University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Drake
UNI women's basketball: Panthers head to in-state rival Drake
1/31/2026 4:05:00 PM | Women's Basketball
UNI women’s basketball adds another matchup to its longest-played rivalry.
UNI (10-10 / 6-4 MVC) at Drake (6-14 / 5-5 MVC)
- 2 p.m. CT | February 1, 2026
- Knapp Center | Des Moines, Iowa
- ESPN+
- Panther Sports Radio Network
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The Panthers add another matchup to their longest-played rivalry as the Cats head to Des Moines to take on the Drake Bulldogs. The 113th meeting comes as the first of the season, with the teams last meeting in March of last season. In that matchup, a last three-pointer from Maya McDermott cut the Bulldog lead to one point with one second left, but UNI was unable to find another shot as Drake was victorious, 80-79. Drake has won the last five straight meetings.
UNI is coming off a wire-to-wire matchup with Illinois State on Thursday evening. A low-scoring first half gave way to a high-scoring third quarter in a tight battle between two Valley powerhouses. The teams were tied with just over 39 minutes played in the 40-minute matchup before Illinois State scored the differencemaker with 20 seconds remaining. The Panthers were unable to score on their subsequent possession and were forced to send Illinois State to the line, where the Redbirds took a four-point lead with one second to play. UNI was unable to overcome the deficit and dropped their second-straight MVC contest, 59-55.
In that matchup, Jenna Twedt led the Panthers with 19 points including nine from beyond the arc and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. Ryley Goebel finished with nine rebounds while Elise Jaeger brought in seven. Freshman Maren Schmotzer blocked three shots. Kaylynn Janes finished with a career-high four steals.
Jenna Twedt was named the MVC Newcomer of the Week on Monday, January 26. Twedt led the Valley in scoring last week with 50 total points, including a 20-point performance in UNI's 15-point victory over then-MVC-undefeated Murray State. The junior led the Panthers in scoring in both contests and averaged 25 points per game, highlighted by a career-high 30-point performance against Evansville. The 30 points tied for the most scored by a Valley player in a single game last week. She posted the highest three-point percentage in the Valley last week (52.9%) among players with at least 10 attempts, shooting 9-for-17 across the Panthers' two matchups. Twedt was one of just three athletes in the league to record multiple 20-plus-point performances.
Ryley Goebel was named the MVC Player of the Week on Monday, January 19. Goebel had one of the most dominant games in Panther history on Sunday in UNI's lone matchup of the week. The senior forward finished with 32 points on 14-for-18 from the floor and 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. She added 12 boards, five blocks, and three steals to her totals. Goebel recorded her seventh double-double of the season and the eighth of her career with 32 points and 12 rebounds. The senior guard set career highs with her 32 points, 14 field goals, and two three-pointers, and tied a career high with five blocks. Goebel's five blocks give her 200 in her career, making her just the seventh to do so in Valley history. Her two three-pointers were her first triples since her freshman season.
The Panthers are coming off a 2024-25 season that saw numerous season-highs, including single-season points and field goals records as a team. UNI scored 2,519 total points on 934 field goals last season to set program records in those categories.
Starting in all 34 matchups, Ryley Goebel proved to be one of the top defenders in the Missouri Valley Conference after becoming the first player in UNI and MVC history to record 70+ blocks and 70+ steals in a single season. The senior forward became one of 19 to do so in the NCAA at the time. Her MVC All-Defensive team season saw 10.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.3 blocks, and 2.1 steals per game as she recorded the fourth-best field goal shooting season in program history with a 58.9% (162-for-275) field goal percentage and the third-most single-season blocks in program history (78).
Four Panthers were named to the MVC Preseason Watchlist in October, including Goebel, Taryn Wharton, Elise Jaeger, and Bri Robinson. Jaeger became the 12th Panther to be named to the MVC All-Freshman Team after averaging 5.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game last season, including four double-double performances.
UNI finished the home portion of the 2024-25 regular season with a 9-6 record inside the McLeod Center. It is the 12th consecutive season the Panthers have been over .500 inside the McLeod Center.
