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Eastern Illinois (1-3-1) at Houston Baptist (1-3-2)
Sept. 17 at 7 PM
Houston, Texas (Sorrels Field)
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Panthers Face Cougars
Eastern Illinois men's soccer looks to rebound as they play their last matchup before the start of Summit League conference play.  The Panthers will face the Huskies of Houston Baptist on the road on Saturday, September 17.  EIU comes into the match with an overall record of 1-3-1 following Tuesday's 2-0 road loss to the 17th-ranked Dayton Flyers, while the Huskies currently stand at 1-3-2 following a 2-1 road loss to Northwestern on Monday.  Kickoff is set for 7 PM CT.

EIU Finding The Back of the Net
Sam Eccles has been the Panthers' offensive leader so far this season.  The Hofstra transfer leads the team with seven shots, four shots on goal, and has scored two goals in the first five games of the season to go along with an assist.  He scored a goal off of a penalty kick in the 82nd minute of EIU's opener at Green Bay for the Panthers' first goal of the regular season, and netted his second goal in the 8th minute against IUPUI.  He averages one point per game, which ranks third in the Summit League.  Delphy Sabu found the back of the net in the 72nd minute to help secure a tie against Xavier, while Julian Smith netted what proved to be the game-winning goal in the 15th minute at Purdue Fort Wayne off of a pass from Eccles. 

Smith Locks It Down At Goalkeeper
Chad Smith has played a team-high 441 minutes at goalkeeper this season for EIU.  He played all 90 minutes in EIU's win at Purdue Fort Wayne, earning his first shutout of the season en route to a Panther win.  His four first half saves against Xavier single-handedly kept the Panthers in the game and his save in the second half preserved the eventual tie.  He accumulated a career-high 13 saves and allowed just two goals despite facing 51 shots in EIU's game against Dayton.  Smith's 5.80 saves per game lead the Summit League and rank seventh in the nation.  His 29 total saves also lead the conference and rank eighth in the nation.  His 0.744 save percentage also leads the conference.  As a team, EIU leads the conference in save percentage at 0.762, and the team's 6.40 saves per game lead the conference and rank third in the nation.

Spallinger, Okonny Make Early Impact
Freshman Forward Jude Spallinger scored a goal in EIU's home exhibition win over Parkland CC.  Okonny made the assist on the goal and also scored a goal of his own in the win.  Spallinger also has one assist on the season. 

Smith, Hamler Named Players To Watch
Chad Hamler and Julian Smith have been named Summit League Preseason Players to Watch.  Hamler comes into this season having made 35 starts at Midfielder for the Panthers.  He scored a game-winning goal a season ago in the Panthers' win at IUPUI and recorded two goals in EIU's exhibition win over Parkland Community College.  Hamler leads all returing Panthers with 14 shots recorded a season ago.  Smith appeared in all 15 games for EIU a season ago, including six starts.  He scored a game-winning goal in EIU's home win over St. Thomas.

Series History
Saturday will mark the third all-time meeting between the Panthers and the Huskies.  EIU leads the all-time series 2-0, having beaten HBU in 1983 and 1985, both times by a score of 4-0.  Both prior meetings were in Charleston.

Next Up
The Panthers will head to Minnesota for their Summit League conference opener at St. Thomas on Saturday, September 24.  Kickoff is scheduled for noon CT.

The Oakley Era Begins
This season is the first under new head coach Josh Oakley, who was hired as the 11th head coach in the history of the program on June 29.  A native of Mattoon, Ill., Oakley previously served as an assistant coach at EIU from 2000-02, and returns to Charleston after a successful stint at Lansing Common FC in the Midwest Premier League.  Oakley also has previous collegiate coaching experience with stops at Spring Arbor University, Alma College, and Asbury College.