SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The 7^th-ranked Drury Lady Panthers kicked off the Oasis Hotel & Convention Center Thanksgiving Classic with a 77-60 decision over the Cedarville Yellowjackets, Tuesday evening at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
 
After taking control of the game in the opening half, the Lady Panthers were able to holdoff a spirited third period shooting effort from the Yellowjackets and held on to improve to 4-0 on the season. 
 
Graduate student Kaylee DaMitz-Holt was the spark for Drury.  After going scoreless the opening ten minutes of play, she poured in ten key second quarter points and would finish with a team-best 21 for the game.
 
"Players like Kaylee have been through it and they get it," said Drury head coach Amy Eagan.  "I think kids with experience like Kaylee know how to stay the course and that's important."
 
The Lady Panthers used their full-court defensive pressure to force the Yellowjackets into 14 first half turnovers, which lead to a second quarter scoring explosion, that saw them in front by as many as 21 points, before settling for a 40-22 cushion at the half.
 
Cedarville however was able to trim the lead to nine points at 61-52 to open the final quarter before the Lady Panthers outscored them 16-8 down the stretch to put the game away.
 
"I was a little disappointed," added Eagan.  "Because I think great teams put teams away and we had the opportunity to do that and we let them hang around a bit, so I want to see a little more grit out there."
 
Freshman Reese Schaaf, with her best showing the season, finished with 14 points for the Lady Panthers, while senior Alana Findley added 12.
 
The Yellowjackets (1-2) were paced by a 22-point effort from Lydia Sweeney.
 
The Lady Panthers are back in action Wednesday, November 23rd, when they conclude the holiday classic event against Ashland in a 5:30 pm game at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
 
 
#allweDUiswin