SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – In her final home game as a Bear, senior Megan Drew recorded a career-high 13 saves in Missouri State's 3-1 loss to the Davidson Wildcats Sunday afternoon.

"These four seniors are a great group of girls," head coach Catherine Ostoich said. "They didn't get the season they deserve, but they started to lay the foundation for the rest of the team. They've really inspired these younger players to really see what it takes to be a Division I athlete and to see what it takes to get to Conference. I think once we start seeing more success it's going to be because of these four seniors."

Drew tallied her first save of the day in the fourth minute when she faced Davidson's Hannah Fisher one-on-one, successfully batting the ball away. Two minutes later, Davidson earned three consecutive penalty corners in which the senior recorded two more saves.

Junior Daelynn De Mello took Missouri State's first two shots of the day in the 12^th minute on an open play, but was blocked. Missouri State wouldn't take another shot until the end of the first half, being outshot by Davidson 18-4 in the first 35 minutes.

In the 13^th minute a Davidson forward dribbled the ball on the baseline to take a shot when Drew dove to cover the ball, keeping the Wildcats off the board for her fourth save of the match. With five minutes to go in the first half, Drew made another diving stop to prevent the Wildcats from scoring off a penalty corner.

"Meg was phenominal today," Ostoich added. "She was the only one that showed up in the first half ready to play and without her it should have been 9-0. I'm incredibly proud of her and she has so much to be proud of as well."

However, nearing the end of the first half, Davidson put up back-to-back goals within one minute to take a 2-0 lead over the Bears.

Missouri State entered the second half on the attack, firing six shots within the first 20 minutes. On a Bear breakaway, junior Andrea Soler Codina flicked the ball over to Bianca Mills who took a shot from the left side, earning her fourth goal of the season in the 59^th minute.

"We got together at halftime and said we had to make a change and find some passes to take advantage of opportunities," Ostoich said. "Unfortunately we couldn't put more goals in, but we were attacking which is a huge improvement from the start of the season."

Davidson would answer Missouri State, scoring its third goal one minute later to extend its lead 3-1. In the 67^th minute, Drew capped off the match with her 13^th save of the day, ending her career at Allison North Stadium.

"It has been such a great experience playing here," Drew said. "I'm so thankful and fortunate to be able to continue doing what I love for four years. It's going to be hard putting the gear away."
 
Notable Performances
Megan Drew – The senior from San Diego recorded a career-high 13 saves in the cage, breaking her previous record of 12 against Miami (Ohio) in 2014. Drew tallied 10 saves in the first half and three in the second.

Bianca Mills – Mills earned her fourth goal of the season, tapping in a shot from the left side halfway through the second half. The junior now has four goals and 11 points on the season.
 
Scoring Summary

• Davidson – 31:37, goal off corner play – Katherine English
• Davidson – 32:17, goal off shots from 20-yards out – Hannah Fisher
• MSU – 59:10, goal off shot from the left side – Bianca Mills
• Davidson – 60:41, goal off rebounded shot – Anne Federico

 
Final Details
Missouri State hits the road for the remainder of the season, beginning with Appalachian State Thursday, Oct. 27 at 4 p.m. in Boone, N.C. Live updates will be available via Facebook (Missouri State Field Hockey) and Twitter (MSUBearsFHockey). For more information on the Missouri State field hockey team visit www.missouristatebears.com.