Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
Cincinnati
Soccer Opening Season Against Cincinnati Thursday
8/12/2025 3:27:00 PM | Soccer
Eagles battling Bearcats Thursday, Aug. 14, at 4:30 p.m.
| Soccer vs. Cincinnati | |
| Date | Thursday, Aug. 14 at 4:30 p.m. |
| Venue | Scicluna Field | Ypsilanti, Mich. |
| Preview Info | EMU Notes (PDF) |
| Watch | Watch vs. Cincinnati |
| Live Stats | Live Stats |
| @EMUSoccer | @EMUAthletics | |
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University soccer team is set to open the 2025 season with a match against Cincinnati Thursday, Aug. 14, at 4:30 p.m. at Scicluna Field.
ON THE AIR: The Eagles and Bearcats will air on ESPN+ from Scicluna Field with Tom Helmer and former EMU soccer player Alia Reitano on the call. Furthermore, live stats for the match will be available at EMUEagles.com/livestats.
QUICK KICKS:
»With the match against Cincinnati, Aug. 14, Eastern starts the season at home for the seventh-straight season, a streak that is tied for fourth in the nation.
»With the match against the Big 12's Cincinnati, Aug. 14, the Eagles host a Power Four opponent for the first time since battling Syracuse University, Sept. 1, 2022.
»EMU enters the season opener on a two-match winning streak while producing three-straight clean sheets, both among the nation's best.
»The Eagles return 14/36 players (39%) but bring back 12/15 (80%) of its goals scored (losing just the three scored by Maddie O'Farrell) as well as 71% of its minutes played.
»Eastern looks to keep a few trends from the 2024 season, which included a 4-0 start for the first time since 1999 and a 5-0-3 home record, the second undefeated home slate with the other being 1999, EMU's last appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
»Head Coach Taylor Clarke is in his second season at the helm of the Eagles. Joining Clarke on staff are Associate Head Coach Matt Hinds (second season), Assistant Coach Meg Nemnich (first season), and Goalkeeping Coach Zach Shuk (second season).
UNDEFEATED AT HOME IN 2024: After three-straight wins at home to open the 2024 home slate, EMU finished 5-0-3 at Scicluna Field in 2024, most recently topping Kent State, 1-0, Oct. 27.
The Eagles went unbeaten on their home turf for the first time since the 1999 team went an impressive 10-0-1 at home and earned its second-ever undefeated home slate.
Entering the 2024 season, Eastern had a 22-match home streak since its last victory at Scicluna Field. Eastern had also not secured a home shutout since beating Miami, 3-0, Oct. 18, 2018, breaking a stretch of 39 home contests. EMU broke both streaks by beating Oakland, 1-0, Aug. 15, 2024
EMU's last loss on its home turf came via 4-0 decision to Miami, Oct. 26, 2023, an active streak of eight matches without a home loss.
FOUR-STRAIGHT WINS TO START 2024: Eastern started the 2024 season 4-0 for the first time since 1999, the same year as Eastern's lone NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.
NINE CLEAN SHEETS IN 2024: The nine clean sheets are the most for EMU in a single season since 2009 (nine). Eastern had six shutouts in the MAC play, which is its most in a single season since 1999 (eight).
AMONG THE NATION'S LONGEST ACTIVE WINNING/SHUTOUT STREAKS: Concluding the 2024 season by knocking off Akron, 1-0, Oct. 31, and Kent State, 1-0, Oct. 27, in addition to 0-0 decision at Bowling Green, Oct. 24, Eastern Michigan is tied for sixth nationally in longest active winning steak and fourth nationally in longest active clean streak.
In total, Eastern is one of 28 schools to close the 2024 season with a win and one of 40 schools to close last season with a clean sheet. The Eagles are one of eight teams to win consecutive matches to finish 2024 and one of six schools to conclude last season with at least three-straight shutouts.
