SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The second-ranked Drury Lady Panthers followed the lead of their veterans and posted their highest point total of the season Thursday night as they turned back the Prairie Stars of Illinois-Springfield 99-74 at the O’Reilly Family Event Center and pushed their current winning streak to 22 in a row.
Graduate students Terrion Moore and Kaylee DaMitz-Holt paced a strong offensive attack, finishing with 22 and 21 points, respectively, while seniors Mia Henderson and Alana Findley chipped in with 14 and 11, as the Lady Panthers improved to 26-1 overall for the season and remained perfect in Great Lakes Valley Conference action with a mark of 19-0.
“They (veterans) just played really, really well tonight, and they’re definitely leading us both on and off the floor,” said Drury head coach Amy Eagan. “They want to leave a legacy here and I think this shows they’re doing that.”
The Lady Panthers owned a 51-30 advantage at halftime, as they forced the Prairie Stars into 14 turnovers and shot 54 percent from the floor. They pushed that margin to 79-47 after three periods and coasted home with one game remaining in the regular season before looking ahead to the postseason.
Drury bettered ISU on the boards 45-37 and shot just under 50 percent from the floor for the game, including 41 percent from beyond the arc on 9 of 22 attempts.
“We’re still working to clear up some stuff,” added Eagan. “We’re looking to add a few things, especially offensively, that we think might help us down the road.”
Ariyah Douglas captured game-scoring honors for the evening, as her 34 points were best for the Prairie Stars, who dropped to 4-23 overall and 4-15 in GLVC play.
The Lady Panthers will close out their regular home season on Saturday, Feb. 25th, when they host Lewis in a 3 pm game at the O’Reilly Family Event Center.
