CHENEY, Wash. — The month is going to change and Eastern Washington athletics is starting to shift from regular season to postseason. Football prepares for the second-highest ranked team in the nation, Montana State, in a Saturday afternoon battle. Cross-Country will be in Pocatello, Idaho for the Big Sky Championships on Friday. Soccer has its postseason matchup set for next week in Missoula.
Football - vs. No. 2 Montana State (Saturday, November 2 at 1 p.m.) - Get Tickets
Eastern Washington hosts its second-to-last home game this week as the No. 2 Montana State Bobcats come to Cheney. The game will kick off at 1 p.m. from Roos Field. The game will air on Scripps Sports and ESPN+.
Down in Moscow this past Saturday to face No. 11/12 Idaho, with the Vandals winning 38-28 and dropping the team's record to 1-3 in the Big Sky and 2-6 overall. The Eagles managed to pull the score within four at halftime, as
Efton Chism III nearly had 100 yards receiving in the half.
Soren McKee provided two field goals to aid the team as well. A 14-unanswered points stretch from Idaho put them in control over Eastern between the third and fourth quarters. EWU did not fade away, countering with a touchdown in the fourth quarter to leave the score, 31-21 with 8:18 remaining. The Vandals responded with their own touchdown to secure the home win.
Chism finished with seven catches for 114 yards, while the team rushed for a combined 215 yards. Tuna Altahir had 67 yards on 13 carries, Jared Taylor had 13 carries for 61 yards, and Marceese Yetts had 51 yards on seven carries. Derek Ganter Jr. recorded his second-straight 10+ tackle game, finishing with 15 for the game, a career-best for the redshirt freshman. Ganter Jr. was listed on the watch list for the Jerry Rice Award, honoring the top freshman in the FCS.
Following another 100 yard receiving game, Chism remains at the top of the Big Sky leaderboards and close to the top on the national boards. With 864 receiving yards, Chism leads the conference and is second in the FCS. His 9.5 receptions per game leads both the nation and the Big Sky. Chism's eight receiving touchdowns is fourth in the FCS, while tying for first in the conference with Weber State's Jacob Sharp. Kekoa Visperas ranks second in the FCS and leads the Big Sky with a 74.1 completion percentage.
Michael Wortham finally earned his first kickoff return touchdown against Idaho, officially going 100 yards. The senior leads the FCS with 821 kickoff return yards, while ranking fourth with a 30.4 average yards per return. He is one of five players to have a kickoff return touchdown this season.
Cross Country - at Big Sky Championships (Friday, November 1 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time)
The Eagles are gearing up for the Big Sky Championships on Friday, Nov. 1 at the Riverside Golf Course in Pocatello, Idaho. The men's race kicks off at 10 a.m., followed by the women's race at 11 a.m.
The men are coming off a strong performance, having clinched first place at the LC State Invite two weekends ago. Evan Peters led the way, finishing fourth with a time of 24:18.00, while Marcus Lemon and Noah Hasselblad secured sixth and seventh places, respectively.
The women also had a solid showing, finishing third overall. Cassidy Walchak-Sloan was the standout performer, taking seventh with a time of 17:21.00, closely followed by Jasmin Muneton in 12th at 17:33.00.
Volleyball - at Portland State (Thursday, October 31 at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time), vs Sacramento State (Saturday, November 2 at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time)
Eastern Volleyball is gearing up for an exciting week after a mixed weekend, where they defeated Northern Arizona in four sets but fell to Northern Colorado in three. They'll hit the road to face Portland State on Thursday, October 31, at 7 p.m. and Sacramento State on Saturday, November 2, at 1 p.m. Fans can catch both matches live on ESPN+.
Bri Gunderson continues to shine, showcasing her skills with a total of 29 kills and 11 blocks over the weekend. In the match against Northern Arizona, she was particularly impressive, recording 21 kills, hitting .515, ten blocks, and boasting a kill percentage of .636.
Historically, the Eagles have struggled against Portland State, holding a 5-21 record, though they did manage to secure a win against them last October. Earlier this season, Eastern faced Sacramento State at home, losing in four sets, and they currently have an 8-18 record against the Hornets.
Soccer - Off
The Eagles finished the regular season last Thursday with a 2-1 road win over Northern Colorado to finish 3rd in the Big Sky conference. Kendall Moore would record the go-ahead goal in the 54th minute to finish the regular season on a three match winning streak.
Eastern clinched the Big Sky tournament for the first time since 2019, and the first time under head coach Missy Strasburg. EWU soccer will have a week off to prepare for the Big Sky conference tournament and will be held in Missoula, Montana from November 6th-November 10th. The Eagles will face off against the number six seed Portland State Wednesday, November 6th at 10 am PT in the quarterfinals and opening match of the tournament. All matches of the tournament will be shown on ESPN+
Season and single game tickets for the 2024 football season are now available. Ticket packages can be purchased online at goeags.com/tickets via your Paciolan account, over the phone at 509-359-6059, or by emailing tickets@ewu.edu.
Volleyball season and single-game tickets are now available, with nine home matches to watch! To purchase, go to www.goeags.com, or call the Eastern Washington University Ticket office at (509) 359-6059.
Season tickets for men's and women's basketball are now on sale. Reserve your seats at Reese Court for the 2024-25 seasons by clicking on the link here, emailing tickets@ewu.edu or calling the ticket office at 509-359-6059.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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