Things will be a little different this time around for Eastern’s women’s soccer team when it returns to the NCAA Women’s College Cup.

Head coach Steve Ballard’s Panthers will be the more experienced team when they step on the field to play Purdue at 3:30 p.m. Friday at Alumni Field in South Bend, Ind.

The Boilermakers (13-4-3) will be making their first appearance in the national tournament, while Eastern (11-7-3) is headed back to South Bend for the second straight year.

This is a much different story than last season, when Eastern had to face Notre Dame in the first round – a team that has qualified for the tourney every year since 1993. Both players and coaches believe that last year’s experience will be beneficial for them on Friday.

“I think this time we have a feeling of experience,” senior forward Terri Manser said. “It looks better from our standpoint because we were there last year.”

The Panthers also have a completely different outlook than they did last season. The excitement still exists, but the team has had better preparation and has higher expectations.

“Just as far as preparation and pre-game goes, it has been much better this year,” Ballard said. “We are as relaxed as can be and we are looking to get a win.”

Eastern knows a win is not going to come easily. The Boilermakers are currently ranked No. 14 in the nation and No. 1 in the Great Lakes Region, leaving little room for mistakes.

“We are going to need virtually a flawless game offensively and defensively,” Manser said. “We need to capitalize on everything.”

Purdue head coach Robert Klatte said whoever made the least amount of mistakes will come out on top. “It all comes down to mistakes,” Klatte said. “Whoever can stay focused and not make those mistakes will win.”

Klatte thinks anything can happen once the first whistle blows. “There are no guarantees,” he said. “It’s survive or you’re out. I’m sure Friday’s game is going to be a battle.”

Purdue

Purdue has a strong upperclassmen-based defense that has physically beaten teams this year, and has allowed only 16 goals in its 20 games with 10 shutouts. They start three seniors and two juniors in the back, making it difficult for other teams to produce scoring chances.

“We have not let many people behind our defense this year,” Klatte said. “When we have let them behind us, (senior goalkeeper Jocelyn Cavalier) has made some great saves for us.”

The Boilermakers own a balanced attack up top with junior forward Annette Kent leading the way (seven goals, four assists). Junior Jennie Moppert and sophomore Lauren Sesselman have each added six goals and four assists respectively.

As a team, Purdue has proven itself against other teams that qualified for the tournament. In its 11 games against tournament teams this season, the team has a winning record of 5-3-3 including a 3-1 victory over Notre Dame at Alumni Field in October.

Eastern

The Panthers believe their team speed and making quick passes will be a key aspect of the game.

“We need to play the ball quick and not let them be physical with us,” junior defender Rebecca Traen said. “Our quick game is going to help us.”

Eastern boasts several proven goal-scorers and will need to put pressure on the Purdue defense to set the tone early on.

“We are going to have to play good team offense,” Manser said. “We can’t just sit back and play defense against them.”

The Eastern offense produced 46 goals this season with junior forward Beth Liesen and senior midfielder Cara LeMaster leading the team (nine goals). Sophomore forward Audra Frericks added four goals and leads the team with 10 assists while Manser is third on the team in goals with seven.

Defensively, the Panthers are led by Traen who has been a mainstay in the lineup the past three seasons. They have a solid young corps that starts with freshman Lee Ann Langsfeld who has started all 21 games this season and sophomore goalkeeper Lindsay Dechert who has had five shutouts.

The one game that sticks out for the Panthers is their 4-3 overtime loss against nationally-ranked Denver in September. This showed what Eastern was capable of doing against a high profile team.

“We have competed against teams at (Purdue’s) level and that has given us some confidence,” Manser said.

Notre Dame vs. Ohio State

The winner of the Eastern-Purdue game will go on to face either Ohio State or Notre Dame in the second round Sunday.

The Buckeyes (8-10-3) snuck into the tournament with an automatic bid by stepping up their game in the Big Ten.

Tournament.

They battled past Purdue, Michigan and took a 2-1 victory over Wisconsin in the title game.

The Irish are no strangers to playing in the NCAA tournament. They have been runner-ups three times and won the national championship in 1995. They currently sit at No. 19 in the recent NSCAA coaches poll.