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Blue Demons Host Eastern Illinois in Exhibition
The DePaul women's soccer team tangles with the Eastern Illinois Panthers in the team's lone exhibition match of the preseason. Saturday's game provides a tune-up as the Blue Demons open the regular season at Wish Field on Friday, Aug. 22 against Loy

CHICAGO The DePaul women's soccer team tangles with the Eastern Illinois Panthers in the team's lone exhibition match of the preseason. Saturday's game provides a tune-up as the Blue Demons open the regular season at Wish Field on Friday, Aug. 22 against Loyola-Chicago. Kickoff against Eastern Illinois is 4 p.m.

Following the exhibition game, DePaul hosts Loyola on Aug. 22 before traveling to Butler on Sunday, Aug. 24. The final weekend of August features a home match against Michigan State on Aug. 29 before a trip to Toledo for an Aug. 31 match.

DePaul Women’s Soccer Preseason Notebook
- The Blue Demons return 10 starters and 16 players from last season’s 5-13-1 squad. Joining the 16 returners are a dozen newcomers from California, Ohio and the Chicagoland area. The group of newcomers is second-year head coach Erin Chastain’s first recruiting class.

- Junior Shannon Williams is the top returning scorer after leading the Blue Demons with 16 points on seven goals and two assists. DePaul totaled 18 goals and 16 assists for 52 points on 165 shots. The upcoming season returns 14 goals, 10 assists, 38 points and 134 shots. Sophomores Callie Hemming (3G/1A/7P) and Tara Strickland (2G/2A/6P) combined for five goals, three assists and 13 points.

- Goalkeepers Kelsey Hoinkes and Brittni Lally split time in the net last season and both are back in 2008. Hoinkes totaled 1098 minutes in 12 games with a 1.56 goals against average while Lally played in seven games. She saw 650 minutes of action and finished the 2007 season with a 1.52 goals against average.
 
- DePaul hosts 10 matches at Wish Field this season. The Blue Demons face teams from the Big Ten and Big 12 as Michigan State and Iowa State come to Chicago during the non-conference portion of the schedule. BIG EAST plays sees Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Marquette and USF at Wish Field. The Golden Eagles are making their first visit to Chicago since the 2004 season.

- The Blue Demons were picked to finish eighth in the National Division by the BIG EAST coaches. Notre Dame was slated as the National Division preseason favorite while West Virginia edged out Connecticut for the early nod as the pick to win the American Division. Notre Dame's Brittany Bock was named the preseason Offensive Player of the Year while Villanova's Kelly Eagan was picked as the Defensive Player of the Year and Connecticut's Stephanie Labbe was the preseason Goalkeeper of the Year.