The Drury Lady Panthers, seeking their seventh straight trip to the NCAA Division II Tournament in the upcoming season, will have to navigate arguably their most challenging basketball schedule to date as their 2008-09 slate was released on Thursday.
Coach Steve Harold's Lady Panthers are coming off a 28-4 season that produced DU's first Great Lakes Valley Conference championship and another NCAA bid. In their path this time are perennial powers like Grand Valley State, Washburn, West Texas A & M, UC-San Diego and defending national champion Northern Kentucky in what is expected to be the Lady Panthers' final full season in Weiser Gym before moving into the plush O'Reilly Family Events Center in 2009-10.
"One of the keys to this program over the years has been its desire to play the best there is out there to prepare ourselves for league play and the post-season," Harold says, "and we believe we've put together a schedule that will do so again."
Highlighting Drury's trek for the upcoming season, including the usual GLVC grind, is the Lady Panther Classic featuring a Drury-Grand Valley State matchup on November 22; a trip to mighty Washburn in Topeka, Kan., on November 25; a journey to Canyon, Texas, to play in the West Texas A&M Classic - including a date with the host school - on Nov. 28-29; and a visit to La Jolla, Calif., to compete in the UC-San Diego Tournament against San Bernadino and the host UCSD on Dec. 19-20.
Drury will open defense of its GLVC title by visiting rival Missouri Science and Technology in Rolla on Saturday, December 6. The Lady Panthers will play their first home league game when Quincy comes to Weiser on January 2. Other key dates to remember: A visit from defending NCAA-II national champion and chief GLVC rival Northern Kentucky on January 17, and Homecoming festivities when Missouri S & T visits Weiser on Feb. 14.
The Lady Panthers return four starters from last season's GLVC champs, including all-league performers in junior forwards Lindsay Ballweg and Melanie Oliver and returning veterans in the likes of juniors Hannah Carter, Sara Bos and Caitlin Shouse as well as standout sophomore guard Ja'Nell Jones.
Drury added NCAA Division I (Evansville) transfer Jillian Palan, a 6-foot-1 junior post, as well as a talented group of five freshmen to the mix for the upcoming season, including former Waynesville standout Katie Pritchard, Mount Vernon's Liz Moriondo, Marshfield's Sarah Jane Plemmons, Erica Groose from Jefferson City Helias and Kassie Walker from Arcadia Valley.

DRURY LADY PANTHERS 2008-09 SCHEDULE

NOVEMBER
1 - Alumni Game (exhibition)
8 - Livin' The Dream (exhibition)
17 - Northeastern State
21 - Christian Brothers (Lady Panther Classic)
22 - Grand Valley State (Lady Panther Classic)
25 - at Washburn
28 - vs. Panhandle State (West Texas A & M Classic, Canyon, Texas)
29 - vs. West Texas A & M (Westt Texas A & M Classic, Canyon, Texas)

DECEMBER
4 - Maryville
6 - at Missouri Science and Technology*
10 - Henderson State
19 - vs. San Bernardino (UC-San Diego Classic, La Jolla, CA)
20 - vs. UC-San Diego (UC-San Diego Classic, La Jolla, CA)

JANUARY
2 - Quincy*
4 - Lewis*
8 - at Wisconsin-Parkside*
10 - at Saint Joseph's*
15 - Indianapolis*
17 - Northern Kentucky*
22 - at Bellarmine*
24 - at Kentucky Wesleyan*
29 - Southern Indiana*
31 - Missouri-St. Louis*

FEBRUARY
5 - at Rockhurst*
7 - at Southern Indiana*
14 - Missouri Science and Technology*
19 - Rockhurst*
21 - at Missouri-St. Louis*
28 - at Quincy*

MARCH5-8 - GLVC Tournament (site TBD)

* - Denotes GLVC game