No. 17 Drury Panthers (4-0) at Central Oklahoma Bronchos (7-3)
Opponent	Central Oklahoma
Location  | Site	Edmond, Okla. | Wendell Simmons Field (1,000)
Game 1 | First Pitch	Friday, Feb. 20 | 3 p.m.
Game 2 | First Pitch	Saturday, Feb. 21 | 2 p.m.
Game 3 | First Pitch	Sunday, Feb. 22 | 12 p.m.
Game Links	Drury Game Notes | UCO Preview | Live Stats | Watch ($)
Follow	X: @DruryBaseball | IG: @DruryBSBL

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury baseball looks to extend its perfect start to the 2026 season this weekend when it travels to Edmond, Okla., for a three-game non-conference series with Central Oklahoma at Wendell Simmons Field.

The Panthers are off to a 4-0 start for just the second time, joining the 2022 DU squad, which won its first 10 games of the season. Drury is ranked No. 17 in this week's ABCA Coaches Poll, marking its first national ranking since March 2023 (also in the ABCA poll).

UCO (7-3) is receiving votes in the same ABCA poll after posting a five-game win streak last week, including a four-game sweep of Colorado Christian last weekend.

Fans may follow the action through the MIAA Network (subscription required), where games will be streamed live throughout the weekend.

LEADING OFF:

• Drury will celebrate its 20th season of varsity competition since the program's reinstatement in 2007.
• Drury's win over No. 2 Central Missouri on Feb. 10 matched a program standard in terms of highest-ranking victories.
• With their inclusion in this week's ABCA NCAA D-II Poll at No. 17, the Panthers are ranked in a national poll for the first time since March 2023.
• Senior OF Connor Bain and junior RHP Coleman Morrison earned a sweep of the GLVC's weekly honors on Feb. 9, as well as NCBWA Midwest Region Player and Pitcher of the Week recognition following DU's opening weekend sweep of UAH (Feb. 6-7).
• DU is led by 14th-year head coach Scott Nasby, who has compiled an overall mark of 371-276-1 as the Panthers' all-time winningest coach.
• The Panthers bring an overall program record of 547-410-1 into the new season.

SERIES HISTORY

• Central Oklahoma enters Friday's series opener with a 1-0 series advantage over the Panthers.
• UCO claimed a 7-1 victory over Drury in the only previous matchup on Feb. 9, 2019 in Edmond.
• The Panthers are 46-48 all-time vs. the current membership of UCO's conference, the MIAA, including 1-0 this season (Feb. 10 vs. UCM)

LAST TIME OUT

• Drury opened its 2026 home season in style on Feb. 10, building a five-run second-inning lead before holding on late for a 9-7 victory over No. 2 Central Missouri at Mark Worley Field at Meador Park.
• The victory not only extended the Panthers' perfect 4-0 start to the new season, but also represented a high-water mark for Drury in terms of wins over ranked foes, matching a March 2, 2019 win over No. 2 Augustana for the highest-ranked victory in program history.
• Xander Schmitt belted a two-out, three-run home run to stake the Panthers to a 4-0 first-inning lead, then drove in single runs in his next two at-bats to finish with a five-RBI performance.

PANTHERS IN THE POLLS

• Following its upset of No. 2 UCM last Tuesday and a 4-0 start to the new season, Drury cracked the national rankings Tuesday with its citation as the No. 17 team in the American Baseball Coaches Association's NCAA Division II Poll.
• The national ranking for the Panthers marks their first in any of the major polls this season, as well as the program's first top 25 ranking since March 2023.
• The Panthers were also tabbed for the No. 4 spot in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Drury received 160 points in the poll, including two first-place votes, finishing behind preseason favorite Indianapolis (181), as well as Illinois Springfield (170) and Maryville (169). 
• Rounding out the top 10 was Lewis, Quincy, Missouri S&T, UMSL, Upper Iowa, Upper Iowa and McKendree.

FAST STARTS

• Drury's 4-0 start to the season is its best since winning 10 in a row to start the 2022 campaign.
• That same 2022 start is the only previous time the Panthers have won their first four games in their 20 years as a varsity NCAA Division II program.
• Speaking of quick starts, the Panthers have successfully swiped 12 bases in 13 attempts so far this season.
• Drury has also scored 41 runs on 48 hits over their first four contests.
• DU's run total marks its second-best over the first four games of any season, trailing only the 2022 club's 53 runs scored through four contests.

UPSET CITY

• Drury's win over No. 2 UCM matched a program standard in terms of highest-ranking victories.
• The Panthers previously took down No. 2 Augustana in 2019. 
• The win over the Mules also gives DU at least one victory over a top 25 foe in each of the last four seasons.
• DU's victory also gave it 12 wins over ranked opponents in the last decade (since 2016), with eight of those coming against top 10 clubs.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Panthers will return to Mark Worley Field at Meador Park next Friday to host the opening day of the 2026 Drury Invitational, beginning with a 2:30 p.m., contest against Indianapolis.

Fans may purchase 2026 season tickets or single-game seats through DruryPanthers.com.

For all the latest information on Drury baseball, visit DruryPanthers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Panthers on X and Instagram.

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