SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Lady Panthers pulled away from Oklahoma Panhandle State early in the second half for a 92-54 win on Friday at the O’Reilly Family Event Center. The win was part of the first day of the Ramada Plaza Hotel & Oasis Convention Center Thanksgiving Classic.
Drury, ranked 18th, stayed unbeaten to improve to 6-0. Panhandle State dropped to 1-3.
The Lady Panthers owned a 47-33 lead at halftime and used a 17-3 run to start the third quarter to put the game out of reach.
“We came out a little bit slow but at halftime, we knew we needed energy and were able to generate energy from our bench with hustle plays and defensive stops,” said Drury head coach Molly Miller.
Freshman Hailey Diestelkamp led the Lady Panthers with 15 points and eight rebounds. Hannah Dressler, Briana Jones and Emily Miller all chipped in with 14 points each.
Drury owned a 40-21 rebounding advantage. The Lady Panthers forced 27 Panhandle State turnovers with 15 steals.
“Our goal was to force more than 20 turnovers and our pressure did that getting them to 27,” added Miller. “But on the other end, we were a little careless with the ball. We’ve got to play smarter because our opponent tomorrow will take advantage of that if we’re too careless.”
The Lady Panthers take on 2nd ranked Emporia State on Saturday in the second day of the Ramada Plaza Hotel & Oasis Convention Center Thanksgiving Classic. Tipoff is at 5:30 p.m. at the O’Reilly Family Event Center.
