Western Illinois dominated Drake on the stat sheet in the second half of their midweek matchup, but the Leathernecks were unable to find the back of the net and lost to the Bulldogs 1-0.

That has been an on-going problem for Western in 2013, who will host the Panthers at 1 p.m Saturday in Macomb.

The defending Summit League champions have averaged less than one goal per match this season, scoring only seven times in nine games.

The Leathernecks have been shut out three times.

In order to exploit that, Eastern head coach Adam Howarth said it will be important that his team seize the initiative in Saturday’s match.

“We have got to go at them,” Howarth said. “We have got to make sure that we put pressure on them.”

In contrast, the Eastern men’s soccer team (0-7-2) has never been shutout this season but it cannot seem to keep the ball out of its own net.

Western (1-8) lost its first match of Summit League play last weekend, in what was the team’s sixth straight loss in a stretch dating back to Sept. 1.

The loss at home to Drake made it seven matches without a win or a draw.

Head coach Eric Johnson said in a press conference after the match that his team is really young this season, but the he still expects it to not only play well but to produce results.

“We created some great chances,” Johnson said. “We’re young, and the young guys are playing pretty good, but playing pretty good doesn’t win you games – you have to make big plays and that’s the next step for this team.”

Eastern will enter Saturday’s match searching for its first win on the road in Macomb.

“We are in for a tough battle,” Howarth said. “Winning games in Macomb is not easy.”

Sophomore Garrett Creasor started against IUPUI last weekend but was out of practice Thursday.

Creasor is expected to return to action before Saturday and then the coaching staff will evaluate the performance from each goalkeeper throughout the week.

Creasor only let up one goal last weekend, the lowest total from an Eastern goalkeeper this season.

Several Eastern players did not see the field in practice Thursday, but Howarth said he does not expect anyone to miss out on the match with Western.

However, Howarth said sophomore midfielder Nick Smith suffered a concussion in the game against IUPUI last weekend and is still not fully recovered.

Michael Spencer can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].