GREEN BAY,
WIS. ? Green Bay scored 17 points
off turnovers to earn a 64-53 victory over the Drake women's basketball team at
the Kress Center Saturday afternoon.
"Offensively, we need better ball security and we didn't have an inside
game and that hurt us," said Drake coach Amy Stephens, whose teams fell to 1-2.
The Phoenix, who moved to 4-0,
avenged a 65-56 loss at Drake in the first round of the WNIT last March 22.
Drake had 25 fouls in the second game of a demanding
three-game road swing which concludes at Tennessee Tech Tuesday.
Junior guard Jordan Plummer (St. Louis, Mo./Cardinal
Ritter) led Drake with a season-high 16 points, 11 of which came in the first
half.
"I thought Jordan's (Plummer) effort was
tremendous," Stephens added.
“She looked to score and at the same time, she let the game
come to her. She did a good job making decisions.”
Sophomore guard Kristin Turk (Des Moines, Iowa/Lincoln)
added a season-high 12 points followed by freshman guard Brittnye McSparron (Apple
Valley, Minn./Eastview) with a career-high seven points.
After shooting 46 percent from the floor in the first half,
Drake ran cold in the second half, shooting only 39 percent, making only 10-of-26 shots.
Green Bay
began the second half with a 7-0 run to take a 42-31 lead at the 13:47 mark.
Drake came within five three times in the second half the
last of which was on a jumper by Plummer at the 7:14 mark.
The Phoenix
finished the game on a 7-2 run, collecting all seven points from the free-throw
line.
Plummer grabbed a season-high seven rebounds for Drake,
which outrebounded Green Bay,
30-25.
Plummer hit a three-pointer 40 seconds into the game,
countered by Green Bay 14 seconds later with a three-pointer by Rachel Porath.
The game remained close throughout the first half with neither
team breaking out.
Plummer tied the game at 10 with a jumper at 14:54.
After that, the Phoenix
went on a 10-4 run to take a six-point lead, capped by a three-pointer by
Heather Golden at 10:07 mark.
Drake climbed its way back with five-consecutive points by Turk,
making a lay-up at 6:15 and a three-pointer at 5:38.
"Turk gave us some great minutes off the bench,” stated
Stephens.
“We needed to get some offense going and she was able to do
that. We need to continue to give her minutes.”
A jumper by Kaniesha Agee (Kansas City, Mo./Pembroke Hill) at the 3:25
mark the Bulldogs tied the game at 25.
Green Bay
went cold from the floor at the end of the first half, with its last basket
coming at the 5:18 mark. Free-throws kept the Phoenix in the game, hitting 5-of-6 down the
stretch, giving them a 30-27 halftime lead.
The Drake bench scored 17 points for its third double-digit
performance in three games.
The Bulldogs will play their third straight game on the road
Tuesday at Tennessee Tech to conclude a three-game, six-day stretch.
"There is no rest for the weary, Stephens added. "We have to get
better on the road."