SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The women's basketball team lost their way after the first quarter, leading to defeat on the road against Drury University on Thursday, January 16th in Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) action at the O'Reilly Family Events Center in Springfield, Missouri. 

Score: McKendree University 66, Drury University 77 

Record: Bearcats 10-4, 6-2 GLVC | Panthers 11-4, 7-1 GLVC 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Looking to snag its first-ever win against the Panthers, McKendree drew the first four points of the game with a couple of inside shots from their forwards in freshman Kyra Taylor (Davenport, Iowa) and sophomore Baylie Parks (Lake Zurich, Ill.). Drury would take a minute to respond as they went for six straight from their own shots in the interior. For the next three minutes exactly, both sides would exchange taking the lead until the Panthers – who were up by two – ended the first quarter on a 9-0 run with their senior center Aiden Moxness contributing on the last four of such to give them a 22-14 lead. 

A 66% shooting spree in the second period of play by the Panthers helped them increase their lead steadily as Taylor drove in a trio of layups to give her six more points in the quarter as Drury's freshman guard Jazz Gray had six of her own. The Bearcats would still find themselves down 26-42 heading into halftime. 

With no team getting on a run to start the second half, the margin remained steady throughout. Parks notched 10 of her team's 16 points in the third period of play but was overshadowed by Drury's 11 made field goals as the home squad would be up 67-42 at the end of the third quarter. 

Parks began the final period of regulation with a quick four points as teammate freshman guard Tessa Crawford (Jerseyville, Ill.) checked in and immediately dropped five of her seven game points to pull within 16. Junior guard Chloe White (Brussels, Ill.) also went off in the final quarter, snagging 11 points within which include three made three-pointers, but it would not be enough as McKendree would fall on the road 66-77. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Parks led McKendree on the evening with 22 points on 8-14 shooting while going 6-6 from the line and grabbing nine boards (three offensive) with two assists and a steal. She has yet to score in single digits the entire season. 

• Taylor and White each finished with 11 points, as the former also collected five rebounds and a steal while the latter shot 3-6 from beyond the arc. 

• Drury had four of their players notch double figures as sophomores guard Rhi Gibbons and forward Sara Mendel each tabbed 13 points, as Gibbons collected a trio of steals while Mendel went 6-7 from the field and grabbed six rebounds. 

• McKendree shot 43.1% from the field, 20.0% from distance, and 85.7% from the stripe while the Panthers ended with 47.1%, 23.8%, and 50.0% respectively. 

• The Bearcats had a 12-11 edge in fast break points in the game. 

• Drury finished +5 in points off of turnovers, +4 in bench points, +8 in points int the paint, and +3 in second-chance points. 

UP NEXT

McKendree will be back in action on Saturday, January 18th, when they take on Southwest Baptist University at the John Q. Hammons Court in Springfield, Bolivar, with tip-off set for 1:00 PM CT. 

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