After drawing with IUPUI Sunday, the Eastern men’s soccer team sits in the middle of the Summit League standings.

The Panthers sought their first victory but came up just short, finishing 1-1 with the Jaguars that are also winless.

The match at Lakeside field was just one of three games across the Summit League for week one of conference play.

Oral Roberts opened its campaign against Fort Wayne Sunday, breaking a 1-1 draw with a goal just one minute into the first extra time period to win 2-1.

Western Illinois may have won the league last year, but this season the Leathernecks are off to a slow start as they fell to Omaha 2-1, in its first match of conference play since capturing the title in 2012.

Junior midfielder Vance Rookwood was able to put the Mavericks over the line in the 74th minute when he finished a shot off a deflection in the penalty area.

Denver did not play a conference match this week, but it did pull off a come from behind victory against California Polytechnic. Senior midfielder Zach Bolden scored the match-winner in the 69th minute.

Another weekend of conference games is scheduled to begin Saturday when Eastern will travel to Macomb to play Western.

Omaha will see IUPUI and Denver will open its Summit League campaign against Fort Wayne.

For Eastern the key is in converting its chances.

The Panthers created 19 opportunities in the match with IUPUI, compared with the Jaguars’ 13.

“It’s 90 minutes, and we can’t afford to go down a goal and be chasing the game like we were,” Eastern coach Adam Howarth said. “Credit to our guys who came back and got the tie, but in a lot of ways, it is two points dropped.”

The league is structured to offer teams three matches at home and three on the road. Howarth acknowledged that his team will have to collect points on the road in order to make up for its loss at Lakeside Field.

“We have to try to steal something on the road to get back in contention,” Howarth said.

Michael Spencer can be reached at 581-281 or [email protected].