Bulldogs Pull Away After Close First Quarter in Redbirds' 98-58 Loss

NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State women's basketball team played an even first quarter with league-leading Drake, but the visitors built a double-digit lead in the second quarter and continued to build their advantage in the second half, en route to a 98-58 win over the Redbirds on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.

Drake (17-6, 10-2 MVC) made a season-high 15 3-pointers, four of which came from Lizzy Wendell, who finished with a game-high 26 points, six rebounds, six assists and four steals. Sara Rhine added 20 points for Drake off the bench.

Illinois State (6-16, 4-7) was led by Katrina Beck and Shakeela Fowler, who scored 12 and 13 points respectively. 

The first quarter was ruled by 3-pointers. Beck hit back-to-back threes to start the game, giving the Redbirds a 6-2 lead. The MVC's leading scorer, Wendell gave Drake its first lead with a corner 3-pointer halfway through the quarter. Then, with the shot clock winding down, Fowler banked in a trey from 25 feet out to give ISU a 13-9 advantage.

Drake's Caitlin Ingle took the ball coast-to-coast before being fouled on a layup attempt with just 1.1 left in the opening quarter. Ingle hit one of two free throws, and the Bulldogs finished the quarter on a 9-3 run to send the game to the second quarter with the teams even, at 18-18.  

In the second quarter, Fowler ended a 6-0 Drake run with a twisting layup in traffic, but consecutive layups by Drake put the Bulldogs up, 29-20. The Bulldogs later increased their lead to 36-24 on a Wendell 3-pointer. The Redbirds countered with back-to-back layups from Colleene Smith and Fowler, cutting the lead back to single digits, but the Bulldogs finished the half with a 40-28 lead.

Drake took control of the game in the third quarter early by going on a 12-3 run to push its lead to 52-31. The Bulldogs proceeded to make six 3-pointers in the quarter and held a lead of 31 points at one point.

In the fourth quarter, Drake continued its 3-point barrage with five more from deep, and closed out the Redbirds, 98-58.

The Redbirds will end their three-game homestand Sunday, when they host Northern Iowa at 7 p.m.

GoRedbirds.com:  Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.­­­­