UT Martin (4-6-3) vs. Eastern Illinois (2-6-3)
Sunday, October 8
1PM - Skyhawk Soccer Field, Martin, Tenn.
Watch | Live Stats
ON-TAP: The Eastern Illinois women's soccer team (2-6-3, 1-2-1) returns to Tennessee, but this time to face the Skyhawks of UT Martin (4-6-3, 1-1-2) on Sunday afternoon. EIU comes from a road loss at Tennessee Tech while UT Martin defeated Lindenwood at home in their last contest, 3-0.
REINL LEADS PANTHERS OFFENSE : Abby Reinl has taken the lead in goals and assists for Panthers. The goal scored in the contest against Tennessee Tech has given the freshman forward the leading position, with three. Reinl's vital role in the offensive half of the field is not limited to just goals, as the forward is also leading the team in assists, also with three.
THE SCORING PARTY: EIU's offense has been showing its group power, as seven different players have scored for Panthers in the 2023 season. The newest player added to the scoring list is
Ella Onstott, as the sophomore midfielder scored off a header EIU's goal against Morehead State with less than thirty seconds left to the final whistle. She is now sharing the scoresheet with
Abby Reinl,
Alex Tetteh,
Cami Lummus,
Katiebeth May,
Serra Pizano, and
Zenaya Barnes.
FIRST SHUTOUT FOR KRATOCHVIL: After posting a season high of ten saves against SIUE, freshman goalkeeper
Ella Kratochvil added another seven saves to help EIU secure the 2-0 win against Southeast Missouri. The match marked Kratochvil's first college career shutout and the second clean sheet for the Panthers in the season. Kratochvil is now totaling 24 saves in the season with a .828 save rate.
KORHORN ASSISTS: Cam Korhorn picked up her first assist in the second EIU goal against SEMO. The senior midfielder who was earlier selected as EIU player to watch joins
Carys Grieve,
Abby Reinl,
Ella Onstott,
Katiebeth May, and
Kylie Mahoney in the list of players who assisted at least once in the season.
FIRST CONFERENCE WIN AS A HEAD COACH: The 2-0 victory against Southeast Missouri was also special for head coach
Dirk Bennett, as it was the first conference win of Bennett at the helm of EIU women's soccer. His first regular season win came earlier in the year, when EIU defeated UIS at home, 3-1.
CLEAN SHEET: The scoreless road draw against Purdue Fort Wayne gave the Panthers the first clean sheet of the season. Freshman goalkeeper
Ashlyn Hoover logged two saves to secure the first shutout of her college career. Hoover has a total of 17 saves in the season with a .895 save rate.
SERIES HISTORY: The Panthers and the Skyhawks will be facing each other for the 29th time. EIU holds a slight 13-11-4 record advantage over UT Martin, as they played to a 1-1 draw in 2022.
HEAD COACH: Dirk Bennett enters his first season as the head coach of the Eastern Illinois women's soccer team. A two-time EIU graduate, Bennett previously served as the Panthers assistant women's soccer coach since July of 2019. In February of 2023, he became the seventh head coach in program history. In 2022, Bennett helped coach the team to a 0.81 goals against average, which is the third best single season mark in school history. EIU's 3-1 home win over Illinois Springfield this season marked Bennett's career win number 1. He is assisted by
Deanna Hecht and
Kayla Baird.
NEXT UP: EIU will close its series of three road matches at Western Illinois on Thursday, Oct 12th.
