PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Despite
suffocating Drexel, the Colonial Athletic Association's top field goal
percentage offense, to shoot just 28.6 percent in the first half, the William
and Mary women's basketball team fell to the Dragons, 62-47, on Sunday
afternoon at the Daskalakis Center. The
setback drops the Tribe to 6-20 overall and 4-11 in CAA play, while Drexel
improves to 19-7 on the season and 12-3 in league action.
Senior Emily Correal led the Tribe with 20 points and seven
rebounds, while classmate Janine Aldridge chipped in with 12 points, which
included two 3-pointers. Sophomore
Jazmen Boone finished the afternoon with five points, while junior Kaitlyn
Mathieu ripped down six rebounds.
Correal's 20 points marked the 18th time in her career that the
Venetia, Pa., native has reached the 20-point mark, which ranks fourth in the
Tribe record books. W&M finished the
game shooting 37.3 percent (19-of-51) from the field, while it held the
advantage in points in the paint (20-16) and bench points (11-8).
In the opening 20 minutes of action, the Tribe's stout
defensive effort forced Drexel to shoot 10-of-35 from the field (28.6 percent). Play opened with the Dragons racing out to a
14-6 lead after Hollie Mershon's triple at the 14:45 juncture.
The Tribe countered as it netted eight of the next 10 points
as Correal's foul shot got W&M to within 16-14 with 9:12 left to go. Drexel scored the next four points as its
slim margin reached four, 20-16, with 7:58 left to play in the half.
With the stanza coming to a close, the Green and Gold used a
quick 5-0 spurt as it got to within 30-27 at intermission. Aldridge accounted for all five points as her
3-pointer at the 1:04 mark cut the deficit to 30-25. Moments later, her coast-to-coast lay up with
39 seconds remaining proved to be the half's final points.
An energized Tribe squad got off to a hot start in second
half action as Aldridge scored the stanza's opening four points, the latter, a
jumper at the 19:31 mark gave the Tribe a 31-30 advantage.
However, Drexel responded with a run as Mershon's layup gave
the Dragons and 43-33 advantage with 11:20 left in regulation. Back-to-back jumpers from sophomore Kyla
Kerstetter and senior Taylor Hilton got the Green and Gold to within 43-37 with
8:54 remaining.
After a surging W&M squad cut the deficit to six, the
Dragons put the contest out of reach as it scored seven unanswered points. Meghan Creighton's 3-pointer at the 7:05 mark
pushed the Drexel margin to 50-37 as the Tribe didn't get within single digits
for the remainder of the contest.
Meghan Creighton led Drexel with 20 points, while Hollie
Mershon chipped in with 16 points and eight assists. The Dragons finished the contest
shooting 38.3 (23-of-60) percent from
the field, which included eight 3-pointers on 26 attemtps.
The Tribe returns to action as it host Georgia State on
Tuesday, Feb. 26. Tip-off at Kaplan
Arena in Williamsburg, Va., is scheduled for 7 p.m. and fans can follow the
action online at TribeAthletics.com with video and stats.
