EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Soccer concludes its three-match homestand Thursday at 3 p.m. when it hosts Eastern Illinois University for an Ohio Valley Conference showdown at Strassweg Field.
The Eagles (1-9-3, 0-3-3 OVC) are unbeaten through the first two matches of the homestand, tying Chicago State University, 3-3, and Liberty University, 1-1, last week. With the ties, the Eagles are still in the hunt for a berth in the OVC Championship with is scheduled for November 5-11 at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.
EIU (2-8-3 overall, 1-4-1 OVC) was 0-1-1 last week in the OVC, falling to Liberty, 4-0, and tying Chicago State, 0-0. EIU is 0-4-1 in its last five matches.
USI trails the all-time series with EIU, 8-2-0, but won last year’s meeting in Summit League action, 3-2, in Charleston, Illinois. Sophomore forward Ednilson Voiles had the first goal in the victory, while junior defender Sam Benoist had goals two and three for the victory.
Following the match with EIU at Strassweg, USI is on the road for the next two matches.
The Eagles start the road swing with a visit to SIUE Sunday at 5 p.m. in Edwardsville, Illinois. SIUE leads the OVC with a league-best 5-0-1 conference record and is unbeaten overall with a 10-0-3 mark.
SIUE leads the all-time series with USI, 14-3-1, and in conference play, 13-1-1 (GLVC and OVC). Two of USI’s three victories over SIUE came during the Eagles’ first move to Division I in 1993 (4-2 at Strassweg Field) and 1994 (4-0 at SIUE). The Cougars won the first meeting of the season, 6-0, at Strassweg Field.
The Eagles conclude the road swing with the regular-season road-finale at EIU on September 26. Match time in Charleston is set for 4 p.m. The last regular season match and home match of 2023 is October 29 at 3 p.m. versus Lindenwood University.
