It’s safe to say the weather played a role in this weekend’s women’s soccer matches on Friday and Sunday. Lakeside Field was a slippery mess, especially Friday.

Despite already having one match postponed from Lakeside Field because of poor playing conditions earlier in the year, the Eastern women’s soccer team played against Tennessee Tech.

The conditions couldn’t have been much worse. It was cloudy, 40 degrees and muddy. The only thing worse would’ve been snow.

However, as the match progressed, I began to realize that I had seriously underestimated the excitement that came with a Homecoming mud bowl. The match was a high-scoring affair, but could’ve been much greater.

The weather showed its first sign of troubles when senior forward Rachel Hamilton broke free, early in the match, to have a one-on-one with the Tennessee Tech goalie. As Hamilton pulled back her leg, preparing to fire, she slipped on a soaked, muddy circle in front of the goal – the ball trickled right into the goalie’s chest.

There were at least three other times in which the Panthers could’ve scored, and two other times that Tennessee Tech could’ve put the ball into the back of the net. However, this was the only scoring opportunity where the weather showed its wrath. One-on-one defending was hard once players got into several spots near the benches where there were muddy circles. Women from both teams struggled to keep their feet and fell over onto their butts while trying to make a play on the ball.

Also, the match featured two heart-stopping collisions between players.

One involved senior midfielder Laura Ridolfi, junior midfielder Sarah Rusk and a Tennessee Tech player. The three chased after a ball – its momentum ironically stopped by the mud – and neither of the women saw the other two coming. A thud, and three women’s defenseless bodies collided and collapsed to the ground. In this moment, the three women epitomized the toughness and tenacity of a women’s soccer player – all three hopping back to their feet almost simultaneously.

The next collision was much more violent. Senior goalkeeper Jenny Williams charged out of the box to try and clear a ball that a Tennessee Tech player was chasing. Williams beat her, but not by much. She undercut the opposing player, sending her in the air and down hard to the ground. This match finished 2-2 and wasn’t short on excitement. In Sunday’s match, the field slightly dried up, and the Panthers learned how to deal with it. They dominated Jacksonville State 3-0.

Homecoming provided some exciting events, but none were more of a thrill than witnessing the Panthers offense click in the worst conditions.

Alex McNamee can be reached

at 581-7944 or admcnamee@eiu.edu.