KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - Ellie Weltha's two free throws with 1.4 seconds left gave the Truman Women's Basketball team their only lead of the night as they upset #1 Drury Lady Panthers 67-66 before a raucous crowd in Pershing Arena.
It was the Bulldogs eighth straight win, matching a school record for most consecutive wins dating back to the 2014 season.
Drury (18-2; 8-1 GLVC) scored seven quick points to start the game and led by as many as 16 (38-22) with four minutes to play in the first half.
Truman (11-5; 7-1 GLVC) finished the second quarter on a flurry scoring 10 of the last 11 points to trail by only seven at the break.
The Bulldogs continued the push into the third and got as close as one at 45-44 with 4:23 left in the quarter but Drury hit some clutch shots and pushed the lead back to 10 at 56-46 on a basket by Alana Findley with 1:02 showing in the third.
Allison Thomas, who set a new career high with 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting put back an offensive rebound to close the quarter with the Bulldogs trailing by eight.
The intense fourth quarter saw Truman again get to within one at 58-57 with over six minutes to play only to watch Drury fend off the 'Dogs.
Findley's free throws with 3:37 to go had Drury up five at 64-59.
Both teams traded empty possessions until Thomas was fouled and made two more free throws to make it a one possession game with 2:39 to go. Following a miss by Findley, Weltha got a pass from Hannah Belanger and converted to bring the Bulldogs down one at 64-63 with 1:57 to play.
Payton Richards responded quickly for Drury with a bucket.
Weltha cleaned up the offensive glass again and was sent to the line to make a pair of free throws with a minute to play. She converted on both and Truman trailed 66-65.
Drury's next possession saw them run the shot clock down but Richard's attempt missed and Belanger swooped in for the board.
After a timeout with 15 seconds left, Weltha was fed the ball at the top of the lane and missed the initial shot but gathered the offensive rebounds and was hacked with 1.4 seconds showing on the clock.
She would make both throws to set up one last chance for Drury.
The inbounds pass found Terrion Moore and her deep three-point attempt came up well short and the celebration in Pershing Arena was underway.
Weltha and Thomas each scored 19 points with Weltha adding 16 rebounds and Thomas 10. The duo had a total of 10 offensive boards on the night and Truman dominated the glass by a 37-18 margin.
Findley and Moore tied for high honors for Drury with 13 each.
It is the first Truman win over the Drury Lady Panthers in 18 attempts.
The Bulldogs will face the last team to beat them, Missouri-St. Louis on Thursday night on the road. The Tritons have reeled off 10 straight wins. Tip time from St. Louis is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
