DES MONIES, Iowa - Just one day removed from Halloween, the Winona State University women's basketball team put a scare in NCAA Division I Drake University on Wednesday night, racing out to a first-quarter lead over the Bulldogs in exhibition action.
Winona State led Drake by a 25-16 scoreline after the first period and trailed the 2022-23 Midwest Valley Conference tournament champs by just a point at halftime, 39-38.
Key Details: Drake 94, Winona State 60
Attendance: 1,609
How It Happened
Head coach
Ana Wurtz saw her team enjoy a hot start to the contest, as the Warriors jumped out to a 9-3 lead early on.
Olivia Gamoke,
Kaitlyn Schrimpf and
Emma Carpenter all connected on 3-pointers inside the first three minutes of play. When Drake attempted a comeback with a bucket down low to pull within 9-5, Schrimpf delivered from downtown again, knocking down a 3-pointer to stretch the Warrior advantage to 12-5. Schrimpf would go on to hit another triple moments later, allowing WSU to enjoy a 19-6 over the Bulldogs, a 2023 NCAA Division I tournament team. Drake would eventually work their way back into the contest, pulling to within nine points at 25-16 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw the Bulldogs take a page out of the Warrior playbook, opening the stanza with a flurry of points to take a 27-25 lead. However, Winona State's
Hailey Markworth scored a layup at the 6:44 mark of the frame to draw the team's level at 27-27. Winona State and Drake would trade offensive runs for most of the rest of the second quarter, with an
Olivia Gamoke jumper spotting WSU a late lead at 38-37 before a pair of made free throws by the Bulldog's Katie Dinnebeir gave the hosts a narrow 39-38 margin at the halftime buzzer.
At the Half: Drake 39, Winona State 38
After the break, Drake would go on to score the first ten points of the third quarter, beginning to pull away from Winona State. Stepping up for her team,
Lindsey Hahn connected on a 3-pointer to snap the Bulldogs scoring streak, and Hahn would go on to hit another triple moments later to keep WSU within range of the home side. After an 11-point Drake run in the middle of the third frame, Hahn connected again from 3-point range.
Olivia Gamoke would add a mid-range jumper as the quarter wound down, moving the scoreboard to 68-52 in favor of the Bulldogs.
In the final frame, Drake would use a 12-point outburst to distance the Bulldogs from the Warriors.
Emma Kilpatrick and
Hailey Markworth both added buckets for Winona State in the fourth quarter.
Stephanie Dasbach would compete the Winona State scoring with a pair of free throws with 1:34 to play, allowing WSU to reach the 60-point plateau. Drake's Ashley IIams would tally the final five points with a pair of free throws and a triple in the final minute of play, moving the final score to 94-60.
As a Team
Winona State was 10-of-17 (58.8%) from the floor and 5-of-8 (62.5%) from behind the arc in the first quarter.
WSU would finish 23-of-61 overall and connected on 9-of-21 3-pointers in the game.
The Warriors were 5-of-8 at the charity stripe; Drake shot 28 free throws, connecting on 20.
WSU saw 27 points come off the bench versus the Bulldogs
Stat Standouts
Four Warriors each hit for nine points;
Emma Carpenter,
Olivia Gamoke,
Lindsey Hahn and
Kaitlyn Schrimpf.
Schrimpf would finish the night going 3-of-4 from 3-point land, while teammate Lindsay Hahn was 3-of-5 for triples.
Hailey Markworth hauled in a team-high five boards off the bench for the Warriors.
Up Next
Winona State will begin regular season play on the road at Missouri Western State University. WSU and MWSU will tip off at 7:30 pm on Friday, Nov. 10 in St. Joseph, Mo.
