Drury University

Drury volleyball coach Ashleigh Shear has set the Panthers' roster for the 2010 season with the recent additions of transfers Alex Smith and Michelle O'Dell.

Smith is a former Nixa High School standout who transfers to Drury after playing her freshman season at Southwest Baptist University. She's a 5-foot-10 outside hitter who earned Honorable Mention All-MIAA honors last season after finishing second on the SBU squad in both kills (2.69 per game) and digs (2.77).

"We are so excited about adding Alex," Shear says. "The MIAA is arguably the toughest conference, top to bottom, in the country, and for her to have been recognized as honorable mention all-conference there really speaks to her ability and skill. We anticipate her developing into even more of a terminator on the left side and I think she will play a big role in our continued improvement as a program. Additionally, she's a great student with a fun personality, so I'm really looking forward to working with her."

O'Dell is a 5-7 libero from Rose Hill, Kan., and a and junior-to-be after transferring to DU from Cowley County (Kan.) Community College, where she was a First Team NJCAA Division II All-America selection after coming up with 5.97 digs per game for Cowley, which finished 32-5 and second at the national juco tournament. Her Tiger teams won 62 of 74 matches in her two seasons, including a pair of Jayhawk Conference championships.

"With our loss to graduation of so much ball control last year in Rachel Warrington and Krystal Glessner, we are really fortunate to add Michelle," Shear says. "She's a fierce competitor and a vocal leader, which will be great for our team. Her experience anchoring the defense for one of the most well-respected junior college programs in the country has proved her cool under pressure and that she's a real winner. Michelle is a neat kid and one we'll definitely rely heavily upon in the next two years."

The Panthers are coming off a 16-14 record in Shear's first season as head coach, marking the first winning season since the program moved to the NCAA-II level in 1994. Drury returns a pair of All-GLVC performers in senior setter Austin Warren and senior middle-hitter Kyrie Hopkins, and has added five new faces - Smith and O'Dell join former Mountain Grove standout Elly Citron, Clear Creek (Texas) prep standout Amanda Watson and sophomore Lauren Dorris, a transfer from Florrissant Valley Community College and former Springfield Hillcrest, as new players for the 2010 squad.