DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University women's basketball team closes the regular season Friday and Saturday against Valparaiso at the Knapp Center. Tipoff Friday is scheduled for 5 p.m. while Saturday is set for 3 p.m.
Drake (13-10, 11-5 MVC) clinches the No. 2 seed for next week's Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in Moline, Ill. with a sweep of Valpo (11-10, 7-7 MVC). The Bulldogs are one game ahead of third place Illinois State (13-6, 10-6 MVC), which swept Drake, and the Redbirds end their season at Loyola (10-10, 8-8 MVC). The Bulldogs can finish no lower than third in the league standings.
Drake bounced back from the pair of losses at Illinois State with an in-state victory at UNI on Feb. 24. The Bulldogs broke open a close game at halftime, 35-31, with a 13-2 scoring burst that seized control and helped them earn their second victory over the Panthers.
Kierra Collier, who finished the game with 16 points, netted 10 points during the pivotal stretch. The Bulldogs shot 81.3 percent from the field in the third compared to UNI's 22.2 percent mark and scored 30 points in the period. It was the third time this season, Drake scored 30 or more points in a quarter.
Drake, which leads the nation in team assists with 481, handed out 27 dimes in the UNI win. It was the 12
th game this year the Bulldogs handed out 20 or more assists.
Grace Berg had 18 points in the victory to help her be named MVC Newcomer of the Week for a league-leading seventh time this season.
Following Saturday's game, Drake will honor
Monica Burich and
Mya Mertz on Senior Day. Burich, a graduate student, is in her third season playing for the Bulldogs after transferring from the University of Colorado in 2017-18. Mertz, a redshirt senior, joined the program in 2016-17 and is in her fourth season of playing, having missed the 2017-18 season due to injury. Burich has started every game this season, played in 119 games and scored 595 points in her collegiate career. Mertz has played in 81 career games, helped Drake win five MVC championships and been on three NCAA Tournament teams.
Valpo enters Friday on a four-game winning streak, including a road win over the Ramblers and two road victories at SIU last week. Valpo can finish third to seventh in the final standings. Shay Frederick averages a team-leading 14 points per game and leads the league in assists per game at 4.7.
Drake starts the MVC Tournament Friday, March 12 at either 5 p.m. or 8 p.m. at the TaxSlayer Center.
