In another stellar defensive performance, the Drexel Dragons (22-9) knocked off the James Madison Dukes, 50-34, on Saturday afternoon in the CAA semi-finals. Senior guard Hollie Mershon led the way with 21 points and senior forward Taylor Wootton had 13 points and eight rebounds.
Drexel started the hot shooting early and raced out to a 20-8 lead thanks to the hot three-point shooting of Mershon and freshman guard Meghan Creighton. But shortly after that, about midway through the first half, Mershon picked up her second foul and was forced to the bench.
JMU took full advantage and went on a 12-3 run to cut the lead to three points at 23-20. But in one of the biggest shots of her career thus far, Creighton knocked down a big three near the end of the half to stop the bleeding and gave Drexel a 26-20 lead at the half.
The Dragons clamped down on defense in the second half, holding the Dukes to only 14 points in the second period. Last night, Drexel held William & Mary's two leading scorers, Emily Correal and Janine Aldridge, to zero points combined. Against JMU, Drexel held their two leading scorers, Tarik Hislop and Kirby Burkholder, to 16 points on a combined 7-of-28 shooting when they normally average a combined 31 points-per-game.
Junior guard Fiona Flanagan chipped in with seven points and a team-high nine rebounds and hit a big three late in the second half to ice the victory for the Dragons.
Drexel now moves on to tomorrow's title game to battle nationally-ranked Delaware in what will be a rematch of last year's championship game.
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