MOLINE, ILL. – Led by a career-high 22 points and seven assists from senior Caitlin Ingle (Runnells, Iowa), the No. 20/19 Drake University women's basketball team won its sixth Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title with a 74-69 overtime win over UNI at the iWireless Center.
 
With the MVC Tournament title, the Bulldogs earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will be making the 11^th tournament appearance in the program's history.
 
Ingle, who was named the tournament MVP, forced the overtime period with a jumper as time expired in regulation to tie the game at 63-63. In the overtime period, Ingle helped give the Bulldogs an early cushion with a three-point play followed by a jumper to help the team take a 71-66 lead less than three minutes into overtime.
 
Drake's (defense held UNI to just three points the remainder of the overtime period and a pair of free throws from Lizzy Wendell (Blue Springs, Mo.) with 18 seconds left sealed the victory. Wendell finished the game with 13 points to earn a spot on the MVC All-Tournament team.
 
The overtime win completed a historic season for the Bulldogs as the team blitzed through the MVC with a perfect 18-0 record and added three more wins against MVC competition this weekend. The Bulldogs have now won 22-straight games, the second longest active winning streak in the nation.
 
Drake, as it had in its first two tournament games, faced first-half deficit as UNI held a 39-29 lead at halftime. But true to form, the Bulldogs stormed back in the third period, outscoring UNI 19-11, in the period to trim the deficit to two points, 50-48.
 
MVC Freshman of the Year Becca Hittner (Urbandale, Iowa) keyed that comeback with a three-pointer to open the period as part of a 10-2 run. Hittner finished the game with 15 points and was a perfect 3-of-3 from the three-point arc. Redshirt sophomore Becca Jonas (Independence, Mo.) recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Jonas knocked down a career-high two three-pointers, including one at the start of OT to answer UNI's three-pointer to start extra time.
 
The fourth quarter saw three ties and eight lead changes with neither team leading by more than two points through 10 minutes of nail-biting action. A three-pointer from Hittner gave Drake an early lead, but a pair of three-pointers from UNI in the final 3:33 kept the Bulldogs from pulling away. UNI's Ellie Herzberg, who finished with 25 points, drained the last of those three-pointers with six seconds left to give UNI a 63-61 lead. However, Ingle responded with her step-back jumper at the top of the lane as time expired to force overtime and propel the Bulldogs to the MVC Tournament title in front of a tournament record crowd of 2,451.
 
The Bulldogs will discover their NCAA Tournament opponent and location on Monday, March 13, when the NCAA Tournament field is revealed at 6 p.m. on ESPN. Fans are invited to join the Bulldogs for a Selection Show Watch Party in the Courtside Club of the Shivers Center. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.