The EIU Panthers look to get back on track in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) after the loss to Chicago State.

The Panthers have not played a game since Sept. 10th but are feeling good after the long break.

“I think one of the things that you have to value is rest, and sometimes just getting a break from me and from each other can be really good, and we saw that.” Head Coach Dirk Bennett said. “First training session back after a two-day break, and after Chicago State, that was probably the best session we’ve seen all year so that then lead into another good session and another good session.”

Eastern is starting conference play with one win, however, the conference is still very much wide open after the non-conference schedule.

“They just have a lot of a lot of ambition to still go on the and I think they’re looking around Conference you know we’re actually in the middle of the table in terms of wins in the non-conference season,” Bennett said. “So, at the end of day everyone on there until yesterday was zero-zero. The girls know that so they’re really positive that one result can lead to a second result then the third and then before you know it, you’re in the OVC tournament.”

EIU is ready for a fresh start in the OVC and looks to compete for a conference championship.

“Pushing the reset button in a lot of ways from non-conference games to conference,” Bennett said. “We’ve been doing a lot of hard training last week, and the girls have had really good energy and good spirits. I think that we’re ready as we can be.”

SIUE is heading into the game at a 2-4-1 record.

The Panthers have started out the season at 1-4-2 and look to compete in the OVC as they face Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) on Thursday at 3 p.m. at Lakeside Field.

Both teams are looking to start with a win in conference play.

Patrick Schmitz can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected].