
The Drexel Dragons women’s basketball team routed the Elon Phoenix, 64-37, Sunday afternoon at the DAC. It was once again senior guard Amaris Baker who led Drexel in scoring with 24, her 13th straight contest where she scored double-digits.
Amy Mallon’s squad struggled out of the gate, debuting with a 3-6 record due to a fierce non-conference schedule. Following a two-week stretch where the Dragons only played one game, they jumped to a strong 5-2 start in their conference schedule, tying them for second place in the CAA.
After falling to the top squad in the conference, the North Carolina A&T Aggies, 57-64, the Dragons came back from behind to defeat Hampton on the road, 59-58, before defeating the top offense in the CAA, the Charleston Cougars, 58-56, at home. Friday’s victory was a truly strong defensive effort, as Charleston scored 19 fewer points than their season average and shot only 28 percent from the field.
Drexel retained the same defensive intensity throughout the weekend, which was on show from the start of the game. The Dragons took a huge 16-6 first-quarter lead, behind 7 points from Holy Cross transfer Cara McCormack, complemented by the team’s defense. Elon was held to 3/26 from the field in the first two quarters of the game, turning the ball over 12 times, nine of which were balls stolen by the Dragons. Drexel left the court at the half up 34-13, truly stunning a Phoenix squad that had won five straight contests before Sunday.
The second half saw similar success for the team, as Drexel outscored the Phoenix, 30-24, the rest of the way. Elon only reached double-digits in the fourth quarter, where they scored 15, which Drexel achieved in all but one quarter. Additionally, it was an unbalanced offensive effort, with Drexel seeing three players in double figures, while Elon’s Jayda Angel and Kierra Morrow led the squad with nine.
The Dragons saw contributions from the whole squad, but many pitched in for the huge victory in unusual ways. Numbers like 5’7” Grace O’Neill’s 12 rebounds, one short of a career high or Australian forward Chloe Hodges’ career high 10 assists jump out of the box score, and truly represent the collaborative winning effort. Hodges is even more noteworthy for her perfect shooting afternoon, as the Australian forward did not miss an attempt from the flood, beyond the arc or at the charity line.
Now with a shiny three-game winning streak under their belt, Drexel travels to Boston to face the Northeastern Huskies, losers of eleven straight, before hosting a struggling Towson Tigers squad at the DAC on Sunday. With an easier road matchup, and another game with the DAC effect in the Dragons’ future, it seems like Drexel could be on the road to their 11th straight postseason appearance.