Eastern completed its three-game homestand Sunday with a 1-0 loss to UT Martin. The Panthers won their other two games 4-0 against Western Illinois and 2-1 against Tennessee Tech.
Here are three big things that stood out during this homestand:
1. Eastern found an offensive identity.
Sophomore forward Abby Reinl has been the biggest beneficiary from this Panther attack, which has really found form in the back end of Ohio Valley Conference play.
Reinl is starting to show glimpses of what she did at Sheboygan North High School when she scored 32 goals in her senior season. She’s Eastern’s top goal scorer (eight) and is one goal behind Tennessee Tech sophomore forward Neve Renwick for the conference lead in goals.
Reinl is also seventh in the OVC in shots on target (17) and fourth in points (16), which accounts for goals and assists. A player earns two points for a goal and one for an assist.
Last season, Reinl only scored three goals. In this homestand alone she scored three, including the game winner against Tennessee Tech to mark her seventh goal in as many games.
“My confidence has grown a lot since last year,” Reinl said. “I know [my teammates] have my back, and I have theirs.”
Fellow sophomore forward Alex Tetteh has also been a big part of the success in the attacking third of the field. The striker, who mostly plays in a strike partnership with senior forward Carys Grieve, has six goals this season. She matched Reinl’s goal tally with two goals of her own against Western Illinois.
“Abby [Reinl] has obviously been on a hot streak for a reason,” head coach Dirk Bennett said after the 4-0 win against Western Illinois. “Alex [Tetteh] has been trying to find her way back on the scoresheet consistently.”
Eastern’s win against Western Illinois was the first time since 2018 that Eastern had scored four goals in a game and the first time Eastern scored four goals against a conference opponent since 2013. It also marked the first time since 2003 that the Panthers had two different players score multiple goals in the same game.
2. Freshman defenders have stepped up
Colleen Bauer and Casey Kittridge have emerged as solid and reliable center backs for the Panthers. Bauer leads the team in minutes played with 1,344, and Kittridge is right behind her at 1,300. The two have played every minute of all but one conference game so far and have combined to limit opponents to six goals since the 0-0 draw with Lindenwood.
“It’s great that they’ve both learned so much in a short amount of time as freshmen,” Bennett said. “The team knows they can count on them.”
Since matchday two of OVC play, Eastern has conceded six goals, which is fifth best in the conference. Three of the four teams who’ve conceded less than the Panthers are fighting for the regular season title on Sunday.
3. The Panthers struggle at breaking down low blocks
Eastern’s loss to UT Martin on Sunday exposed an issue in the Panthers offense. The Skyhawks planned to sit low in their own defensive half when Eastern had possession, which made it difficult for Eastern to get into open space in an area the Skyhawks couldn’t defend.
“We just made sure that we stayed compact and tried to keep [Eastern] in front of us,” UT Martin head coach Mike Varga said. “I know how dangerous they are when they get behind their opponents to score goals.”
Bennett mentioned after the game how UT Martin’s defensive tactics gave the Panthers problems going forward.
“They made it hard for us to play in different areas of the field,” Bennett said. “It takes time to adapt in the games, and for us it took the better part of the first half to do it. In the second half they changed what they were doing, and they really packed [the box] in.”
Eastern will finish the regular season with a road game against Little Rock. Kickoff is set for noon.
Gabe Newman can be reached at 581-2812 or at ghnewman@eiu.edu.
