Women's Basketball Snaps Skid at Hampton, 57-36

Saturday, December 5

Hampton, Va.

3:00 p.m.

Drexel University

3-4

Hampton

0-7

DREXEL

Hampton

Photo by: Greg Carroccio

Women's Basketball Snaps Skid at Hampton, 57-36

12/5/2015 5:02:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

HAMPTON, Va. – The Drexel women's basketball team got a lot accomplished on Saturday. The Dragons went to Hampton and defeated the Lady Pirates 57-36, snapping a three-game losing skid and earning their first road victory of the season. They also flirted with a team defensive record that they have held for seven years, and avenged a loss to Hampton in the first round of last season's WNIT.

The 36 points scored by Hampton were a season low for a Drexel opponent, and nearly set a Drexel program record for fewest points allowed. That mark remains 30 in a 59-30 win over Hofstra on Jan. 6, 2008. Hampton, which had just 11 points at halftime, did not eclipse 30 points until just 3:30 remained in the game.

Rachel Pearson led all scorers with 16 points, including nine as the Dragons pulled away in the third quarter. She hit five of her eight three-point attempts, a season high for threes. Sarah Curran and Jessica Pellechio each netted 15, wit Curran adding nine rebounds. Meghan Creighton had seven assists and six boards along with four steals, while Carrie Alexander chipped in five points and Kelsi Lidge added four.

After three consecutive losses, the Dragons got just the start they were looking for in the first quarter. Putting together perhaps their best period of the season on both ends of the court, Drexel raced out to a 19-6 lead by the end of the quarter. Jessica Pellechio, earning a start after a season-high 19 points against Vanderbilt, picked up right where she left off with 10 points in that first period. Sarah Curran added six as Drexel shot 8-for-13 from the floor and held the Pirates to just 2-for-11 shooting.

While the defense remained terrific in the second quarter, the Drexel offense could not keep up. The Dragons did not hit a field goal in the second period, going 2-for-4 from the free throw line for their only points of the period. Meanwhile, Hampton was 2-for-10 from the floor and shaved just three points off Drexel's lead. The teams went into halftime with Drexel on top 21-11.

After halftime, Rachel Pearson went to work to re-ignite the Dragons' offense. She drained a three-pointer for the first points of the period, her 200th career trey. She would hit two more as Drexel extended its lead as far out as 26 points with 1:38 to play. After handing out just a pair of assists in the first half, Drexel point guard Meghan Creighton dished out four in the third quarter to help facilitate the newly-revitalized Drexel offense.

Drexel led by as many as 28 in the fourth quarter when they pushed out to a 52-24 lead with 8:16 remaining on an unusual sequence that saw the Dragons score six points on a single possession. Alexander fed Pearson on the right wing for a three-pointer at the 8:27 mark. Meanwhile, off the ball, Hampton's Georgianna Gilbeaux committed a foul as the shot was in the air. Drexel was awarded possession, and this time it was Pearson feeding Curran for a three-ball from the top of the key.

The Dragons will return to Philadelphia for their next game, but it will not be at the Daskalakis Athletic Center. Drexel will head out to Saint Joseph's on Sunday, Dec. 13 to take on the Hawks at Hagan Arena. That game will tip off at 2:00 p.m.