West Central Reporter

Western Illinois University's soccer team is preparing for two road matches against Loyola Chicago and Milwaukee. The Leathernecks will face the Loyola Ramblers on Thursday, August 31 at 7 p.m. CT at Loyola Soccer Park in Chicago, IL. They will then travel to Engelmann Stadium in Milwaukee, WI to play the Milwaukee Panthers on Sunday, September 3 at 1 p.m. CT.

Historically, Western Illinois has struggled against both teams. The Leathernecks have a record of 0-2-1 against Loyola since their first meeting in 2013. In their last encounter, Loyola secured a 4-1 victory in Macomb with three goals scored in the final minutes of the match.

Milwaukee has been even more dominant over Western Illinois with an 8-0-1 record from nine encounters since 1997. Last year’s tie ended an eight-match winning streak for the Panthers against the Leathernecks. Over these matches, Milwaukee has outscored Western Illinois by a significant margin of 40 goals to one.

This season, Loyola holds a record of 1-3 after facing losses to Illinois, Kansas, and Bowling Green but securing a win against Toledo on August 25. They finished last season with an overall record of 8-8-3.

Milwaukee enters this week's matchups with a record of 2-0-2 and was predicted to lead the Horizon League according to preseason polls. Their season began with a draw against #3 Notre Dame followed by victories over SIUE and Minnesota before tying with Denver.

The Leathernecks currently have a balanced record of 1-1-1 this season following their victory over Chicago State and draw against Northern Iowa.

Key players for Western include Emmy Ellington, Malerie Rohweder, and Isabel Navas Rodriguez who have played every minute so far this season. Rodriguez was recently named OVC co-goalkeeper due to her performance against Chicago State where she achieved a shutout. Junior transfer Sachiko Gamo has contributed the only goal for Western Illinois this season.

After these road games, Western will return home on Thursday, September 7 for a match against Green Bay before heading to Normal for another game versus Illinois State Redbirds on Sunday, September 10 at 1 p.m.