IOWA CITY, Iowa – Drake women's basketball (3-1) suffered their first defeat of the 2023-24 season this evening. The Bulldogs traveled to in-state foe and No. 2 ranked Iowa (4-1), where the hosts handled Drake in a fast-paced affair, 113-90.

The Hawks started scoring immediately off the tip as All-American guard Caitlin Clark fed Molly Davis. The Bulldogs countered and jumped in front at 4-2 after scores from Taylor McAulay and Anna Miller. Drake's hot start continued as they built a four-point lead on Grace Berg's first basket just a couple possessions later.
 
Iowa hit the first three-pointer of the game after Clark started 0-2 from range. Davis found the bottom of the net with a swish that gave the Hawkeyes a 19-16 lead. Miller in turn snapped Drake's 0-for-5 start from deep to cut the defiict to just five. Davis added to her impressive opening period with a sprint to collect Kate Martin outlet after Drake turnover and a lay-up as time expired. Iowa led 37-34 after one.
 
Ashley Iiams came off the bench to start the second quarter and buried a three that trimmed Iowa's lead to 10 two minutes into second quarter. The Bulldogs hung around a 10-point deficit after a pair of McAulay free throws, but the Hawkeyes continued to inch out in front.
 
Center Sharon Goodman continued a solid first half of her own, reaching 11 points to give Iowa 54-41 lead. Guard Taylor McCabe then hit back-to-back corner threes to give Hawkeyes 60-41 lead, their largest of the game to that point.
 
The Bulldogs were held scoreless over final 3 ½ minutes of the half as Iowa outscored Drake 12-0 over that stretch. The No. 2 Hawkeyes led 64-41 at the break.
 
Drake came out of the halftime hiatus with some life. Katie Dinnebier and Berg scored two-straight to nibble into Iowa's lead. Davis answered again, though, with her second triple. The early-second half momentum for Drake was stifled until a McAulay hoop-and-harm. However, the Lino Lakes, Minn. native could not cash in on the and-one opportunity for Drake's only missed freebie of the evening.
 
Drake's energy paid off in the third as the Dogs outscored Iowa 25-24 in the frame, but the Hawkeyes led 88-66 after three.
 
The Bulldogs closed the matchup with another competitive fourth quarter as the stanza score was flipped. The Hawkeyes advantage was just too steep for Drake to rally from as Iowa won its sixth-straight game over the Bulldogs, 113-90.
 
Four Bulldogs netted double digits led by Grace Berg's 19. Anna Miller and Katie Dinnebier each added 15 while Courtney Becker and Taylor McAulay scored 10.
 
Miller led all players on the glass with 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs' first double-double of the year. Berg also dished out a team-high five assists.
 
Cailtin Clark scored 35 with 10 assists for the Hawkeyes while veteran guard Kate Martin added 25.
 
"It's all about growth," Suzie Glazer Burt Head Coach Allison Pohlman said. "We outrebounded a really good team, we won the third quarter…there's definitely positives. They had their shooting woes a game before and definitely didn't today. It comes down to the details…especially when you play a team of this caliber. As good as Iowa is, I think we have a really good squad [too]. To be able to win the third quarter, we looked refreshed and answered, and [I'm] proud of the growth."
 
The Bulldogs will return home to host their own multi-team event over Thanksgiving weekend. Drake is set to welcome Louisiana Tech, Maine, and Richmond to Des Moines for four games from Nov. 24-26.
 
 
NOTES

• The Drake loss was their first of the season. The Bulldogs are now 3-1 overall.
• Iowa has now won 10-straight over Drake in Iowa City. The Bulldogs' last win in Carver-Hawkeye Arena came on Nov. 25, 2001.
• Drake allowed 100+ points for the first time since a 100-83 overtime loss to UMass at the FIU Thanksgiving Classic last year.
• Iowa has now won six-straight over the Bulldogs.
• Junior post Anna Miller led all players on the glass with 10 rebounds. She added 15 points to complete a double-double, Drake's first of the season.
• Grace Berg led the Bulldogs with 19 points and five assists.
• Katie Dinnebier logged 15 points while Courtney Becker and Taylor McAulay each scored 10.
• Reserve guard Anna Brown splashed in two treys, the most on Drake's roster.