MACOMB, Ill. – The Drake University women's basketball team never trailed in a 98-71 win at Western Illinois Saturday afternoon at Western Hall.
 
Drake (2-0) and Western Illinois (1-1) renewed its longtime rivalry with the first meeting since 2007 between the former Gateway Conference members. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with an impressive 24-1 advantage.
 
Sara Rhine (Eldon, Mo.) scored 18 points in just 18 minutes off the bench. She pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds for her second-straight double-double. Also, off the bench was Nicole Miller (Walker, Iowa) who added 13 points for her second consecutive double figure scoring game. The Bulldogs' bench finished with 54 points. All 12 players who played each scored three or more points and logged at least nine minutes.
 
Becca Hittner (Urbandale, Iowa) added 12 points and Maddy Dean (Jordan, Minn.) had 10. Sammie Bachrodt (Wichita, Kan.) and Becca Jonas (Independence, Mo.) just missed double figures with nine and eight points, respectively. Brenni Rose (Shawnee, Kan.) equaled her career-high with seven assists as the team had 32 on 40 field goals.
 
For the second straight game, the second quarter was key for Drake, which led 22-15, after one quarter. However, the Bulldogs blew the game open with a 15-3 opening run and outscored the Leathernecks, 29-12, for a 51-27 halftime lead. They would lead by as many as 36 points the rest of the way.
 
The Bulldogs' freshmen Maggie Negaard (Stevens Points, Wis.) and Allie Wooldridge (Center Point, Iowa) made their debuts Saturday. Negaard hit a three-pointer for her first career points while Wooldridge finished with seven points in just 12 minutes. She added two assists and two steals.
 
Drake hosts South Dakota Thursday, Nov. 15 in the team's home opener. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the opener will be broadcast on ESPN3.