The offensive struggles of the Eastern women’s soccer team are well documented.

Two games.

Seven shots on goal.

And just one goal and zero wins to show for it.

It’s understandable for any soccer team’s focus to be on defense. Soccer is a defensive sport, and Panthers’ head coach Tim Nowak stresses the fact a good defense creates a good offense.

However, the Panthers thus far have had virtually no offense.

In the team’s 1-0 overtime loss to Indiana State to open the season, the Panthers played with a one-player advantage and still could not muster one goal.

Tuesday’s 5-1 loss to Purdue was more of the same. Granted, playing against a nationally-ranked school in their home opener would be tough for any team.

Still, Purdue got off 39 shots against the Panthers – more shots than any Boilermakers team ever. If good defense creates good offense, then that was not good defense.

“If you can defend well as a team that will create scoring chances,” said Nowak after the team’s loss in West Lafayette, Ind. “Unfortunately for us, we fell apart defensively for big parts of the second half.”

If Eastern wants to have any chance of winning the Ohio Valley Conference, or even finishing third as the preseason poll predicted, its offense must kick into gear before the conference opener on Sept. 26 at Tennessee Martin.

Perhaps the team’s offensive struggles should have been expected.

After all, last year’s top scorers Michelle Steinhaus and Kellie Floyd accounted for 37 percent of the team’s shots on goal, and Steinhaus alone accounted for 21 percent of the team’s points.

Both have since graduated.

Yet the team returns its third leading scorer from last year in junior forward Rachel Hamilton.

According to freshman midfielder Ashley Eck, little work will get the team going offensively.

“We just need to work more on our team defending and on our attack,” said Eck after the team’s loss to Purdue. “If we can improve on working with the ball inside the 18-yard boxes both offensively and defensively, it will help out our game a lot.”

The team will look to get their offense going and get in the win column this weekend at the Northern Illinois Tournament.

They play the host Huskies and then wrap up the tournament with a game against Northern Iowa.

If Eastern is unable to get it done against the Huskies, it may be an all-Panthers battle Sunday to see which offense awakens first.

If it’s the Panthers from Northern Iowa, Eastern’s Panthers may be in for a long season.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or at [email protected].