Casse Mogan drives against Drury in the second half Thursday night.
Box score
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. –
Rachel Lantry scored 18 points and made three free throws in the final minute as Northern Kentucky University held on for a 66-62 victory against Drury on Thursday night.
Casse Mogan added 13 points and five assists for NKU, which won its seventh straight game and improved to 16-6 overall, 10-3 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Mogan, a sophomore guard, extended her streak of scoring in double figures to 22 games.
The Norse built a 61-52 lead with 4:42 remaining, but Drury used a 10-2 run to pull within 63-62 with 1:25 left after Melanie Oliver made one of two free throws. Drury then forced an NKU turnover with its full-court pressure, but the Lady Panthers were unable to capitalize on two close-in shots.
Lantry came up with a key steal off an errant inbounds pass by Drury with 26 seconds remaining and converted two free throws to extend NKU's lead to 65-62. Drury's Katie Pritchard attempted a 3-pointer in the final seconds, but the shot missed and was rebounded by
Whitney Levering. Lantry sealed the win with 2.2 seconds left by making one of two free throws.
Drury dropped to 18-5 overall, 10-2 in the GLVC. The Lady Panthers had won five straight games entering Thursday but shot just 39.6 percent from the field.
Oliver scored 15 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for Drury, while teammate Ja'Nell Jones scored 19 points. Lindsay Ballweg added 14 points for the Lady Panthers, who lost despite finishing with a 34-25 edge in rebounds.
Levering scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds for NKU.
Brandi Rayburn and
Jessie Carmack each scored six points for the Norse, who shot 59.3 percent from the field in the first half to build a 40-32 lead at the break.
NKU now holds a 5-4 lead in the all-time series. It marked the first home victory for the Norse against the Lady Panthers, who won the previous two games in Regents Hall.
NKU is ranked ninth in the latest NCAA Division II Midwest Region poll, while Drury is fourth. The top eight teams will advance to the NCAA Tournament in March.
NKU plays host to Missouri S&T Saturday at 3 p.m.
