Redbirds soar to semifinals after 69-62 win over Drake

Image courtesy of Illinois State Athletics.

CORALVILLE, Iowa — The Illinois State University women’s basketball team took away the March Madness hopes of the surging Drake University Bulldogs with a 69-62 win in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinals.

The Redbirds entered the matchup after losing at Drake, 73-55, in their second-to-last regular-season game of the 2025-26 campaign. In Coralville, Iowa, Illinois State made critical adjustments at key moments to defeat the Bulldogs and advance to the MVC Tournament semifinals against Evansville.

Illinois State saw sophomores Trista Fayta and Doneelah Washington score 22 and 20 points, respectively. The sophomores, along with senior Addison Martin, each played more than 36 minutes. Martin finished with nine points and eight rebounds, while Jaeden Pratt added eight points and 11 rebounds. Washington was also just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds.

Drake came out hot, leading 16-13 after the first quarter. The Bulldogs pushed the pace, and their aggressive defense slowed the Redbirds, who did not play the day before like Drake. They routed Valparaiso in the previous round.

After the break between quarters, the Redbirds outscored and outrebounded the Bulldogs, slowing the game with strong guard play from Fayta and freshman Kya Hurt. The change in tempo helped Illinois State take a 35-30 lead into halftime.

Coming out of the half, the Redbirds stuck with the same game plan, holding Drake scoreless for more than four minutes. The Bulldogs struggled with turnovers and poor passing to start the second half.

Illinois State entered the fourth quarter with a 51-41 lead and continued to control the tempo with patient offense and strong decision-making. Guards Fayta and Hurt helped manage the game down the stretch, allowing the Redbirds to maintain the lead despite late fouls and turnovers that allowed Drake to close the gap.

Former Illinois State player Abbie Aalsma led Drake with 24 points in 35 minutes, putting together an impressive performance in her final game as a Bulldog.

The quarterfinal drew a strong crowd at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa, located less than an hour from Drake’s campus and nearly three hours from Illinois State.

“We want to be a program where everyone feels welcome and feels like they have a stake in what we do,” head coach Kristen Gillespie said. “I know our crowd will be bigger tomorrow. I told the team this is cool now — just wait until you see tomorrow.”

The No. 3-seed Illinois State Redbirds will face the No. 10-seed Evansville Purple Aces in the MVC semifinal at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Live coverage will be available at WZND.com, where Cason Schingoethe, Jaden Cohn, and Jason Zaehler will have the call beginning at 3:50 p.m.

For all things Redbird basketball, stay tuned to 103.3 WZND.