Eastern lost to Illinois State 1-0 on Thursday afternoon at Lakeside Field.

“We didn’t have the greatest training session right before the game,” Head Coach Dirk Bennett said. “We transit that into the performance today, and we didn’t start as sharp as we wanted.”

Bennett also said that the Panthers started the game slow.

In the first five minutes in the game, Panthers’ junior midfielder Avery Richardson received a foul that resulted in a free kick for the Redbirds.

ISU’s Julia Liguore scored the free kick for the Redbirds, and the Panthers struggled to gain momentum in the first half.

“It was an unlucky foul for sure,” sophomore defender Kya Trejo said.

Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Ashlyn Hoover recorded two saves in the first half.

“We definitely had the chances to score and go ahead to tie the game, but we just didn’t quite have it today,” Bennett said.

The Panthers gained momentum in the second half, but they couldn’t capitalize on scoring opportunities.

Freshman goalkeeper Ella Kratochvil saved three shot attempts in the second half.

Three of the Panthers played for all 90 minutes of the game: Trejo, junior defender Elisa Solis, and sophomore midfielder Kate Germano.

Eastern had a total of five shots while ISU recorded 10.

“It’s an unfortunate loss,” Bennett said. “We came up against a good team that’s better than their record.”

Heading into the game, the Redbirds were 0-3-1. The Panthers were 1-2-2 before the game.

Eastern is currently 1-3-2. The Panthers’ next game is senior day for the five seniors: midfielders Cami Lummus and Cam Korhorn, forwards Karima Rangel and Serra Pizano, midfielders/forwards Ava Hensley and Peyton Gill, and goalkeeper Lexi Prusow.

The Panthers will compete against the Chicago State Cougars on Sunday at Lakeside Field. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.