FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

SOMERS, Wis. (Jan. 2, 2013)-- The 24th-ranked University of Wisconsin-Parkside women's basketball team opens up Great Lakes Valley Conference play this week, traveling to the Show Me State to face Missouri S&T University in Rolla on Thursday before closing the road swing on Saturday in Springfield against Drury University.

The trip opens on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. inside the Gale Bullman Multi-Purpose Building in Rolla, Mo. Live stats along with video and audio will all be available. Eric Zizich will be providing commentary on the audio feed available online and on WRJN 1400 AM in the Kenosha-Racine area.

Saturday's game tips at 1 p.m. inside the O'Reilly Family Event Center in Springfield, Mo. Live stats and audio will be available. Zizich will once again have the call and can be heard on the internet and on WRJN 1400 AM.

About the Rangers: UW-Parkside (6-2), the defending GLVC East Division Champions, roll into Missouri having won two straight and three of its last four. The Rangers closed out the calendar year on Dec. 30 by pounding Indiana University Northwest 89-52 to close out the non-conference slate.

Prior to that, UWP split a pair of games at the South Point Holiday Hoops Classic in Las Vegas. The Rangers fell 68-54 to No. 15 Grand Canyon University in the opener on Dec. 18 before knocking off No. 6 Washburn University 50-47 the following day.

Jenna Endisch is the Rangers' leading scorer, entering the week averaging 13.5 points per game while Gaby Bronson chips in 11.0 ppg. Danielle Slivka leads the team on the glass with 5.5 rebounds per game along with adding 7.1 ppg while Sierra West has a team-best 41 assists and 16 steals on the year.

Jan. 3 vs. Missouri S&T at the Gale Bullman Multi-Purpose Building (Live Stats)(Video)(Audio)

Series History: The Rangers and Miners have squared off eight times since the series began in 2006, both winning four games. UWP and S&T did not play during the 2011-2012 season.

Last Meeting: Host UW-Parkside needed three overtimes to escape with the 80-77 victory on Jan. 20, 2011. The game featured 10 lead changes and 16 ties and is the longest GLVC game played by the Rangers since joining the league in basketball in 1995-1996. UWP utilized just seven players during the marathon contest, with Jaleesa Trussell the only current player seeing minutes in that game. Trussell logged 11 minutes with three points, two rebounds with a steal and an assist.

About the Miners: Missouri S&T struggled out of the gate, dropping three of their first four games of the year but have since won four of five, including a 66-63 win over West Division nemesis Drury.

S&T competed at the Bellarmine Classic on Dec. 30 & 31 in Louisville, Ky. emerging with a 1-1 record. The Miners tipped the University of Alabama-Huntsville 79-76 before falling 78-61 to Millersville University.

Hailee Parks is the Miners' leading scorer and rebounder, chipping in 15.3 points and 8.1 rebounds per game with Toni Knar coming off the bench and adding 10.4 ppg. Kyesha Hall leads the team with 29 steals while dishing out a team-best 3.2 assists per game.

Jan. 5 vs. Drury University at the O'Reilly Family Event Center (Live Stats)(Audio)

Series History: The Panthers hold a 6-2 edge in the all-time series that began during the 2005-06 season. The two squads did not face each other last season.

Last Meeting: The Rangers and Panthers last met on Jan. 17, 2011 with host Drury prevailing 74-68. UW-Parkside was outrebounded by a 44-28 margin in the contest.

About the Panthers: Drury heads into Thursday's clash with Lewis with a 6-3 overall record and still searching for its first conference victory after opening GLVC play on Dec. 12, falling 66-63 to West Division rival Missouri S&T.

Since the loss, Drury has won two straight at the Sunshine Shootout, downing Barry University on Dec. 17 and Northwood University 79-50 the following day.

Two Panthers have started all nine games, both averaging over 10 points a game. Katie Pritchard leads Drury, averaging 16.2 points per game while Bethani Funderburk adds 14.6 per game along with 5.9 rebounds per contest. Abby Bracker leads the squad in rebounding with 8.2 rpg.

Consistency: UW-Parkside has utilized the same starting lineup in all eight games this season. The Ranger starting five features Jenna Endisch, Gaby Bronson, Sierra West, Jaleesa Trussell and Danielle Slivka

Preseason Picks: UW-Parkside was selected to finish second in the GLVC East Division in 2012-2013 according to the annual preseason coaches' poll released on Oct. 24. S&T was selected to finish fourth in the West Division while Drury was picked to win the West Division with 10 of the 16 first-place votes.

Season-Highs: Six Rangers finished in double figures in the blowout victory over IU Northwest with Trussell and Alayna Cotter both tallying season-high scoring tallies. Trussell put up 14 points on the night, her second game in double figures this season while Cotter tallied 10 along with a season-high five rebounds.