The Panthers are on the verge of winning their 10th Horizon League regular-season title in 11 years, and they’ve captured the last seven league tourney crowns.
They have a 96-3-12 conference record since 2015.
Getting any points against them is a big ask — especially on the road — but that’s what the Raiders did last weekend in pulling out a 2-2 tie on a goal by sophomore forward Olivia Stroud with eight seconds left.
The coaches and players didn’t even try to suppress their smiles.
“It really felt like a win,” Sobers said. “Not a lot of teams have gotten points off them at (their) home, and not a lot of people have gotten points off them in the league.
“More important to me was how we played. We were brave on possessions, we competed with them, we never gave up. That was my hope for this group — that we’d know we have to play till the final whistle.”
The tie puts the Raiders, who were 1-10-1 against Milwaukee in the previous 12 years, in prime position to make the six-team league tourney for the first time in three years.
They’re 6-6-4 overall and in fourth at 3-1-4 in the conference. They host Robert Morris on Senior Night at 6 p.m. Saturday and finish the regular-season at home against Northern Kentucky at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Milwaukee is 7-0-2, NKU 6-1-1 and Youngstown State 5-1-2.
“Hopefully, we can gain some confidence off that result: keeping the belief that this is what we’re capable of, and, now, can we stay at that level and continue to get better?” Sobers said.
The Raiders, who went 5-10-3 overall last year, have allowed just 23 goals in 16 matches — and seven of those came in a loss at Louisville.
They’ve given up only eight goals in the league and are tied for third in scoring defense at 1.0.
“Everyone is working and buying into the concepts. We have some experience, too. (Junior defenders) Kaitlyn Eyink and Zara Graff — those guys have played a lot of minutes,” the fifth-year coach said.
The Raiders want to attack when they can, but they’re conscious of keeping players between the ball and their goal.
“Just simplifying it has really helped us. Players have bough into it, and they’re really committed to doing things the right way,” Sobers said.
Senior forward Samara Nunn has three goals and four assists, while junior midfielder Caitlin Burger and junior forward Ruby Dunlevy have three goals and three assists.
“We’ve had some heartbreak over the years, and we’re learning from it. The group is starting to jell a little more and play with a little more confidence. We’re definitely moving in the right direction,” Sobers said.
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