DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University women's basketball team defeated Winona State, 74-63 in the first of its two exhibition games, Tuesday, Nov. 1 at the Knapp Center.
 
"I think it was really good to get out there see our fans again and play at home and hopefully get all the rust off," said Drake head coach Jennie Baranczyk. "I think there are a lot of takeaways for us. We got exactly what we needed out of tonight."
 
MVC Preseason Player of the Year Lizzy Wendell (Blue Springs, Mo.) scored a game high 22-points going 9-for-18 while also nabbing seven rebounds. Coming off a breakout freshman season, sophomore Sara Rhine (Eldon, Mo.) recorded a double-double, scoring 15 points and grabbing a game-best 11 rebounds. Caitlin Ingle (Runnells, Iowa) dished out a game-high eight assists to go along with eight points of her own.
 
The Warriors came out hot by making four of their first six shots to take a 11-4 lead and managed to hold on to a 20-19 lead at the end of the first-quarter.
 
The Bulldogs finally found their rhythm in the second-quarter as they started the period on a 13-2 run, taking a 32-22 lead with 5:22 left in the opening half.
 
After taking a 43-32 lead into the locker room, Drake opened the second-half with a 9-2 run, 51-34 and held on to the double-digit lead throughout the rest of the third-quarter.
 
The Bulldogs wouldn't allow the Warriors to get any closer than seven points in the final quarter to take home the 74-63 victory.
 
Drake will host its final exhibition game against MidAmerica Nazrene on Nov. 5 at 2 p.m. before opening the regular season at North Dakota on Nov. 11.