| EASTERN ILLINOIS at LIFE |
| Game Details | 10:30 a.m. | Sat., Oct. 4, 2014 | Rugby Complex | Marietta, Ga. |
| Match Coverage | Twitter | Facebook |
| EIU info (NCAA I) | Website | 1-2 Overall |
| LU info (NAIA) | Website | 4-1 Overall |
CHARLESTON, Ill. -- After picking up a home-opening win over Tennessee last weekend, the Eastern Illinois women's rugby squad will once again take to the road for a Saturday (Oct. 4) contest at Life University. Kickoff is set for 10:30 a.m. at the Rugby Complex in Marietta, Ga.
POINTS OF INTEREST
• Following last week's win over Tennessee, the Panthers improve to 13-4 all-time in home openers, and snapped a recent three-game loss when beginning the home portion of the slate.
• Saturday's game versus Life marks the first of two consecutive contests versus the Running Eagles. Life will immediately make the return trip to Charleston for a matchup at Lakeside Field on Sat., Oct. 11 at 11:30 a.m.
• Eastern returns eight full-time returners -- Carissa Burge, Sara Fisher, Jasmine Gardner, Kaitlyn Hammock, Emalie Thornton, Hannah Vieth, Ellen Wilson and Kim Youhas -- from last season's squad that finished just 2-6 on the year, marking the first ever losing season in program history.
• Eight additional newcomers join the crew this year for head coach Frank Graziano, who enters his 16th season as skipper of the premiere NCAA Division I women's rugby program.
HEAD COACH FRANK GRAZIANO
Now in his 16th year, Graziano owns an impressive 121-29 overall mark, which includes a 4-3 record in NCAA contests. EIU sports a 128-30 all-time record and enjoy a 103-17 mark since becoming the premiere NCAA DI quad back in 2002.
QUOTING COACH GRAZIANO
"Life is a brand new NAIA program in their first year as an official varsity program... they fought very well in their program opener versus Quinnipiac as they lost by less than 20 points… so I expect they will indeed be a challenge… I expect them to be as good, if not better, than the UW All-Star squad we faced earlier this season… so we must play our best game to date and see how that works out.
We are improving and have been able to adjust the offense more and more as the season goes by… newcomers are doing so well running the ball that it has inspired me to adjust and design plays specifically for them… so we just need to keep getting better each week… while improving our numbers, we still need to be competitive and see what happens on game day.
We continue to make steps forward individually but we are not quite there yet as a team… just need to put it together as a group and gel... we have also been working hard on our scrums and lineout plays this past week… overall I am happy with how we are improving."
ALL-TIME EIU/LIFE SERIES
Since this is Life's first year as a certified women's rugby squad, these upcoming two meetings this season mark the first-ever matchups between the Panthers and Running Eagles.
PANTHERS RUN PAST TENNESSEE
Five different players scampered for a try as EIU moved to 1-2 overall on the season in last week's 31-17 home-opening victory over the Vols of Tennessee.
Newcomers Katlyn Gibson, Deairelle Ivy and Lacey Viano all earned their first career scores in the first half as Eastern took an early 21-7 halftime lead.
Kaitlyn Hammock also nabbed her first score as a Panther and senior Carissa Burge accounted for the final EIU try in the second frame. Junior Hannah Vieth led all players with six points off three conversion kicks in the opening frame.
Defensively, senior Ellen Wilson led the way with nine solo stops while sophomore Sara Fisher's eight assisted tackles led all players on the field.
UP NEXT FOR EASTERN
Following tomorrow's action, the Panthers will have an immediate rematch with the Running Eagles of Life, as Eastern entertains the squad from Georgia at 11:30 a.m. next Saturday (Oct. 11) at Lakeside Field.
... for more info, contact Bart Rettberg, Asst. SID
