MIAMI, Fla. – In their first neutral site matchup of the 2022-23 season, the Drake women's basketball team dropped an overtime battle to the Minutewomen of Massachusetts, 100-83. The Bulldogs battled back from a first quarter deficit to take the lead prior to halftime but could not stave off a physical UMass squad.
 
Drake's loss moved them to an even 2-2 on the season while UMass improved to 5-1 through their first six games.
 
The Minutewomen jumped out to an early 10-4 lead as Drake struggled to find their footing in the opening period. UMass built a lead as large as 10 in the quarter before Drake regained some momentum.
 
Early in the second quarter, Drake went on a run to trim the UMass advantage to just four points and force head coach Tory Verdi to burn a timeout. Megan Meyer started her career day in the second quarter with multiple deep threes to give the Bulldogs a lead. Going into the halftime break, Drake held a 43-36 lead.
 
UMass rambled off another short run to start the third quarter. Eventually, Katie Dinnebier splashed in a three-pointer plus a foul to complete a pivotal four-point play.
 
The game remained a back-and-forth affair through the remainder of the second half. Despite the Bulldogs' effort to pull away at various occasions, UMass refused to go down quietly. The Minutewomen made just enough plays to tie the score at 83 all and force overtime.
 
In the extra period, UMass saw little resistance from Drake as the Bulldogs' turnovers mounted. The Minutewomen outscored Drake 17-0 in the additional five minutes to secure the 100-83 outcome.
 
Megan Meyer led Drake with a career-high 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field, including 7-of-13 from three-point territory. Meyer also added five assists and two rebounds.
 
"We all knew it was just a matter of time until Megan [Meyer] got back to her usual self," Suzie Glazer Burt Head Coach Allison Pohlman said after the game. "It's going to be fantastic to watch S.B. [Sarah Beth Gueldner] and Megan be the type of shooters they are."
 
Maggie Bair produced a double-double with 21 points and 12 boards plus three blocks, three steals, and two assists. Grace Berg scored 14 points with five rebounds while Katie Dinnebier added 13 points and seven assists.
 
"Throughout the course of the game with the ebbs and flows offensively we began to take advantage of what they were giving us," Coach Pohlman continued. "Unfortunately, in games where you commit 30 turnovers you don't get as many opportunities as you'd like.
 
"Our non-conference schedule has allowed us to play these games and grow," Pohlman added. "This is a resilient, tough group. They will take what they need to from today's game, move on, and come out refreshed [on Sunday]."
 
Drake will have a chance to bounce back on Sunday, Nov. 27 with their final game at the FIU Thanksgiving Classic. The Bulldogs will face off against Howard, losers of the tournament's opening game to host Florida International.


 
NOTES

• Megan Meyer netted new career-highs with 25 points and seven made threes.
• Meyer also tied her career high with 16 field goal attempts and 13 three-point attempts.
• Maggie Bair's 21 points were just one shy of her career best.
• Drake committed 30 turnovers, their most in a single game this season.
• UMass entered the season as the Atlantic 10 Conference favorite.
• Saturday's tilt was the first-ever meeting between Drake and UMass.
• The Bulldogs are now 8-6 all-time against Atlantic 10 opponents.
• Drake is now 2-2 overall with both losses coming in overtime.
• Friday's extra five minutes is the only scoreless overtime period in program history.