July 25, 2005

DAYTON - The University of Dayton women's basketball team will embark on a 10-day trip through Eastern Europe, August 5-15 and play a total of five games against foreign competition in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria.

"This trip is a great way to continue the education of our players through basketball," Head Coach Jim Jabir said. "They will have the opportunity to play against foreign competition while making their textbooks come to life visiting beautiful parts of Eastern Europe."

UD will leave the U.S. on August 5 and travel to Prague where it will spend three full days with the opportunity to tour a castle and sightsee around Petrin Hill and the Old Town Square while preparing for its first game on foreign soil. The Flyers will face USK Prague, which finished second in the Czech First Division last season.

The team will then head to Strakonice in Southwestern Czech Republic for an August 9 game against the team that finished sixth in the Czech First Division last season. UD will also have a chance to visit the Charles Bridge which overlooks the Vltava River.

After one day in Strakonice, the Flyers will leave the Czech Republic and head to Bratislava, Slovakia where the team will visit Martin Cathedral, the spot where nine Hungarian Kings and eight Queens were crowned from 1563 to 1830. UD will also tour Bratislava Castle which was built in the early 15th century. Dayton's time in Slovakia will not be spent all as tourists as they will also play Myjava on August 11, a team that recently placed ninth in the Slovak League.

UD spends its final weekend of the trip in Vienna, Austria to play against Herzogenberg and Union Ault BBC on August 13 and 14 respectively. The team will also tour St. Stephen's Cathedral, a 13th century landmark of Vienna as well as Prater, an amusement park laid out along the banks of the Danube River. The Flyers will also visit Schonbrunn Palace which is the former summer residence of the Habsburg family and hosted a performance by Mozart in 1762 when he was just six years old.

Fans can follow the UD women's basketball team on their trip through Europe on www.DaytonFlyers.com. Game stories, player journals and photo galleries will be made available throughout the trip at the online home of Flyer Basketball.