Division I's Longest Active Winning Streaks:
School Streak
1. North Carolina W6
T2. Colorado College W3
Gonzaga W3
Lindenwood W3
Washington State W3
T6. Eastern Michigan W2
Boston College W2
Oklahoma W2
Division I's Longest Active Clean Sheet Streaks:
School Streak
T1. Longwood 5 games
Montana 5 games
3. Towson 4 games
T4. Eastern Michigan 3 games
Gonzaga 3 games
Washington State 3 games
T7. 9 schools 2 games
T16. 24 schools 1 game
OPENING AT HOME FOR THE SEVENTH-STRAIGHT SEASON: With the match against Cincinnati, Aug. 14, Eastern starts the season at home for the seventh-straight season, a streak that is tied for fourth in the nation. During that span, EMU is 2-1-3 overall.
Division I's Longest Active Season Opener at Home Streaks (Includes 2025):
School Streak
1. Memphis 11 games
2. Florida Atlantic 10 games
3. Dartmouth 9 games
T4. Eastern Michigan 7 games
Omaha 7 games
Assistant Coach Meg Nemnich has a direct connection to three of the schools in the top-five, having started her playing career at Memphis before transferring for four seasons at Omaha and beginning her coaching career at Eastern Michigan.
Radford (eight), Virginia (seven), and Fairfield (six) will all see their streaks of consecutive season openers coming at home come to an end in 2025.
POWER FOUR OPENER: With the match against the Big 12's Cincinnati, Aug. 14, the Eagles host a Power Four opponent for the first time since battling Syracuse University, Sept. 1, 2022.
EMU opens the season against a Power Four foe for the first time since taking on Purdue to start the 2018 season (L, 0-3) and the first time doing so in a home opener since 2012, when EMU faced Pittsburgh (L, 1-2).
RECORD AGAINST POWER FOUR: With the match against the Big 12's Cincinnati, Aug. 14, the Eagles host a Power Four opponent for the first time since battling Syracuse University, Sept. 1, 2022.
Eastern is 3-38-8 against schools that are currently in a Power Four conference (Big Ten, SEC, ACC, Big 12).
EMU's most recent win against a Power Four school came against Indiana, Aug. 24, 2014, by a 2-0 decision. Eastern also holds Power Four wins over Pittsburgh (2004) and Michigan State (1999). The Eagles knocked off Oregon State in both 2016 and 2014, but the Beavers have since moved into the West Coast Conference.
IN THE SERIES WITH CINCINNATI: Eastern Michigan and Cincinnati played for the first time last season, Sept. 1, with the Bearcats winning, 3-1.
UC produced a particularly impressive 6:09 stretch midway through the first half as the Bearcats netted all three of their goals at the 16:06, 18:30, and 22:14 marks.
Cameryn Susey netted an 85th-minute goal to get Eastern on the scoreboard, Eastern's first goal against a Big 12 school since scoring against Texas Tech, Aug. 31, 2014.
The Bearcats are also scheduled to play against MAC foes Central Michigan, Aug. 28, and Bowling Green, Aug. 31.
CINCINNATI CONNECTION: Austin Peay transfer Aniyah Mack is from Cincinnati, attending Walnut Hills High School.
ELLA HOLLAND, BEST SEASON SINCE...?: After conceding 2.03 goals/match in 2023, redshirt junior Ella Holland produced one of the most impressive seasons in goal for the Eagles in recent memory. Her 0.78 GAA in 2024 is the fourth-best in program history and the best since Maggie Manville's 0.54 GAA mark in 2009. Her .846 save rate is the seventh-best percentage in program history and best since Monique Budani's .874 mark in 2010.
EVERY MINUTE IN GOAL FOR HOLLAND: Redshirt sophomore Ella Holland played every minute in goal during the 2024 season. Kaylin Williams was the last EMU goalkeeper to do so as she was credited with every minute played in goal in 2016.
Rachel Washburn, wife to Eastern Michigan football legend and current Las Vegas Raider Maxx Crosby, is the most recent Eagle field player to play every minute of every match, doing so for all 19 matches in 2015.