As of January 31, UNI leads the Missouri Valley Conference with 4.2 blocks per game, a 38.2% field goal percentage defense, 28.7 defensive rebounds per game, and a 63.7 scoring defense. The Cats are second in the Valley with a 32.9% three-point percentage. UNI's 28.7 defensive rebounds per game rank 34th in the nation. Individually, Elise Jaeger is third in the nation with a Valley-leading 9.2 defensive rebounds per game. The sophomore is second in the Valley with 10.0 rebounds per game and 199 total rebounds. Ryley Goebel leads the conference with the nation's 19th-best field goal percentage (58%), 21st-most blocks per game (2.10), and 22nd-most total blocks (42). The senior forward is second in the Valley with seven double-doubles, third with 1.95 steals per game, fourth with 162 total rebounds, and fifth with 8.1 rebounds per game. Jenna Twedt is second in the conference with a 37.9% three-point percentage, 2.50 threes per game, and 50 total threes, and fourth in the MVC with 132 total three-point attempts.
Last season, Ryley Goebel became the first player in UNI and Missouri Valley Conference history to record 70+ blocks and 70+ steals in a single season. The forward was just one of 19 to do it in NCAA history at the time and was named to the All-MVC Defensive Team for her efforts. Goebel moved up to No. 2 on UNI's all-time blocks list during the 2024-25 season and now sits with 204 career blocks. She is currently third on UNI's career blocks per game list with 1.8 blocks per outing. Against Evansville, Goebel tied KK Armstrong (2008-12) for fifth all-time on UNI's steals list with 191 career steals after three against the Purple Aces. After a steal at Illinois State, Goebel is in sole possession of fifth place on the list with 192 career steals and is now just two steals away from Loretha Mosley (1987-91) in the No. 4 spot with 194 career steals.
UNI continued an active program-record 564-game three-pointer streak that started December 6, 2008, versus Green Bay (6-of-19) following a 0-of-14 outing from behind the three-point arc December 3, 2008, against Northern Illinois. The Panthers knocked down seven triples against Illinois State to continue the streak.
UNI owns active streaks of 17 consecutive seasons at .500 or better in Missouri Valley Conference play and 16 years in a row with at least a top-half finish in the league standings. These are the best active streaks among the 22 total MVC men's and women's basketball programs.
Following a recent audit of historical Missouri Valley Conference coaching records, former Southern Illinois head coach Cindy Scott's win total while a head coach in the league was discovered to be 311 (not 353 as previously recorded). As a result, Missouri State's Cheryl Burnett, previously listed second with 319 wins, had been the league record-holder for total victories while a head coach in the MVC. With her 320th victory on March 7, 2024, at Indiana State, Tanya Warren officially became the Missouri Valley Conference's all-time winningest women's basketball coach. Warren, the longest-tenured active head coach in Missouri Valley Conference women's basketball, sits alone at the top of the Missouri Valley Conference leaderboard in Valley wins with her record-breaking, 202nd conference victory coming at Murray State. The 18-season veteran on the UNI bench has been the Panthers' wins leader since a 65-64 victory on March 4, 2017, against Missouri State put her past Tony DiCecco, and she claimed her 300th win in 2023 in an 83-60 blowout on February 12 at Valparaiso.
This season, the Panthers return six total players including four that made starts in the 2024-25 season. Ryley Goebel leads the returners in playing time with Taryn Wharton, Elise Jaeger, Bri Robinson, and Kaylynn Janes seeing 2024-25 minutes. Mya Nicholson returns as a redshirt freshman after not seeing any action last year. The six athletes combine for 306 career games played and 160 games played over the 2024-25 season, but just 63 career starts with 59 of them coming last season.
The Panthers bring in six newcomers including one NAIA transfer, Virginia Edmondson, one junior college transfer, Jenna Twedt, and four freshmen Abby Tuttle, Anna Greene, Maren Schmotzer, and Lauren Walker.
Edmondson comes to UNI from Montreat College where she made 61 starts in three seasons with the Cavaliers. Edmondson averaged 18.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game. She had a standout 2024- 25 season, posting 20.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest, including three 30-point games and four double doubles. A native of Goldsboro, North Carolina, she was named the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Defensive Player of the Year and earned spots on both the All-AAC First Team and All-Defensive Team.
Jenna Twedt joins the Panthers from Kirkwood Community College after a standout two-year career. The 5-foot- 8 guard started all 72 games for the Eagles, averaging 15.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. Twedt was named the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) Tournament MVP as a freshman and earned Conference Player of the Year honors as a sophomore. A two-time First Team All-American, she made 112 three-pointers shooting 40.3% from beyond the arc last season.
UNI women's basketball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Women's Basketball), X (@UNIwbb), and on Instagram (@uni_wbb). The 2025-26 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
