. Both games can be heard live on 91.5 F.M.-WUEV.
