Oct. 25, 2007

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University soccer team will begin its final weekend of Ohio Valley Conference play Friday as the Bulldogs look to extend their winning streak to nine-straight matches at 3 p.m., against the Eastern Illinois Panthers.

The key OVC contest will be held at Lantz Field in Charleston, Ill. Fans unable to attend the match in person can follow along via Eastern Illinois' free Live Stats at www.EIUpanthers.com.

Samford (12-3-0, 7-0-0 OVC), which has won the previous four regular-season conference championships, heads into Friday's match as the first-place team in the OVC.

With two games remaining in the regular season, the Bulldogs own a two-point advantage over second-place Southeast Missouri (9-2-2, 6-0-1 OVC) and a six-point lead over both Tennessee-Martin (9-4-3, 4-1-3 OVC) and Murray State (10-7-0, 5-3-0 OVC).

In conference play, teams are awarded three points for a win and one for a draw. Samford leads the OVC with 21 points, while Southeast Missouri follows with 19 and Tennessee-Martin and Murray State are tied for third place with 15.

Samford will conclude its regular-season OVC schedule Sunday at Southeast Missouri. The possible championship-deciding match is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m., at Hauck Stadium.

Eastern Illinois (6-8-1, 3-4-0 OVC) enters Friday's contest in a two-way tie for fifth place. The Panthers have lost three-straight matches and are in the midst of their longest losing streak of the season.

Following back-to-back shutout victories against Tennessee Tech 3-0 and Austin Peay 2-0, Eastern Illinois has dropped consecutive matches versus Southeast Missouri 4-2, Tennessee-Martin 2-1 and Murray State 1-0. The Panthers have played significantly better at home this season and own a 4-1-1 record at Lantz Field.

Eastern Illinois' All-OVC performer Michelle Steinhaus leads the team with six goals and 12 points.

Samford's eight-match winning streak is tied for the longest in school history. The achievement equaled a similar mark reached during the 2002 campaign in Yelton's first eight matches at the helm of the Samford soccer program.

So far this season, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 34-13, including a 23-3 advantage in OVC play.

True freshman Lauren Cook leads Samford with nine goals this season and is only two shy of tying the single-season record of 11, which was set by Marian Wagner in 2002. Senior Cassie Applegate is ranked second on the team with five goals, while Amber Cress and Hilary Samuels have each scored four apiece.

Cress, the Bulldogs' speedy sophomore from Zionsville, Ind., paces the team with six assists. Junior goalkeeper Cayley Winters has started every match this season and owns a miniscule goals-against average of 0.84.

Eastern Illinois-Samford has been the league's top rivalry since the Bulldogs joined the conference in 2003.

Samford and Eastern Illinois met in the OVC Tournament championship match in three straight years from 2003 to 2005, with the road team winning on each occasion.

Eastern Illinois was victorious in the first four meetings of the rivalry, but Samford has reeled off three straight wins to even the series at 3-3-1. The 2003 OVC Tournament final, which the Panthers won on penalty kicks, went into the record books as a draw.

The winner of the OVC's regular-season title will host the final two rounds of the conference's postseason tournament Nov. 9-11. Samford has hosted the four-team event in three of the previous four years.

Following Samford's matchup against Eastern Illinois on Friday, the Bulldogs will conclude their regular-season with a momentous game against the Southeast Missouri Redhawks at 2 p.m., Sunday.

Live Stats - Samford at Eastern Illinois