The Eastern volleyball team will start its 2013 campaign with the Toledo Blue/Gold Invitational in Toledo, Ohio. The Panthers will play Loyola at 9 a.m., followed by Marist College for the first time in program history at 4 p.m. Friday.

“It is very important to the team that we start off this season strong, and that starts with the very first point of the very first game, no matter who the opponent is or what conference they are in,” sophomore setter Marah Bradbury said.

On Saturday, Eastern will face off with West Virginia at 9 a.m., and then end with host Toledo at 6 p.m. The invitational is the first of four non-conference tournaments on the Panthers’ schedule.

Bradbury said this season is the start of a new tradition for Eastern volleyball and that is to refuse to lose every game, including non-conference, even though they do not directly affect the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.

“Starting off the season well will help us make a statement for the teams in our conference,” she said.

Of the Panthers’ 21 losses last season, nine were in their non-conference preseason tournaments, where they only accumulated three wins in 12 matches.

Eastern’s season-long 10-game losing streak last year began with the final four games of its non-conference preseason schedule, and ensued into the first six games of the OVC schedule.

Bradbury is one of three Panthers to earn postseason honors in 2012. She and outside hitter Abby Saalfrank were both named to the All-Newcomer team. Saalfrank also won the OVC Freshman of the Year last season. Outside hitter Reynae Hutchinson garnered All-OVC honors last year.

This season, Hutchinson and Saalfrank, the Panthers’ top two kill leaders from last season, both received All-OVC preseason honors.

Loyola is returning its second kill leader from last season, junior right side hitter Laura Purcell. She finished with 288 kills. The Ramblers lost last season’s kill leader, Anna Eytchison, with 488 kills, to graduation.

Marist, meanwhile, has a 6-foot, 2-inch middle blocker in Mackenzie Stephens. The junior led the team in kills last year with 268. She also had a hit percentage of .303.

Anthony Catezone can be reached at 581-2812 or ajcatezone@eiu.edu.