It all came together for the Panthers on Saturday afternoon as they dominated the Fighting Illini and turned in an impressive 91-7 win. The Panthers had everything clicking and racked up their highest scoring performance of the season.

The Panthers were fueled by the performance of junior wing Kayla Heal and sophomore wing Cara Hahne.

The duo of Heal and Hahne combined for 10 tries and tallied five runs of over 20-yards against the Illini. Eastern got off to a quick start and had all but secured the win at the half, leading the Illini by a score of 55-0.

The Panthers had struggled to put points up on the board so far this season, but after Saturday’s performance, head coach Frank Graziano said the lack of scoring may be a thing of the past.

“After four games and over a month of practice, we are finally starting to understand the philosophy behind our plays and the attacking space and angles,” Graziano said. Graziano had repeatedly stressed the importance of timing and how the team must take the good things from practice and put them to work during the game.

Heal and Hahne were the top performers in Saturday’s game, but a number of other Panthers contributed in the one-sided victory. A pair of freshmen contributed to the success as Madison Kissner tallied her first career try and Nia Williams recorded two tries in the blowout win. Junior Lauren Doyle and senior Narissa Ramirez also paced the Panthers offensive attack as they each dished out three helpers in the route of the Illini.

The Panthers will be back in action this weekend when they hit the road to take on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers.

Around the NCAA

In other rugby action around the NCAA, the Bowdoin Polar Bears pushed their record to 6-0 with a 62-10 win over Middlebury.

The West Chester University Golden Rams were also in action and they came out on top with an 80-0 win over Delaware. The Golden Rams are 3-0 this season.

The Norwich Cadets pushed their record to 8-1 on the year with a 34-0 win over Rhode Island.

The Quinnipiac Bobcats recorded their first home win in program history with a 23-7 win over Marist. The Bobcats are 2-2 this season.

Jordan Pottorff can be reached at 581-7942 or jbpottorff@eiu.edu.