BOLIVAR, MO — Big games have become a norm this season for post player Sara Mendel of the Drury Lady Panthers.
A big example came Monday night, Dec. 1, when the 6-foot-2 junior from Ava scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a nail-biting 58-57 victory at Southwest Baptist.
Drury post player Sara Mendel is averaging 15.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and is hitting 63.5 percent of her field-goal attempts this season.She grabbed the final rebound with one second left. She also added three assists and two blocked shots during 32 minutes of action in the physical game.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“There’s no doubt she carried us,” said Drury head coach Kaci Bailey. “She’s playing at a high level.”
How high? She’s setting team and personal records and is ranked in the top five of three statistical categories in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
Mendel and senior guard Rhi Gibbons of Nixa became the first Drury duo to score double-digit points in five straight games to open a season. Make that six: Gibbons scored 15 against Southwest Baptist.
Gibbons grabbed nine rebounds as the duo combined for 20 of the Lady Panther’s 32 rebounds in their GLVC opener.
Drury (3-3, 1-0 GLVC) plays at Truman State on Thursday, Dec. 4, in the second of three straight GLVC road games.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMendel set a personal best with five blocks on Nov. 25 in a comeback victory over Missouri Southern and now has nine double-doubles for her career.
Mendel is averaging 15.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and is hitting 63.5 percent of her field-goal attempts. She connected on 8-of-13 shots (61.5 percent) against Southwest Baptist.
Drury holds a 19-3 all-time record against SBU and has won 12 of the last 13 meetings. The teams meet again Feb. 19 at O’Reilly Family Event Center.
Panthers Earn First ACHA Top-5 Ranking
Drury D-I hockey jumped to No. 5 in the most recent American Collegiate Hockey Association computer rankings following a successful 2-1-0 trip to Chicago for the ACHA/Capper Hockey Chicago Classic.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEntering an ACHA D-I top-5 ranking for the first time in school history was just one of the multiple milestones achieved last weekend by the Panthers.
Drury delivered a 7-2 win in game one over 32nd-ranked Arizona State, which included goals from senior Francis Young-Menard, juniors Jamison St. Clair and Matthew Johnston, sophomores Luke Aston, and Anmol Garcha and freshmen Nolan Bowsher and Grady Sterling-Ponech. Junior Brett Sweet picked up his fifth win of the season, stopping 22-of-24 shots in the decisive victory.
Drury's D-I hockey team won its first 16 games this season.The win marked the 150th ACHA D-I win for head coach Jeremy Law, including 42 wins in two seasons at Drury.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMilestones behind them, the Panthers extended their undefeated streak to 16 games the following evening with a 6-3 win over ninth-ranked Jamestown. Young-Menard and Bowsher picked up where they left off in game one, combining for three goals, including two from Bowsher.
The Panthers incredible 16-game winning streak to start the season came to an end in game three of the weekend, as they fell to No. 2 Ohio University, 6-2.
The Panthers (16-1) will take on No. 21 Missouri State for the first time as a D-I program this weekend (Dec. 5-6) at Brightspeed Ice Park.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Drury's Mendel steps up for Lady Panthers, hockey team ranked No. 5
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