Consecutive Minutes Played Streak (Since 2014)
Player Minutes Full Matches Played Streak Years
1. Kaylin Williams 24:59:08 24 2014-16
2. Emily Dzik 2029:38 22 2013-14
3. Rachel Washburn 1908:03 19 2014-16
4. Ella Holland 1665:00* 18 2023-24
*active
HEAD COACH TAYLOR CLARKE: Taylor Clarke is in his second season at the helm of Eastern Michigan, leading EMU to a six-win improvement in his first year and an undefeated 5-0-3 mark at home. Clarke is just the third head coach in program history (since 1995). Clarke was previously at Division III's Carroll University with additional stops at the MAC's BGSU (Associate Head Coach, 2021-23), Division II's Ashland (Head Coach, 2018-21; Assistant Coach, 2014-16), Division III's Calvin College (Assistant Coach, 2017-18), and UNC-Wilmington (Assistant Coach, 2016-17). Clarke played his college soccer at Division II Saginaw Valley State, captaining the 2012 squad to the Division II National Championship match.
ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH MATT HINDS: Matt Hinds is in his second season as the team's associate head coach, helping Eastern to a 7-6-5 mark in his first year on staff. Hinds spent the last three seasons as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at his alma mater Division III Calvin College. Hinds, an All-American at Calvin 2017, overlapped with Clarke at Calvin as Clarke was an assistant coach for the Knights at the time. The pair also overlapped at Division II Ashland as Hinds spent one year and a half on staff for the Eagles. Hinds started his coaching journey at Division II Malone in 2019.
ASSISTANT COACH MEG NEMNICH: Meg Nemnich was hired as the team's assistant coach. Nemnich is a former player at the Summit League's University of Nebraska at Omaha, spending the last four years in Omaha as a student-athlete, earning All-Summit Second-Team honors as a senior. During her time as a student-athlete at Omaha, Nemnich played in 69 matches for the Mavericks, including 37 starts, primarily in the midfield. She was credited with two goals and one assist in her career, highlighted by a game-winner against the University of North Dakota, Oct. 10, 2024.
WHO'S BACK?: After losing just three players ahead of the 2024 season due to graduation, Head Coach Taylor Clarke and crew face a different challenge in 2025 as the Eagles lost 22 players from their 2024 roster due to graduation, the transfer portal, and expected NCAA roster limits.
In total, Eastern returns just 14/36 players (39%) but brings back 12/15 (80%) of its goals scored (losing just the three scored by Maddie O'Farrell) as well as 71% of its minutes played.
WHO'S NEW?: Eastern Michigan added nine freshmen and five transfers (Ciara Brown, Auburn; Ella Fuller, Morehead State; Meghan Heath, Canisius; Aniyah Mack, Austin Peay; Maya Marolly, St. Bonaventure).
NO POSTSEASON SINCE 2019: Eastern Michigan has not advanced to the MAC Tournament since falling in the championship match in 2019. The Eagles were 6-3 in the MAC in 2020 but the MAC Tournament was not played due to COVID-19. Prior to the current streak, the Eagles had never previously missed the MAC Tournament in back-to-back seasons.
HISTORIC CREW STADIUM FOR THE MAC TOURNAMENT: The MAC announced that the conference tournament will be held at the Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, for the 2025 and 2026 seasons with quarterfinals scheduled for Nov. 1, semifinals set for Nov. 4, and the championship, Nov. 7.
Historic Crew Stadium is the first-ever professional soccer-specific stadium in the United States.
This will mark the first time in conference history the event will be hosted at a neutral site.
FOLLOW ALONG: You can follow the Eagles on your favorite social media platforms, including Twitter (@EMUSoccer), Instagram (@EMUSoccer), and Facebook (Eastern Michigan Soccer).
UP NEXT: Eastern returns to Scicluna Field to battle UIC Thursday, Aug. 21, at 4 p.m. Admission is free for all home matches.
