by The Valpo women’s basketball team finished off a season sweep of Drake and earned the first win in program history on the road over the Bulldogs, going into the Knapp Center and handing Drake a 72-65 defeat on Friday evening. Grace White (Ojibwe/Sioux) led the way for Valpo, which overcame a double-figure deficit to earn a win for the third time during conference play, with 20 points, 11 rebounds and six steals.
How It Happened
- An early 10-0 run for Drake gave the Bulldogs a 13-4 lead just over six minutes into the game, but Valpo rallied with eight of the next 10 points to make it a 3-point game.
- The Bulldogs extended their lead back to nine points late in the quarter before White connected on a 3-pointer off a feed from Ilysse Pitts (Aurora, Ill./Montini Catholic) with the shot clock running down in the final seconds of the period to make it 21-15 at the end of the first.
- White hit another triple on the first offensive possession of the second quarter to cut Drake’s lead to 21-18, but the Bulldogs scored eight of the next nine to push their lead into double figures at 29-19 with six minutes left in the second quarter.
- Valpo trailed by seven points, 39-32, at intermission.
- The Beacons went on a 12-3 run over the first four minutes of the second half, with a triple by Caitlin Morrison (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) tying the game and a driving layup from Shay Frederick (Greenville, Wis./Hortonville) at the 6:06 mark giving Valpo a 44-42 lead, its first lead since the opening minutes of the game.
- The teams vied for control the remainder of the third quarter, as neither squad gained more than a 3-point lead. Drake led by three inside of the final minute before Maya Dunson (Dayton, Ohio/Wayne [Loyola]) drove for a basket at the rim to bring Valpo within 51-50 with 10 minutes to play.
- Valpo and Drake traded baskets in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, but after Drake connected on a second-chance basket with 8:27 to play in the game, the Beacons held the Bulldogs off the board for over three minutes.
- In that stretch, Valpo scored nine straight points — five from Carie Weinman (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South [Denver]) and four from Frederick — to push its advantage to eight points approaching the halfway mark of the quarter.
- Just over a minute later, Weinman converted a layup while being fouled for a conventional 3-point play, giving the Beacons their largest lead at 64-55 with 4:05 to go.
- Valpo’s lead was still eight at the 3:07 mark as Weinman made two free throws. Drake came back with seven points over three possessions while holding Valpo scoreless to close to within 66-65 with 1:33 remaining.
- After a Valpo miss, the Bulldogs had the ball inside the final minute with a chance to take the lead. But White came up with a blocked shot on Drake’s first attempt and its second effort was off the mark to give Valpo possession with the lead with 48 seconds remaining.
- After running down the shot clock, Olivia Brown (East Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids [St. Bonaventure]) drove the lane and found Weinman with a beautiful pass on a back cut for an easy layup to make it 68-65 with 24.9 seconds remaining.
- Weinman then got it done on the defensive end, coming up with a steal to ensure the Bulldogs would not get a shot to potentially tie the game. Valpo iced the game at the charity stripe, with first White and then Frederick hitting two free throws apiece to cap the scoring.
