The regular season is finally here after the Panthers tied Green Bay on Saturday in their final exhibition of the season.

This preseason was one in which the Panthers improved with each game they played. The preseason started on Aug. 18 against Saint Xavier. Eastern showed some signs of rust losing the game 2-0.

The team then played an intrasquad scrimmage that squared the upperclassmen against the underclassmen.

The game was tight throughout, but in sudden death overtime freshman forward Brandon Loncar broke the tie 12 seconds into the period giving the underclassmen the victory.

Then, Eastern traveled to Indianapolis to play the Butler Bulldogs, a team that was ranked as high as 17th in the nation in 2009.

The Panthers took the lead late in the game on a goal by freshman midfielder Shawn Singh; however, Butler was able to tie the game three minutes later. The game ended in a 2-2 tie.

In the final exhibition contest, Eastern faced Green Bay. The Phoenix head into the season ranked No. 25 in the nation.

The game also ended in a 2-2 tie, courtesy of a late goal by sophomore forward Kyle Bullocks that tied the game with six minutes remaining.

The Panthers look to take advantage of the improvements they have made during the offseason and the preseason by contending for their first Missouri Valley Conference championship.

The Panthers land a favorable non-conference schedule

Eastern’s regular season kicks off Friday when the Panthers head to the University of Kentucky to take on the Wildcats.

Eastern does not have much history against the Wildcats, except that in their only previous meeting Eastern was victorious.

Otherwise, Eastern’s non-conference schedule for Eastern should put the team in a good standing for the start of the conference season as long as history repeats itself.

The Panthers have a winning record against every non-conference opponent they face this season except for UNC Asheville, who they play for the first time ever and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, who holds a 3-2-2 record over Eastern.

The overall record for Eastern against its non-conference foes is 47-15-7. The conference schedule doesn’t start until Oct. 1 against Creighton.

Around the MVC

The preseason All-American Team has been announced, and Creighton’s junior forward Ethan Finley has been named to the team along with 25 other players across Division-I men’s soccer in the nation.

He is the active points-leader for Creighton scoring 14 career goals and dishing out 7 career assists for a total of 35 points 19 of which came last season.

The regular season kicks of on Wednesday as teams across the country get their non-conference schedules underway.

Rob Mortell can be reached at

581-7944 or at

[email protected]