SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— The Drury Panthers opened their season with two wins on Friday as they hosted the Greenstay Hotel & Suites Drury Invitational at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
 
The Panthers opened with a 3-0 win over LeMoyne-Owen (25-8, 25-7, 25-10), then concluded the first day of competition with a 3-1 victory over Texas Woman's University (19-25, 31-29, 25-19, 25-22).
 
Drury held LeMoyne-Owen to single-digit point totals in two of the three sets during their opening-day win. Maddie Baumer had nine kills to lead the Panthers, while Chloe Rear collected 14 assists, two aces, and six kills. However, the junior and all-conference performer from last year's squad was forced to leave the game with a leg injury late in the third set.
 
Rear would also miss Drury's second game on Friday, and the Panthers found themselves down a set and trailing by six points midway through the second. Drury would rally, though, and pushed to win a marathon second set 31-29. They closed out the next two sets to finish the day 2-0.
 
Three Drury players reached double-figures in kills, with Makina Wratten picking up 15, Taylor Forth, and Gabriela Oliveria getting 12. Gabby Birmingham had 44 assists, and Forth added a team-high eight blocks. 
 
Both LeMoyne-Owen and Texas Woman's University fell to 0-2 with the losses.
 
The tournament continues to Saturday, with the first game at 9 am between Henderson State and LeMoyne-Owen. The Panthers play at 11 am against Missouri Southern, then take on Henderson State and 3 pm.
 
 
#allweDUiswin