The Eastern women’s rugby team is just six days away from opening the 2011 season.

The Panthers just completed a rigorous training camp that will have them ready to avenge their lone loss of the 2010 season when they welcome the Grand Valley State Lakers to Lakeside Field on Saturday afternoon.

The premier team in NCAA Division-I women’s rugby will look to continue its dominance this season as it will look to record its third undefeated season in the past four years.

The Panthers have a strong core of returning players from last year’s team, as well as a solid class of freshmen that will contribute right off the bat for Coach Graziano.

The hard work that the Panthers have put in on the field, plus the passion that Graziano and his team have for the game, will certainly help the Panthers work their way through the 2011 season.

I look for the Panthers to continue their dominance in 2011 for two reasons.

First, the Panthers will play six of their 10 games at Lakeside Field.

The Panthers have walked off the field victorious in 15 straight games played at Lakeside Field.

Their last loss at home came on Sept. 15, 2007, against West Chester.

Another reason I believe that the Panthers will continue to dominate women’s rugby is that they will match up against seven teams that they have had substantial success against in the past.

The Panthers outscored these seven opponents by an amazing total of 356-22 in last year’s games.

The Panthers also managed to record shutouts in five of those seven games last season.

The remaining three games on the Panthers schedule will come against the Quinnipiac Bobcats.

The Bobcats are newcomers to NCAA Division-I athletics, and these three games will be the highlight of the 2011 season for both Quinnipiac and Eastern.

The Quinnipiac coaching staff is full of Eastern alumni and former assistant coaches to Graziano.

The Panthers will welcome the Bobcats to Lakeside Field on Sept. 18 for their first match-up of the season.

The Panthers will then travel to Hamden, Conn., on Oct. 15 to face the Bobcats on their home field before wrapping up the regular season back at Lakeside Field on Nov. 6.

A favorable schedule will have the Panthers playing the majority of their games at home plus a schedule full of teams that have not had success against the Panthers gives me reason to believe that the Panthers will record their third perfect season in four years.

Jordan Pottorff can be reached at 581-7944 or jbpottorff@eiu.edu.