SOFTBALL PREVIEW
Drury Panthers (29-22, 17-9) vs. Truman St. Bulldogs (23-27, 13-13)
Thur., May 2 – 5:30 pm – EastSide Centre – East Peoria, Ill.
 
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Tickets
$15 per round, $5 – students with ID, children under 5 – Free
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SPRINGFIELD, Mo.– The Drury Panthers open the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament against Truman State on Thursday at 5:30 pm at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria, Illinois.
 
Drury is the number three seed in the tournament, is 29-22 and went 17-9 in the GLVC regular season. Truman State is 23-27 and went 13-13 in the league to finish in a three-way tie for sixth. The Bulldogs won a tie-breaker to be the sixth seed on the bracket.
 
The winner of Thursday's game will advance to Game 8 on the bracket and play the winner of second-seeded Lewis and number seven seed Missouri S&T on Friday at 5:30 pm. The loser of Thursday's game will move to Game 6 on Friday in the double-elimination tournament and play the loser of the Lewis-S&T match-up.
 
Drury lands in the tournament having won 17 of their last 21 games. The Panthers started league play 0-5 and were six games under .500 overall at 12-18 before finishing seven games above the break-even mark. Drury's third-place finish matches their best mark in the standings since the GLVC went to single-division play in 2015.
 
The Panthers won both games against Truman State this season as they swept a doubleheader against the Bulldogs, winning 3-1 in game one, then 1-0 in the second game on March 30 at Thompson Field in Springfield.
 
Drury has won at least one postseason game in each of the last five conference tournaments. Last year, the Panthers went 1-2 in the league playoffs.
 
Other opening round games include: number McKendree (33-20, 16-10) vs. fifth-seeded Missouri-St. Louis (27-25, 14-12), and top-seeded Indianapolis, also the number one ranked team in NCAA-II (50-3, 25-1) vs. eighth-seeded Maryville (23-28, 13-13).
 
The tournament concludes with the third round and championship game on Sunday.

Diamond Notes
-- Sophia Luetticke ranks fourth in the GLVC in hitting with a .405 average
-- Rylee Kolb is sixth in the GLVC with a .384 average
-- Taylor Hartsell has seven triples, second-most in the GLVC
-- Lauren Beier is fourth in the league in home runs with 11
-- Baliee Nixon ranks seventh in the GLVC in pitching with a 2.41 ERA

Probable Starters
DU- AJ Agers (6-4, 3.14) & Kaley Adzick (9-5, 2.99)

Head Coach
DU- Brooke Gajewski (1^st year, 29-22 / 2^nd year, 61-33)
 
Stat Leaders
Drury- Sophia Luetticke (.405, 0 HR, 17 RBI, 15 SB), Rylee Kolb (.384, 2 HR, 27 RBI, 17 SB), Lauren Beier (.319, 11 HR, 36 RBI, .611 Slug.), Bailee Nixon (8-5, 2.41 ERA), Kaley Adzick (9-5, 2.99 ERA)

Drury Summary
Record: 29-22 (17-9)
Current Streak: Lost 1
Record in last four games: 2-2
Record at home: 13-11
Record on the road: 11-4
Record on neutral field: 5-7
Record vs. ranked opponents: 0-4
In 1-run games: 7-1
Extra Innings: 2-1
Shutouts: 6-4
In Last At-Bat: 6-4
Run-Rule Games: 8-3
Leading after 5 inn.: 26-3
Trailing after 5 inn.: 1-16
Tied after 5 inn.: 2-3
Leading after 6 inn.: 19-1
Trailing after 6 inn.: 2-14
Tied after 6 inn.: 2-4
Best record: 27-20, +7 (GLVC: 17-9, +8)
Worst record: 12-18, -6 (GLVC: 0-5, -5)
Longest win streak: 12, Mar. 23-Spr. 14 (GLVC: 12, Mar. 23-Apr. 14)
Longest losing streak: 6, Mar. 13 – Mar. 23 (GLVC: 5, Mar. 16-23)
 
 
#allweDUiswin