MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois will travel to Edwardsville, Ill. on Friday for a 7 p.m. clash with the Cougars. the Purple & Gold will face its second of three Iowa programs (Iowa, Drake, Grand View) on Sunday at 1 p.m. The Bulldogs are coming off of a tie with Southern Utah and will face South Dakota State prior to Western coming to Des Moines, Iowa.

Both SIUE and Drake put together winning seasons last season and should provide the Leathernecks with an early season benchmark.

Western Illinois recovered after a defeat at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes on Friday night to take a 1-0 decision from St. Ambrose in Macomb on Sunday.

The win continues a home undefeated streak dating back to Oct. 30, 2009 (8-0-3).

The Match Up
Who • Western Illinois at SIUE
When • Friday, Sept. 2 (7 p.m. CST)
Location • Edwardsville, Ill. • Ralph Korte Stadium (4,000)

Coverage
Live Stats • SIUECougars.com

Twitter • @WIUAthletics

The Match Up
Who • Western Illinois at Drake
When • Sunday, Sept. 4 (1 p.m. CST)
Location • Des Moines, Iowa • Cownie Soccer Complex (2,000)
Coverage
Live Stats • GoDrakeBulldogs.com
Twitter • @WIUAthletics

SCOUTING THE COUGARS: SIU-Edwardsville is coached by Derek Burton who is in his 4th season... the Cougars were 8-7-1 last season... the program returns 8 starters and returns 21 letter winners... SIUE started the season with a 6-1 defeat in an exhibition versus Iowa State... they will enter the match with Western Illinois with a 1-0 record after a 4-0 victory over Youngstown State... this will be the second all-time meeting... the two teams played to a draw last season in Macomb.

COUGARS TO WATCH: Freshman Michelle Auer collected two goals in the season-opening win... senior Brittany Bodziak and and junior Kristen Daily both added a goal each... senior goalkeeper Claire Lovercheck collected six shutouts last season and another one to open 2011... returners Kristin Dierker and Meagan Iffrig both scored four goals last season to lead the team.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS: The Bulldogs went 10-6-3 last season and 3-3 in the conference, which was good for a fourth place finish... Drake returns eight starters and return 15 letter winners... head coach Lindsey Horner is in her fourth season at the helm... the program is 2-1-1 this season after victories over Northern Arizona and Green Bay... the Bulldogs lost to Iowa State 2-0 and tied Southern Utah, 1-1... Drake also played two exhibition matches.. the first was against South Dakota, which they lost 1-0 and were defeated by Iowa, 6-0... Drake leads the all-time series 4-1 and the Leathernecks last defeated the Bulldgos in 2006.

BULLDOGS TO WATCH: Sophomore Kalena Litch made 91 saves in 2010 and collected nine shutouts... Laura Moklestad and Paige Dusek both scored four goals last season... Megan Fisher contributed four goals in 2010... this season junior Tara Zika has two goals while Generve Charles, Moklestad and Fisher all have added one goal each... Litch has been solid in between the pipes with 31 saves.

CONDON SISTERS: Katie and Lindsay Condon are proving to be a dynamic duo... Katie Condon scored a goal at Iowa and Lindsay Condon scored the game-winning goal against St. Ambrose.

PRESEASON POLL: The Leathernecks were picked to finish fourth in The Summit League... Head Coach Tony Guinn's squad received 48 points and a first-place vote... Western has become accustomed to exceeding expectations as it was slotted in the fifth-place slot prior to the 2010 season.

TURNOVER: The roster has nine starters returning and 19 letter winners back for 2011... the roster will be infused with 12 newcomers who look to ease the loss of two starters and seven letter winners.

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM: Western returns two members of 2010's Summit League All-Freshman team... Kristin Becker and Jordan Spaciel both collected the honor after strong debuts for the Purple & Gold... Spaciel collected four goals and one assist in 20 games and 10 starts and notched the game-winning goal against Green Bay... Becker played a large role in a strong defense and will be asked to do the same in 2011.

BIG SHOES: The Purple & Gold will have to replace some of the most decorated athletes in program history... Departed senior defender Jenny Green has a laundry list of awards and recognition including 2010 Summit League Defensive Player of the Year and 2010 First Team All-Summit League... other notable names that will need to be replaced are 2010 seniors Caitlin Barrett, Kelly Diershow, Ali Smyth, Jill Kevorkian and Kendra Wilkening.

TRENDING UPWARD: 2010 saw the Leathernecks put up some impressive numbers as a team... the 10 wins is the third most in program history... the squad also collected nine shutouts, the most in program history... the 76 points last season is fifth all-time... the Purple & Gold put 151 shots on goal, which is second all-time while taking 291 total shots, also second all-time.

LATE ROSTER ADDITION: Leatherneck women's tennis standout Amy Unzicker has joined the roster and will offer some goal scoring opportunities... the senior has already earned positive reviews from the staff.

DEFENDING HOME TURF: Western Illinois has not lost at home since Oct. 30, 2009 (8-0-3)... Sunday's win over St. Ambrose continued that undefeated streak and Western Illinois has never lost to the Queen Bees (7-0).

CLUTCH: Last season the Purple & Gold won four of the last five regular season games to qualify for the Summit League Tournament... the program has reached the tournament three out of the last four seasons.

NETMINDER: Freshman Victoria Kappel secured her second career victory on Sunday over St. Ambrose and collected four saves... Kappel has 12 saves on the year and is trying to replace Laura Atkinson who is taking a redshirt season.

HIGH SCHOOL ALL-AMERICAN: The strong recruiting class will offer exceptional depth and talent across the board... included in that class is NSCAA All-America, Sarah Hall... Hall was named All-State after she finished her prep career with 88 goals, 33 of which came as a senior... she also dished out 20 assists and was a Gatorade Indiana Player of the Year candidate.

COACHING STAFF: The Leathernecks' coaching staff will look to replace Assistant Coach Jason Cherry... Cherry was with the program since 2008 and offered his knowledge to the squad and mainly worked with the goalkeepers... Cherry took an assistant position at East Carolina... Coach Guinn will be assisted by Mariana Sanchez and Keeley Murray.

2011 SENIORS: This season will  be the final one for four longtime Leathernecks... Laura Lins, Nora Potempa, Kristin Kuhar and Lauren DeWolf all have played their entire careers for the Purple & Gold... Amy Unzicker will also exhaust her athletic eligibility this season.