ST.CHARLES
-- The Drake women's basketball team shot a season low 26 percent from the
floor and No. 2 seeded Creighton took advantage, eliminating the Bulldogs,
53-35, in the semifinal round of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference
Tournament Saturday night.
Drake's
35 points was a MVC tournament record for fewest points in a game.
The
Bulldogs, who stand at 19-12, will await word late Monday night if they will
receive a bid to the Women's NIT.
Owning
a 36-33 lead, the Bluejays went on a 17-2 scoring flurry to close out the game
as Drake made just one of five shots down the stretch while committing five
turnovers.
Creighton
will face No. 9 seeded Evansville in the State Farm MVC Tournament championship
at 3 p.m. Sunday.
Senior
forward Lauren Dybing (Bloomington,
Minn./St. Croix Lutheran) led Drake with 10 points and seven rebounds.
"Creighton
totally dictated tempo of game and we got lulled to sleep," said Drake
head coach Amy Stephens. "They were the more aggressive team.
"But
I'm really proud of my team. We've made some adjustments battling through
injuries. But I'm optimistic about continuing post-season play."
Junior
guard Jordann Plummer (St. Louis,
Mo./Cardinal Ritter), who had scored a career-high 27 points against
Creighton Jan. 31, totaled six points making three of 12 shots.
Plummer
picked up her fourth foul with 11:42 left in the game and sat out the next six
minutes.
After
a three-point basket by Dybing gave Drake a 5-3 lead with 17:28 left in the
first half, the Bulldogs would go the next eight minutes seven seconds without
making a basket. That dry spell allowed Creighton to grab a 16-6 advantage
before freshman Rachael Hackbarth (Colgate,
Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) hit a jumper with 9:19 remaining in the first half.
Hackbarth
finished with nine points.
The
Bluejays topped Drake in points in the paint (26-18) and points off turnovers
(22-7) while the Bulldogs held the advantage in bench points (11-6).