Ball State University Athletics
Soccer Hosts a Pair of Pivotal MAC Contests This Weekend
October 05, 2006 | Soccer
This Weekend's Games . . .
The Cardinals begin a four-game home stretch this weekend as they host Central Michigan on Friday at 3 p.m. and Eastern Michigan on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Home Sweet Home . . .
The Cardinals return home to the friendly confines of the Ball State Soccer Field this weekend where they hold a 41-21-7 mark all-time. The Cardinals are coming off of an 8-1-1 home record last fall and have posted a 4-0-0 record at home so far this season. In fact, the Cardinals have only lost two games in Muncie over the past two and a half seasons.
Below is a list of the Cardinals' home records over the years:
2006 - 4-0-0
2005 - 8-1-1
2004 - 3-1-4
2003 - 6-4-0
2002 - 8-2-0
2001 - 7-2-0
2000 - 5-5-1
1999 - 0-6-1
Regional Showdown . . .
Friday's contest between the Cardinals and the Chippewas will mark a Great Lakes Region showdown. The Cardinals are ranked 12th in the Great Lakes Region by Soccerbuzz while Central Michigan checks in ninth in the region. BSU is also ranked 10th in the region by the NSCAA.
The Chippewas were pegged to win the Mid-American Conference this season in the preseason poll while BSU was picked to finish in a tie for seventh. Currently, the Cardinals own a 4-0-0 MAC record while CMU comes in with a 2-2-0 record.
Series History . . .
Friday's meeting is the ninth meeting all-time between the Cardinals and the Chippewas. Ball State enters the game trailing the series 1-6-1 all-time against CMU. Last season, the Cardinals dropped a 1-0 game at Central Michigan during the regular season.
Sunday's meeting is the eighth meeting all-time between Ball State and Eastern Michigan. The Cardinals hold a 3-2-2 record over the Eagles in the series including a 2-1 victory last season on the road.
The Cardinals jumped on the Eagles early courtesy of a Vandi Ogden goal in the 16th minute. After EMU had tied the game, BSU scored the game-winning goal as Bailey Decker scored in the 50th minute. Angie Heyer picked up an assist for the Cardinals on the deciding goal.
About the Cardinals . . .
The Cardinals enter the weekend with a 9-1-2 record overall and sit atop the MAC with a 4-0-0 record. The Cardinals are coming off of a 2-0 weekend on the road as they knocked off Bowling Green and Toledo. BSU snapped the Falcon's MAC winning streak with the victory as Emily Rein and Katelyn Alexander tallied goals.
Rein once again got into the action against Toledo as she scored the Cardinals' second goal while Amy Holst tallied BSU's other goal. Rein leads the Cardinals with five goals and 13 points while Holst is second on the team with four gals and 12 points.
About the Chippewas . . .
Central Michigan enters the weekend a 9-2-0 record and a 2-2-0 record in MAC play. The Chippewas are ranked ninth in the Great Lakes Region by Soccerbuzz as they opened the year with seven straight victories.
The Chippewas are led by Jacquie Lacek and Stephanie Martin as they each have recorded five goals this season. Goalkeeper Anne Decker has played in every minute in net and holds a 1.00 goals against average.
About the Eagles . . .
Eastern Michigan enters the weekend with a 4-5-2 overall record and a 1-3-0 record in MAC play. The Eagles faced off against Miami on Friday night prior to today's meeting.
The Eagles have scored 13 goals this season with Deana Kitner leading the way with four goals. In goal, Monique Budani has a 0.95 goals against average heading into the weekend.
Rein Earns MAC Honor . . .
Sophomore forward Emily Rein was named the Mid-American Conference Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Cardinals to two road victories at Bowling Green and Toledo.
Rein, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, notched both game-winning goals last weekend. She scored an unassisted goal against Bowling Green in the 24th minute that snapped a 900-plus minute BGSU shutout streak and tallied another unassisted goal in the 50th minute of the Toledo victory.
Rein now is tied for the team lead and conference lead with five goals on the season. She has scored a goal in three straight contests for the Cardinals and is currently second in the conference with 13 points on the season.
Fast MAC Starts . . .
The Cardinals are the only team in the MAC to win their first four games of the season. The 4-0-0 start to MAC play is the best start for the Cardinals in program history. Last season, Ball State opened the season 3-1-0 as did the 2002 team.
MAC Stats . . .
The Cardinals can be seen near the top of most statistical categories in the latest Mid-American Conference release. The Cardinals are among the top three in nine of the 14 team statistical categories, including the top mark in seven categories. BSU leads the league in shots per game (15.83), points (6.00), goals (26), goals per game (2.17), assists (20), assists per game (1.67) and corner kicks (65).
The Cardinals also have three players in the top 10 in scoring with Emily Rein second at 13 points, Sarah Schumacker fourth at 12 points and Amy Holst seventh with 10 points. Rein is tied for the conference lead with five goals and three game-winning goals while Sarah Leibel leads the conference in shots with 38.
New Face at the Front . . .
Ball State first-year head coach Michelle Salmon picked up her first victory with the Cardinals in her first game when BSU downed IPFW, 5-1. The Cardinals are off to a 9-1-2 record under Salmon as she now boasts a 55-54-10 overall career coaching record.
Salmon joins the Cardinals staff after spending the past six seasons at the helm of UMBC. She compiled a 46-53-8 record with the Retrievers before coming to Muncie.
Preseason Prognosticators . . .
Ball State, fresh off of a second place finish in the MAC last fall, was picked to finish tied for seventh place by league coaches in the Preseason MAC Poll. The Cardinals were picked to finish tied with Eastern Michigan.
Central Michigan was the overall favorite to win the league crown and the conference tournament championship this fall as the Chippewas return 10 of 11 starters from last season. Defending champion Bowling Green was picked to finish third this season with Western Michigan tabbed for second.
Looking Ahead . . .
After this weekend, the Cardinals will continue their home stand with two more MAC games next weekend. The Cardinals welcome in Ohio on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. and Akron on Sunday afternoon. at 1 p.m.
