Success doesn’t come from just rolling over on what you’ve got. Chances need to be taken and strengths need to be shown in order to prove what an athlete can be.

That is the case with the women’s soccer program, which continues to blossom year after year and conference tournament championship after conference tournament championship.

Instead of making invites to lesser teams and taking opportunities to get easy wins, head coach Steve Ballard and the Panthers accept invitations from other top schools.

Coaches have different philosophies on scheduling, and I think the Panthers have chosen the correct one.

Some coaches prefer to go lighter early on in order to gain confidence with a few wins before the conference schedule begins.

Sure, that method works for teams that can gain at-large bids at the end, but Eastern has to win the Ohio Valley Conference tournament to even think about postseason.

In the end of August and the first few weeks of September, Eastern is playing the No. 2 ranked team in the country and two other teams that qualified for the 2003 Women’s College Cup.

“I think our success has earned the program definitely regional, if not some national, respect; and therefore, we are getting invites from bigger time programs,” Ballard said.

After its season opener Friday against Evansville, Eastern plays second ranked Notre Dame, followed by a trip to No. 26 Nebraska.

It also plays DePaul, the fifth ranked team in the region, and Illinois State, a college cup qualifier, all before it even sees an OVC opponent.

The Panthers even take the time to fit in Loyola during the middle of the season and a quality Southwest Missouri State team at the end.

These are the games that make good programs, and winning them can make them great programs.

Eastern hasn’t won three consecutive OVC tournaments by scheduling the easiest non-conference teams.