Eastern Illinois (0-4) vs. Chicago State (0-6)
Sunday, September 15
1 pm at Lakeside Field
Live Stats |
ON-TAP: Eastern Illinois faces Chicago State on Sunday afternoon as the Panthers are at home for the second time this fall. EIU lost its home opener last Sunday to Purdue Fort Wayne as the Mastodons scored a late goal for the 1-0 victory. The Panthers are currently 0-4. Chicago State is 0-6
MULTIPLE GOALS IN A LOSS: After scoring their first goal of the season in match number two at Kansas City, EIU doubled up that offensive output last Friday at Milwaukee. EIU had goals from Itaxso Aguero and
Lexi Ketterhagen as the Panthers suffered a loss on the road.
FIRST ASSIST TO ANUCI: Eastern Illinois freshman
Nicoletta Anuci scored the Panthers first goal of the season in the second match at Kansas City. She then picked up the first assist of the season by a Panthers player as she had one in the loss at Milwaukee. Anuci currently leads the Panthers with three points on the year.
FIRST WIN IN RECENT YEARS: Eastern Illinois enters the fifth match of the season still looking for the first 'W' of the year. Last season the Panthers picked up their first win of the year in the fifth contest when they beat Chicago State 2-0. Over the last four seasons, EIU has picked up its first win of the season in its season opener in 2017, fourth match of the year in 2016 and fifth match of the year in 2015
PANTHERS YOUTH MOVEMENT: Eastern Illinois has six seniors on its 2019 roster but four freshmen players have been in the starting line-up at different points this season.
Annette Gomez-Gonzalez,
Kenzie Balcerak and
Nicoletta Anuci all started in Sunday's match against Purdue Fort Wayne.
Megan Kenny has been in the starting line-up prior to that.
HANNAH HEINZ RETURNS TO TEAM: Forward
Hannah Heinz has officially returned to the women's soccer program this fall. Heinz played her first minutes in nearly two years on Sunday against Purdue Fort Wayne. Heinz was one of the Panthers top goal scorer's two seasons ago before being diagnosed with cancer near the end of the 2018 spring season. She underwent treatment against the disease with the EIU team rallying around her for a Hope for Hannah match last fall. Heinz is now back on the team and looking to see action on the pitch during this upcoming season.
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Illinois will host Chicago State as the two schools will be meeting for the sixth time on the pitch. EU leads the all-time series 5-0 including a 2-0 victory last season in the Windy City with
Haylee Renick and
Lexi Ketterhagen both scoring goals in the win.
NEXT UP: Following this weekend's matches, EIU will open Ohio Valley Conference play on Friday, Sept. 19 at UT Martin.
HEAD COACH:
Jake Plant enters his second season as the head coach of the Eastern Illinois women's soccer team. A 2014 EIU alumnus and former member of the Panthers men's soccer program, Plant was the assistant coach for both the men's and women's program for two years with one additional season as an assistant for the men's program before being named EIU women's head coach last season. Plant led EIU to a 6-8-6 record in his first season including a 4-3-3 record in OVC play. He is a native of Birmingham, England. He is assisted by
Dirk Bennett.
