Sunday, October 25 - vs. IUPUI at Lakeside Field 12 p.m. [Live Stats]

Tuesday, October 27 - at Green Bay 6 p.m. [Live Stats]

No Rest For The Weary: Following the men's soccer team's overtime match Wednesday [Oct. 21] against Northern Kentucky, Eastern Illinois jumps right back into action with two matches in quick succession. EIU will play a home match Sunday [Oct. 25] against IUPUI followed by a trip to Green Bay Tuesday [Oct. 27] evening. EIU played matches with only one days rest in between twice early in the season, but this marks the only time that the Panthers will have three matches in less than one week. The Panthers started off their season with two sets of games played back-to-back, first EIU had a match at Xavier [Aug. 28] then traveled to Lipscomb [Aug. 30] only two days later. This also occurred when EIU traveled to Pittsburgh [Sept. 4] followed by Robert Morris [Sept. 6]. In both instances of games with little rest in between matches the Panthers went on to win the second match earning EIU's only wins of the season so far. 

Goalkeeper Showdown: The upcoming matches against IUPUI and Green Bay will be highlighted by some of the best goalkeeping in the country. Following Ben Feltes start against Northern Kentucky EIU is now ranked 18th in the NCAA in saves per game. Feltes has already racked up over 200 minutes in the net for the Panthers despite only playing in two matches. Teammate Mike Novotny has been the foundation for the Panthers in the net starting in 10 games this season and individually ranked 18th in the NCAA in saves per game. Novotny's saves per game percentage and total saves so far this season place him second overall in the Summit League. The match this Sunday will pit EIU against the No. 1 goalkeeper in the Summit League Eduardo Cortes. Cortes leads the Summit league in saves per game as well as total saves with 83 so far this season. These totals rank Cortes second in the nation in total saves and third overall in saves per game. The goalkeeping battle does not end there as EIU travels to Green Bay to face the Horizon League's No. 1 goalkeeper Kyle Ihn. Ihn's stellar season has earned him a No. 13 ranking in the NCAA in saves per game as well as No. 16 in total saves this season. 

Scouting Opponents: The Panthers will face IUPUI for only the 13th time in history as the Jaguars hold a slight edge over EIU with a 5-3-3 series record. IUPUI comes to Lakeside Field at 1-7-5 overall with their only win of the season coming in their last match against Summit League opponent IPFW. The Jaguars have yet to win on the road going 0-4-2 in true road games. When these two teams met previously in 2014 IUPUI came away victorious in a 2-1 decision. The last time IUPUI beat the Panthers at Lakeside Field was in 1999 when the Jaguars topped EIU 2-1 in an early season match. The Jaguars are led offensively by senior Clint Hoffar who has accumulated five goals and one assist so far this season.

As of this release Green Bay holds a 4-7-3 record but travel to face Northern Kentucky this Saturday [Oct. 24] before welcoming EIU to Aldo Santaga Stadium. The Phoenix have only lost once at home after an early match goal from Horizon League opponent Oakland would end up being the deciding factor in a 1-0 decision. EIU lost last season's matchup against the Pheonix 2-1 but hold a winning overall record of 12-7-3 in the series between the two schools. The last time the Panthers traveled to Green Bay they were victorious over the host school 3-0 when facing the Phoenix in the Green Bay Tournament. EIU will have to keep an eye on the duo of Audi Jepson and Cheenuj Shong as the pair have combined for seven of the Phoenix's 10 goals of the season and five of the team's seven assists with one game still to play.

Looking Ahead: Following the two matches against IUPUI and Green Bay the Panthers continue their conference season on the road against Denver. The match will take place Saturday [Oct. 31] on Halloween night and be televised live on Altitude Sports. The Pioneers are currently undefeated and sit at No. 7 in the NCAA men's soccer RPI.