West Central Reporter

Western Illinois University’s women's soccer team is set to face UT-Martin on Sunday, October 1, at the Skyhawk Soccer Field in Martin, Tennessee. This marks the first encounter between these two teams as Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) opponents.

UT-Martin currently holds a record of 3-6-2 overall and has started their conference play with one loss and one draw. The Skyhawks began their OVC season with a 2-0 defeat against Morehead State, a team that Western Illinois held to a scoreless draw. Their most recent game ended in a 1-1 tie with Little Rock. Makayla Robinson leads the Skyhawks statistically, having scored three goals this season.

Western Illinois enters the match with a 2-4-3 record. They secured victories against Chicago State and Green Bay earlier in the season. In their opening OVC matches, they maintained clean sheets resulting in goalless draws. The Leathernecks have relied on a young squad this season, with seven underclassmen making multiple starts.

Freshmen Alanna Pennington and Kelsi McThenia are key players for Western Illinois, each having scored two goals so far. Newcomer Sachiko Gamo has also contributed three points this season. Senior goalkeeper Isabel Navas Rodriguez from Madrid has been notable for her performances, earning back-to-back OVC Goalkeeper of the Week awards at the start of the season and picking up her third award recently after making thirty-eight saves over eight games.

Following Sunday's game against UT-Martin, Western Illinois will continue its OVC schedule by hosting Southern Indiana next Thursday before heading to Tennessee Tech on Sunday.