After getting off to an early 0-2 start, the Panthers will try to get their first win on the road today at Belmont.

The women’s soccer team is hoping for a similar situation as last season when it heads to Belmont. Last season, the Panthers beat Belmont 1-0 in dramatic fashion. With the use of a penalty kick with just over 10 seconds left in regulation, senior forward Kristin Germann scored the lone goal for the Panthers. Eastern not only holds a 1-0 victory over Belmont, also a 1-0 record over them, as that was the two teams’ only meeting.

Head coach Summer Perala said she is very confident lightning will strike twice for her team.

“After a solid week of training, the players feel confident and ready to play down in Nashville,” she said.

With the Panthers needing more goals per game and their first win, the pressure is on, especially not being in front of a home crowd. The team, however, is staying focused and ready to play.

“Being on the road still has its ups and downs,” senior defender Erika Prazma said. “But we should perform to our full potential like any other game and we are excited to be playing at home soon and hopefully with a few wins.”

Perala said the main focus this week was working out the kinks in the team’s game.

“We focused on midfield shape and combination in the attacking third and we are hoping to see more goals.”

The team will be getting players returning from injuries and she hopes to get them to put in significant minutes so they can have more options to go to from the bench.

The stress this week was getting more goals, but the team shares one common goal: to win.

The team has already proven last year that Belmont is beatable, but Belmont just picked up their first victory of the season against Tennessee Tech this past Sunday.

So far, Eastern only has one goal against opponents this season, and despite beating Belmont 1-0 in the past, the team will look to accomplish more on offense.

After the team plays Belmont, the Panthers will play IUPUI on the road Sept. 2.

Lenny Arquilla can be reached at 581-7944 or lrarquilla@eiu.edu.