WHAT'S AHEAD: The Drake women's soccer team opens the home portion of its 2008 slate by hosting South Dakota State at 7 p.m., Friday, at the Cownie Soccer Complex.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS: The Jackrabbits are coming off a successful 2007 campaign, posting a 9-4-4 record. South Dakota State opened its 2008 season against Missouri Valley Conference opponent Creighton, falling to the Bluejays 2-3 in double-overtime on Aug. 24. The Jackrabbits will face off against Minnesota on Tuesday before making the trip to Des Moines.

A LOOK BACK: Drake dropped a 4-0 decision in its season opener at Iowa on Saturday (Aug. 23).
Sophomore Elizabeth Woerle (Coon Rapids, Minn.) led the Bulldogs with two shots. The Hawkeyes bettered Drake in shots in the affair, 20-5.
Sophomore Bailey Dorrington (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), and juniors Crystal Townley (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Melissa Lewis (Edina, Minn.) accounted for the three other shots for the Bulldogs.
Junior Jenny Schroeder (Albuquerque, N.M.) made seven saves in goal for Drake.

OPENING SERIES: Drake's trend of playing difficult competition in its opening match continued to begin 2008. The Bulldogs faced, instate rival Iowa, falling to the Hawkeyes, 4-0. Drake has not won its opening match since 2003, when it defeated Eastern Michigan, 2-0.

YOUNG BULLDOGS: Of Drake's 25-player roster, 15 players are in their first or second season with the Bulldogs. Drake's roster consists of only one senior, Katie Sauer, nine juniors, five sophomores and 10 freshmen.

HOME GROWN TALENT: This season Drake has five players on its roster from the state of Iowa. The Bulldogs have not had more than four players from Iowa on their roster since the 2005 season.

PRESEASON COACHES POLL: Drake was tabbed to finish fifth by league coaches in the 2008 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, receiving 24 total points.
Creighton was picked to finish first in the poll netting 46 total points with four first-place tallies. Illinois State was voted second with 37 points, two first place votes,
Evansville was picked third with 35 points, followed by Missouri State (32 points), who garnered the final first-place vote.
Indiana State and Northern Iowa tied for the sixth-place spot with 11 points apiece.

HEAD COACH LINDSEY HORNER: Lindsey Horner, who served the last five seasons as assistant coach at Drake, was been named the new women's soccer coach at Drake University, athletic director Sandy Hatfield Clubb announced April 10. She succeeded Corbin Stone who resigned to become the Technical Director of the Idaho Rush Soccer Club in Boise, Idaho.
Horner became only the second head coach for women's soccer, which began as a varsity sport at Drake in 2002.
Horner was the top assistant under Stone. During her tenure, the Bulldogs compiled a 46-25-7 record winning four Missouri Valley Conference regular season championships while competing in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
Horner was an Iowa Olympic Development Program coach in 2004, 2005 and 2007 while being a member of the Region II CIT Staff in 2004.
Horner has coached for the Ankeny Soccer Club and was an assistant coach for Golden High School (Colo.) in 2000. This fall, will be working with the West Des Moines Soccer Club.
From January to May of 2002, Horner was a sports marketing intern for the Washington Freedom of the Women's United Soccer Association, where she was invited to try out for the team and also was a coach for Freedom camps and clinics.
Horner, a native of West Des Moines, Iowa and a four year letterwinner at Kansas, was named the Jayhawks' most valuable offensive player as a senior in 2000 and was an all-academic Big 12 Conference selection in spring 2001. She graduated in 2002. She also helped the Kansas women's basketball team to a second-place finish in the Big 12 Tournament and an NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance in 1997.
A five-year member of the Iowa Olympic Development Program team, Horner was named to the region pool team in 1996.