CARBONDALE, Ill. – Drake women's basketball continued its stretch of solid play with another road win on Saturday afternoon, marking the Bulldogs fourth W in their last five outings. The Bulldogs got contributions from up and down their rotation to earn an 83-68 win at Southern Illinois.
 
Drake's offense sputtered on its first couple possessions as the host Salukis were able to leak out in front by just score or two. The Bulldog (10-18, 9-9) defense caught up and was able to force consecutive stops before a Quinn Vice fadeaway gave Drake its first lead of the day at 10-8.
 
The two teams traded blows until Ava Hawthorne buried the game's first long ball after a Maggie Taylor offensive rebound. Brooklin Dailey replicated the 3-pointer, this time from the opposite corner, as the Bulldogs lead grew toward the end of the opening quarter.
 
Kayla Cooper, who scored seven first quarter points for the Salukis (9-18, 6-12), was able to get SIU within one at the minute mark. But another defensive stop kept the Dogs in front, 22-19, at the break.
 
Drake jumped out to start the second stanza with two three pointers within its first four trips down the floor while adding a pair of Grace Knutson free throws and two other scores. Abbie Aalsma added to the flurry with a triple of her own, lifting the Drake lead into double figures and forcing SIU head coach Kelly Bond-White to exercise a timeout.
 
The Bulldogs maintained their double-digit cushion for much of the second period with SIU sneaking under that threshold on occasion. Hawthorne hit two freebies with about 90 seconds on the ticker and later fed Vice on a transition two to give Drake a 15-point lead.
 
Cooper knocked down a pair from the free throw line to halt a 6-0 Bulldog spurt, but Drake still led by a comfortable 46-33 margin at halftime.
 
The Bulldog offense slowed a bit in the third quarter, making just one three in 10 attempts, which allowed SIU to ease back a bit closer on the scoreboard. The Salukis did their best to get back in it at the charity stripe, going to the line on three straight possessions. Cooper added to the Salukis' comeback effort with a driving deuce out of a timeout.
 
The Salukis outscored Drake in the third quarter, but a Grace Knutson buzzer-beater kept the Dogs' lead in double figures, 64-54, with 10 minutes left to play.
 
Cooper and Alayna Kraus helped SIU continue their charge back into contention with a quick 5-point burst midway through the fourth quarter, but an Anna Becker floater and steal on the other end led to a deep connection by Aalsma to regain momentum.
 
The visitors then fell into another dry spell spanning more than three minutes, but the SIU offense could not find any rhythm of its own. Hawthorne eventually found Becker on a slick backdoor cut to end the streak with just over a minute left.
 
Trailing by multiple scores, SIU was forced to foul with hopes of extending the game. But the Bulldogs executed from the line, salting away their second win over the Salukis this season, 83-68.
 
"We did a good job with details, small things, how to hone in and get better at that," Suzie Glazer Burt Head Coach Allison Pohlman said. "Played with some amazing energy from basically start to finish. We did a great job in a stance on defense getting stops. We had a couple disappointing lapses in the second half, but overall impressive attention to detail today."
 
Anna Becker, who provided some late-game heroics in Drake's last win at Evansville on Thursday night, led the Dogs with 20 points to go along with four steals and three rebounds.
 
Other double-digit scorers included Abbie Aalsma with 18, and the trio of Ava Hawthorne, Brooklin Dailey, and Grace Knutson with 11 apiece. Hawthorne led Drake with seven assists while Knutson grabbed five boards, just one shy of her career best.
 
Maggie Taylor led Drake's rebounding effort with nine.
 
Drake final two regular season games will both take place in the state of Iowa, but they will be split between home and the road. The Bulldogs will host Illinois State on Mar. 5 before ending the regular season slate at rival UNI on Mar. 8.
 
Notes

• Drake's win improved its records to 10-18 overall and an even 9-9 in conference play.
• The Bulldogs have won four of their last five games.
• Drake is now 6-6 away from home.
• Drake shot 46.2 percent (30-65) from the field and 28.6 percent (8-28) from 3-point range.
• Drake outrebounded Southern Illinois, 42-29.
• Anna Becker led the Dogs with 20 points to go along with four steals and three rebounds.
• Abbie Aalsma scored 18, and the trio of Ava Hawthorne, Brooklin Dailey, and Grace Knutson had 11 apiece. 
• Hawthorne led Drake with seven assists and added six rebounds.
• Knutson grabbed five boards, just one shy of her career best.
• Maggie Taylor led Drake's rebounding effort with nine.
• Drake now leads the series with SIU by a 72-30 margin.
• The Bulldogs have won their last seven games against the Salukis.