96.9 The Jock ESPN Radio Springfield Missouri
By: Ed Beach
The Drury Lady Panthers play their final regular season home game on Tuesday as they host William Jewell at 6:05 pm at the O’Reilly Family Event Center. Drury will wear special pink jerseys to honor those affected by breast cancer. Tuesday’s game was originally scheduled for Jan. 14 but was postponed due to issues with COVID-19.
The Lady Panthers are 14-1 and are ranked fourth in last week’s NCAA-II coaches’ poll. Drury has clinched the Great Lakes Valley Conference’s West Division title in the regular season and is in second place in the league’s Point Rating System used to determine the eight-team field and the seeding for the conference tournament. Drury is coming off of a 100-57 win over Southern Indiana on Saturday.
William Jewell is 11-9 and winners of four straight games. The Cardinals defeated Quincy, 62-54, on Thursday in their last game. In addition to four consecutive victories, William Jewell has won six of their last seven games and has gone 8-3 since Jan. 16.
Drury leads the all-time series against William Jewell 15-3 and has won 10 straight against the Cardinals. Tuesday’s game is the second meeting this season between the two teams. The Lady Panthers won at William Jewell 81-58 on Dec. 5 in Liberty, Missouri. While Drury has won 10 straight against the Cardinals, none of the games have been close. The ten games have been decided by an average of 37.3 points per game.
Tuesday’s game starts the final week of the regular season for the Lady Panthers. Drury heads on the road in the last two games before the conference tournament starts. The Lady Panthers are at Illinois Springfield for a 4:30 pm game on Thursday, then travel to Quincy for a 1 pm game against the Hawks on Saturday.
The GLVC Tournament bracket will be announced when games are concluded on Saturday night.
Lady Panthers are best in the GLVC-West…again
The Drury Lady Panthers have clinched the West Division championship in the GLVC. It marks the program’s 16th regular season conference title and their eighth in a row.
For the last two years, the GLVC was not divided into divisions, but the Lady Panthers posted the best league record and the conference’s top Point Rating System to finish on top in the league standings.
Drury won the GLVC-West for five straight years, from 2014 to 2018. The Lady Panthers also captured the division crown in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, and 2012. Drury also won regular season championships in the Heartland Conference in 2005 and 2004.
In the 16 years, Drury has been in the GLVC, the Lady Panthers have won a regular season title 14 times.
Paige Robinson cracks DU’s top 10 on all-time scoring list
Junior Paige Robinson became the 18th player in program history to top 1,000 points in her career when she reached the milestone on Nov. 29 as part of a 37-point game at Lindenwood. The Bethany, Illinois native carries 1,262 points into her next game and is 10th on Drury’s all-time scoring list. She passed Heather Harman (2014-18) on Thursday when she scored 28 points at McKendree. Robinson is 66 points away from reaching Hope Hunt (2000-05) for 9th all-time.
Drury All-Time Scoring Leaders
1. Hailey Diestelkamp (2016-present) 2,321
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8. Lindsay Ballweg (2007-10) 1,502
9. Hope Hunt (2000-05) 1,350
10. Paige Robinson (2018-pres.) 1,284
11. Heather Harman (2014-18) 1,229
Robinson 7th in all-time three’s; Payton Richards is 9th
Paige Robinson ranks 7th in Drury history in three-pointers made. She has 195 career treys while senior Payton Richards is 9th in that category with 179.
Drury All-Time Leaders – 3’s
1. Katie Pritchard (2008-13) 255
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4. Alice Heinzler (2014-18) 210
5. Lindsay Ballweg (2007-10) 198
6. Paige Wilson (2013-17) 196
7. Paige Robinson (2018-pres.) 195
8. Carrie Colwell (2000-03) 181
9. Payton Richards (2017-pres.) 179
10. Heather Harman (2014-18) 161
Richards cracks top 10 in assists
Payton Richards recently moved up to 9th on Drury’s all-time list in career assists. She enters her next game 13 away from Annie Armstrong for eighth on the career assist chart.
Drury All-Time Leaders – Assists
1. Daejah Bernard (2016-20) 607
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7. Katie Pritchard (2008-13) 317
8. Annie Armstrong (2013-16) 302
9. Payton Richards (2017-pres.) 291
10. Jill Curry (2000-04) 269
QUICK FACTS
Records
Drury: 14-1 (14-1 GLVC), #4 NCAA-II (WBCA poll)
William Jewell: 11-9 (11-9 GLVC)
Head Coaches
DU: Amy Eagan (1st year, 14-1/12th year, 201-143)
WJ: Jill Slominski (25th year, 453-319)
Last Game
DU: Won vs Lewis 100-57 (Sat. at DU)
WJ: Won vs Quincy 62-54 (Feb. 18 at WJ)
Last Meeting
Drury 81 William Jewell 58 (Dec. 5, 2020 at WJ)
All-Time Series
Drury 15-3
Up Next
Drury at Illinois Springfield – Thur., Feb. 25, 2021
4:30 pm – Recreation and Athletic Center – Springfield, Ill.
