Complete 2010 Schedule: Web | PDF

CHARLESTON, Ill. – Nine regular-season home games, including home-heavy stretches to open and close the season, highlight Eastern Illinois women's soccer's 2010 schedule, unveiled by head coach Summer Perala.

 

The Panthers open their campaign by playing three of the first four regular-season games at home. After hitting the road for Labor Day Weekend, EIU has two more home dates before beginning a six-game road stretch.

 

In October, Eastern concludes the regular season by playing four of its final five games at home. The Panthers also host Drake for an August 16 exhibition game, which will be the first on-campus sporting event of the 2010-11 school year.

 

For Ohio Valley Conference play, EIU is slated to host Morehead State (Oct. 8), Eastern Kentucky (Oct. 10), UT Martin (Oct. 22) and Murray State (Oct. 24). Morehead and UTM shared the 2009 regular-season conference title and Murray won the OVC Tournament. Senior Recognition Day is set for the Oct. 24 game against the Racers.

 

Eastern plays OVC road games at Austin Peay (Sept. 24), Jacksonville State (Sept. 26), Southeast Missouri State (Oct. 3) and Tennessee Tech (Oct. 17).

 

The entire six-team conference tournament will be hosted by the top seed for the second year in a row. It kicks off with opening-round games on Thursday, Nov. 4. The Panthers are scheduled to be idle for 10 days between the end of the regular season and the beginning of the OVC Tourney.

 

The nonconference portion of the schedule is highlighted by visits from IUPUI (Aug. 20), Evansville (Aug. 22), Eastern Michigan (Aug. 29), Belmont (Sept. 10) and UMKC (Sept. 12). The regular season begins with the Aug. 20 game against IUPUI, the two-time defending Summit League regular-season tri-champions. The Panthers defeated IUPUI in Indianapolis to open their 2009 campaign.

 

Eastern is slated to travel to Valparaiso (Aug. 27), Green Bay (Sept. 3), Indiana State (Sept. 5), Miami University (Sept. 17), Western Illinois (Sept. 19) and SIU Edwardsville (Oct. 1) for nonconference road dates. The Panthers have not played SIUE since their inaugural 1995 season and have not squared off against Valpo since 2003.

 

Meanwhile, the annual home-and-home series continue with Eastern Michigan, Indiana State and Western Illinois. EIU and EMU are slated to square off for the 14th time this season, making the Eagles the most frequent nonconference opponent in program history.

 

The Sept. 19 EIU-WIU game in Macomb will be a homecoming for Perala, as she returns to her alma mater for the first time as a head coach. The Panthers defeated WIU in overtime last season in Charleston.

Belmont and UMKC represent the only first-time opponents on EIU's 2010 schedule. In fact, the Panthers have never before played a current member of the Atlantic Sun Conference, the league Belmont calls home.