Eastern’s men’s soccer team hopes rebound in its first season in the Summit League after a 4-12-1 season in the Missouri Valley Conference last year.

I think the Panthers have a good chance at being successful this season. Even though they lost their leading goal scorer, forward Alex Harrison, the team has plenty of capable and willing replacements.

Senior forward Ryan Child should be in store for a big season after leading the Panthers in points with 9 last year. This year, I believe he could score four to five goals and contribute about the same number of assists.

Senior defenseman/midfielder Graham Lynch should step into a significant role this season. He scored just one goal in his first season; however, he played mostly on the defensive side of the ball.

Eastern went 2-3 in Summit League games last season and has had success in the past against Summit League teams.

The Panthers were in the Summit League from 1983-1995 and they won five championships. A championship this year would give Eastern a chance at its first NCAA tournament appearance since 1983.

I don’t know if a NCAA tournament appearance reachable for the Panthers this season. The returning players and new recruits would have to play extremely well.

But, reaching the tournament is a goal that every team should have. Stranger things have happened than Eastern rebounding and making the tournament.

Head coach Adam Howarth added 11 new recruits to the team. He said they should add speed and help the team offensively, which is exactly what the Panthers need.

Eastern lost seven games with a score of 1-0 last year. If they had a little more offense, some of those games could easily been turned to ties or wins.

They only scored more than one goal twice last season. In order to win with any regularity scoring that few goals, your defense must be perfect or nearly perfect every game. That is a tall order for any team. Their lackluster offensive output must change if Eastern is going to win more games this season.

If the offense can add to the Panthers solid defense, they have a good chance of adding another Summit League championship.

The Panthers have set lofty goals for themselves and I think at the very least they will be a fun team to watch.

Maybe with a little luck, Eastern could be much more than that.

Rob Mortell can be reached at 581-7944 or at