SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury baseball returns to Mark Worley Field at Meador Park Friday (April 17) to open a four-game GLVC series against Upper Iowa with a 5 p.m., contest. The Panthers and Peacocks will also square off in a 1 p.m., doubleheader Saturday, before concluding the weekend with a Noon game Sunday.
The Panthers (22-16, 13-7 GLVC) bring a 6-0 all-time record against Upper Iowa (15-20, 8-10 GLVC) into this weekend's series. DU swept a four-game set from UIU in 2024 in Springfield, as well as a pair of neutral-field games in Arkadelphia, Ark., in February 2008.
Drury split a four-game GLVC series with Truman State in Kirksville last weekend and has won nine of its last 12 conference contests. Upper Iowa stopped its five-game GLVC slide by winning three of four home games against William Jewell last weekend.
Fans may follow the action through the GLVC Sports Network (subscription required), where games will be streamed live throughout the regular season. New for the 2025-26 academic year, viewing access to live broadcasts from GLVC regular season and postseason contests will be available via monthly subscription ($30) or annual subscription ($140). Single-event access can also be purchased for $15.
LEADING OFF
- The Panthers are celebrating their 20th season in 2026 and bring an overall program record of 565-426-1 into Friday's contest.
- Drury is led by 14th-year head coach Scott Nasby, who has compiled an overall mark of 389-292-1 as the Panthers' all-time winningest coach.
- Freshman LHP Anthony Vita has been lights out during conference play, logging a 4-0 mound mark with a 2.25 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 24.0 innings pitched over five GLVC appearances.
- OF Greydon Miller brings a seven-game hitting streak into Friday's series opener; the junior has batted .520 (13-for-25) during the streak.
- Drury leads the GLVC in hitting with its .346 team average, while ranking second in double plays turned (24) and third in team fielding (.967).
- The Panthers checked in at No. 6 in this week's NCBWA Midwest Region rankings, trailing only Missouri S&T (3rd) and Illinois Springfield (4th) among GLVC teams rated in the region's top 10.
- OF Luke Matschiner ranks second in the GLVC with 25 steals and sits in third place on DU's career stolen bases chart (57).
- INF Jackson Crider ranks as DU's career leader in hitting (.414), on-base percentage (.525) and slugging percentage (.637); he also enters Friday's game just three HBPs shy of the Panthers' career leader in the category, Colton Jones (51).
- Fans are reminded that Mark Worley Field at Meador Park is a CASHLESS FACILITY and transactions are limited to credit/debit card and mobile wallet platforms.
SERIES HISTORY
- The Panthers bring a perfect 6-0 all-time mark vs. Upper Iowa into this weekend's series.
- Drury swept a four-game GLVC set from the Peacocks in the two clubs' only previous meeting in Springfield, March 22-24, 2024.
- The Panthers also took two games from UIU in 2008 on a neutral field in Arkadelphia, Ark.
LAST TIME OUT
- Drury rode a complete-game mound effort from Anthony Vita to a 2-1 victory in game one of its Sunday doubleheader with Truman State, before the Bulldogs earned a series split with a 9-3 decision in the nightcap at Bulldog Baseball Park.
- Vita tossed a three-hitter to lift the Panthers to the one-run victory in the opener, as Drury took the lead on a Greydon Miller two-out single in the top of the seventh.
- The Bulldogs bounced back in game two, building a 4-0 lead before plating the last five runs of the day after the Panthers had chiseled the margin down to a single run.
- Connor Bain led the Drury offense, going 4-for-8 on the day with an RBI in each of the two contests, while Luke Matschiner added a pair of two-hit games and swiped his 24th and 25th bases of the year to move into fourth place on the Panthers' single-season steals chart.
- With each club earning a win in the twin bill, the Panthers and Bulldogs split their four-game set at two games apiece.
PANTHERS HOST DONATE LIFE GAME SATURDAY
- Drury will be donning blue and green Saturday when the Panthers will team up with Mid-America Transplant to champion organ and tissue donation for their annual Donate Life Game.
- Held during National Donate Life Month each spring, the Donate Life Game brings the community together to honor donor heroes, celebrate lives saved, and inspire fans to register and give the gift of life.
- The Panthers will swap out their Scarlet and Gray for blue and green, the national colors for organ and tissue donation. DU players and coaches will wear blue and green game caps, and the first 200 fans in attendance for the 1 p.m., doubleheader will receive a free Drury baseball/Donate Life t-shirt.
CRIDER CLIMBING
- Jackson Crider enters the weekend as Drury's career leader in batting (.414), on-base percentage (.525) and slugging percentage (.637).
- Crider also sits in second place on the Panthers' all-time hit-by-pitch list with 48, just three shy of Colton Jones' DU record of 51.
- Additionally, his .388 batting mark would rank as the No. 11 season average in program history if the season ended today.
PANTHERS GET OFFENSIVE
- Drury enters the weekend with the No. 1 offense in the GLVC with its .346 team batting average and 445 total hits on the season, ranking 12th and 22nd in the nation, respectively.
- DU leads the conference in doubles per game (2.42) and ranks fourth in both scoring (9.0) and slugging percentage (.521).
- The Drury offense caught fire over the course of a four-game win streak (Feb. 22-28) that saw the Panthers outscore the opposition by a combined 54-30 margin.
- The Panthers slugged .667 over the course of their streak, with 24 of their hits going for extra bases.
- DU batted a blistering .442 as a team, with eight different regulars hitting .421 or better during the same stretch, led by Greydon Miller's .563 average.
- Individually, Jackson Crider brings the No. 10 OBP (.495) in the GLVC into the weekend; he leads the league in HBPs (19).
- Miller brings a seven-game hitting streak into Friday's game; the junior has batted .520 (13-for-25) during the streak and ranks third in the GLVC with a team-leading four triples, while his 56 hits rank ninth in the conference.
- Logan Reidelberger ranks second in the GLVC in hits (59), while his 14 doubles rank fifth in the circuit.
- Luke Matschiner's 1.41 runs scored per game is the No. 25 average in all of Division II baseball; Matschiner also ranks second in the GLVC in steals (25).
LOOKING AHEAD
Drury continues its final home stand of the 2026 season next weekend, when the Panthers host Rockhurst for a four-game series, beginning with a Friday (April 24) contest at 5 p.m.
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.
#OneDrury
