SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury men's soccer opens the 2026 campaign Thursday against Davenport at the Panthers' new home, Lake Country Soccer Complex.
Drury opens the season after finishing sixth in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) last season, going 8-5-5 overall with a 7-4-3 mark in conference play. The Panthers will face Davenport for the first time in program history.
The match can be streamed behind a paywall on
GLVCSN with
Ed Beach on the call. Single-game purchases are available for $15, monthly passes for $32, and a full-year pass for $145. Drury students can use their university email to receive 10 percent off any pass using code GLVC@EDU27.
SERIES HISTORY
- Drury and Davenport meet for the first time in program history.
ABOUT DRURY
- Drury went 8-5-5 overall with a 7-4-3 mark in conference play last year.
- The Panthers lost just one match at home last season, going 6-1-2 in Springfield.
- Drury's 2025 season ended with a 3-0 loss at McKendree in the quarterfinal round of the GLVC Championship Tournament.
- Last year, Drury started the season with three straight 1-1 ties against Northeastern State, Oklahoma Christian, and Missouri-St. Louis.
- Drury returns Third Team All-GLVC honoree Lui Bull, who led the Panthers with four goals and three assists for a team-high 11 points.
- The Panthers return 23 players from last year's first team and development squad, while welcoming 26 newcomers to the program.
ABOUT DAVENPORT
- Davenport went 4-8-6 overall with a 3-5-4 mark in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play last season.
- The Panthers went 2-4-3 on the road.
- Davenport advanced to the GLIAC semifinals after defeating Wisconsin-Parkside 8-7 in penalty kicks following a 2-2 draw, before falling 3-1 to Saginaw Valley State.
- The Panthers own a 5-5-2 record against current GLVC teams across the past five seasons.
- Davenport returns D2CCA First Team All-Region and GLIAC Freshman of the Year, Charlie Davis, who bagged five goals and added six assists for 16 points.
GLVC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
- Drury was picked to finish sixth, with 115 points, for the second consecutive season in the 2026 GLVC preseason coaches' poll.
- Lincoln topped the poll with 192 points and six first-place votes.
- Rockhurst placed second, despite winning the league last season, with 180 points and six first-place votes.
STORYLINES
- Drury opens its 36th men's soccer season, and Ben Taylor enters his 10th season as head coach.
- The Panthers are 19-13-3 all-time in season openers and 4-2-3 under Ben Taylor.
- Drury has tied the last three season openers.
- The 2026 season marks the first full year at Lake Country Soccer Complex.
- Drury is 5-3-2 when playing at Lake Country.
FOLLOW THE PANTHERS
For all the latest information on Drury athletics, please visit
drurypanthers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Panthers on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
#OneDrury
