PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The William & Mary women's basketball team couldn't overcome a big Drexel first quarter, falling to the host Dragons 65-48 on Friday night. With the setback, the Tribe falls to 15-8, 5-7 in Colonial Athletic Association play, while DU improves to 17-6, 8-4 in league action.
 
Sophomore Bianca Boggs led W&M with 11 points, five rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Junior Abby Rendle also added 11 points, while grabbing four rebounds, and an assist.
 
Leading 9-6, Drexel closed the first quarter on a 16-4 run, building a 15-point lead after the first 10 minutes. Bailey Greenberg started the run with a jumper before Jessica Pellechio knocked one down. After a Masaquel jumper, Ana Ferariu went coast-to-coast for a lay-up before Sarah Curran hit a 3-pointer. Rendle responded with a lay-up, but the Dragons scored the final five points all from Ferariu to make it 25-10 after one.
 
The Dragons continued their hot streak and scored the first eight points of the second quarter. A pair of free throws from Curran opened the scoring, before Aubree Brown hit a free throw. Pellechio hit a jumper to extend to Drexel's largest lead at 33-12.
 
W&M closed the half on an 8-0 to build some momentum heading into the locker room. Freshman Victoria Reynolds started the spurt with a steal and a lay-up, before Rendle and Boggs each had lay-ups.  Rendle hit two from the stripe to make the score 36-21 at the break.
 
Trailing 38-25, the Tribe used a 5-0 run to cut the lead single digits for the first time since the first quarter. Boggs accounted for all the scoring in the run. She completed a traditional 3-point play, before she hit a lay-up to cut the score to 38-30.
 
The Dragons responded with a 5-0 run of its own to restore a double-digit lead and never looked back. Sara Woods opened the spurt with a lay-up, before Meghan Creighton connected on a 3-pointer to make it 46-32 with 3:04 left in the third quarter.
 
W&M again used a 5-0 run at the beginning of the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 12, but that's as close as they'd come. Boggs got to the hoop for a lay-up, before senior Marlena Tremba connected on a 3-pointer making it 51-39 with 7:26 left in regulation.
 
For the fourth straight game, W&M won the battle of the boards 34-33. Senior Alexandra Masaquel grabbed a game-high nine boards to pace the Tribe's efforts on the glass.
 
Pellechio scored a game-high 15 points to lead three Dragons in double-figures. She added two rebounds and one assist. Curran chipped in 14 points, four rebounds, and four assists, while Creighton rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points and one assist.
 
The Green and Gold returns to Williamsburg for a two-game homestand starting on Sunday, Feb. 12 as they host Towson. The game will serve as the Tribe's Pink Game and all fans wearing pink will receive $1 tickets.