EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Drake's quest for a third straight berth into the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament was halted in the highest-scoring game in the history of the Credit Union 1 Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Tournament. Top-seeded Murray State rode a torrid start to a 96-90 victory over No. 4 seed Drake at the Ford Center on Saturday to start the semifinal round.
 
Drake, getting a career-high 45 points from Katie Dinnebier, closed with a rush after trailing by 24, but had too much ground to make up against the nation's highest-scoring team.
 
Murray State (24-7), in its third year in the league, will play in the championship game for the first time at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Drake (22-11) had come into the tournament seeking its third straight title and 10th overall.
 
The 186 combined points were the most ever scored in MVC tourney play, easily topping the old mark of 179. Dinnebier's 45 points, including 29 in the second half, put her at No. 3 on the tournament's single-game list behind only Missouri State's Jackie Stiles, who had games of 56 and 47. Dinnebier has been the MVC's Jackie Stiles Player of the Year the past two seasons.
 
Young had plenty of backing as Ava Learn, Halli Poock and Haven Ford each scored 18 points for the Racers, who shot 71 percent in a 35-point first quarter that left the Bulldogs scrambling to catch up.
 
The Bulldogs almost did. Dinnebier scored 11 points in an 18-6 run that pulled Drake to 94-90 when their star converted a three-point play with 9.2 seconds left. Drake fouled immediately, Ford sank two free throws and the Bulldogs never got off another shot.
 
Abbie Aalsma added 12 points for Drake, which shot 51 percent in the second half to make it a game. Anna Miller scored eight points and Courtney Becker had seven points and nine rebounds. Shannon Fornshell and Ava Hawthorne also scored seven for the Bulldogs.
 
"What an amazing, hard-fought game," said Allison Pohlman, the Bulldogs' Suzie Glazer Burt Head Coach. "We dug ourselves a hole in the first quarter and would have that back because our second half was indicative of the heart these women have. [I'm] really proud of our entire team and proud to be a part of Drake University."
 
Murray State ran its offense to perfection in the opening quarter, finding openings for a variety of 3-point shots and layups. The Racers went 6-for-8 deep in the quarter and were 12-for-17 overall in taking a 35-20 lead.  They cooled only slightly after and took a 59-43 lead into half, shooting almost 61 percent over the first two quarters and making all 11 free throws.
 
Young made 9 of 11 shots in the first half, including two 3-pointers, but Drake did a better job against her after that, and she finished 12-for-22. She ran her career total in three MVC years to 1,964 points, which ranks No. 14 all-time in the league.
 
But not even the highly efficient Racers could maintain that pace and Drake stormed back behind Dinnebier, who ran her career total to 2,063 points. That ranks No. 11 on the Valley's list and No. 7 at Drake.
 
Her 45 points Saturday matched the sixth-best single-game total in Drake history and her 772 points this season rank No. 5 at Drake and No. 7 in the MVC.
 
The Bulldogs' 2024-25 season may not be over just yet as qualification to the WBIT or WNIT are still to be determined.
 
 
NOTES

• Drake fell to to 22-11 overall on the season.
• Drake is now 2-3 when playing on a neutral court this season.
• Drake shot 47.3 percent (35-74) from the field. The Dogs are 17-3 when shooting 45 percent or better this season.
• Drake outrebounded Murray State 37-32.
• The Bulldogs' bench outscored Murray State's reserves 11-5.
• Drake also outscored the Racers 6-5 on second chances and 54-32 in the paint.
• Katie Dinnebier led Drake in scoring with a career high 45 points on 17-of-33 shooting. She added five assists, six rebounds, and four steals.
•  Dinnebier's 45 points, including 29 in the second half, put her at No. 3 on the tournament's single-game list behind only Missouri State's Jackie Stiles, who had games of 56 and 47.
• Dinnebier has been the MVC's Jackie Stiles Player of the Year the past two seasons.
• Abbie Aalsma added 12 points for Drake, which shot 51 percent in the second half to make it a game.
• Anna Miller scored eight points and Courtney Becker had seven points and nine rebounds.
• Shannon Fornshell and Ava Hawthorne also scored seven for the Bulldogs.
• The Bulldogs are now 8-2 in MVC Tournament play under Suzie Glazer Burt Head Coach Allison Pohlman. Saturday's loss snapped a 6-game winning streak in MVC tournament action.
• Drake is now 53-22 all-time in MVC Tournament action including records of 27-10 in the quarterfinals, 5-5 as the fourth seed, and 0-1 against Murray State.
• Drake is now 5-2 all-time against Murray State with both losses coming this season.