Ball State University Athletics
Women's Basketball Battles Indiana State Thursday Night
December 06, 2007 | Women's Basketball
What's On Tap . . .
The Cardinals begin their second four-game road swing of the season tonight as they take on instate rival Indiana State in a non-conference matchup. Ball State is in the midst of playing four games in eight days and eight out of nine games on the road.
DeMuth National Candidate . . .
Senior forward Julie DeMuth has been named a candidate for the 2007-08 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award as one of the nation's top 30 senior female college basketball players.
The award, presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year in eight sports, focuses on the “Four C's” of classroom, character, community and competition. Lowe's, an official corporate sponsor of the NCAA, will award the winners with trophies during the NCAA Final Four.
DeMuth is the only player from the Mid-American Conference named as a candidate. She is joined on the list with BSU men's basketball player Peyton Stovall. Ball State joins Tennessee, Texas A&M and the United States Military Academy as the only schools with both a male and female candidate. The two are also the first in either sport in Ball State history to be among the top 30 candidates.
Series History . . .
Tonight's game is the 28th meeting all-time between Ball State and Indiana State. The Cardinals trail the all-time series 7-20 and this season marks the first meeting between the teams since the 2004-05 season. That year, the Cardinals dropped a 76-42 game in Terre Haute. Ball State is just 1-14 all-time against the Sycamores in Terre Haute with its only victory coming in overtime during the 2002-03 season.
Series History
1974-75 L 65-74 A
L 43-60 N
1975-76 L 65-74 A
L 68-76 A
1976-77 L 54-67 A
1977-78 W 73-71 H
L 57-82 N
1978-79 L 59-76 N
L 75-96 A
1979-80 L 72-79 A
L 67-75 H
L 76-80 A
1980-81 L 57-72 A
1981-82 W 63-54 H
W 71-51 N
1982-83 L 66-86 A
1983-84 W 61-56 H
1984-85 L 55-63 A
1985-86 W 83-64 H
1989-90 W 72-71 H
1990-91 L 69-78 A
1995-96 L 68-79 H
1996-97 L 68-78 A
2000-01 L 73-80 A
2002-03 W 91-87+ A
2003-04 L 53-65 N
2004-05 L 42-76 A
Ball State trails 7-20
Home: 5-2, Away: 1-14, Neutral: 1-4
Looking Back . . .
The Cardinals are coming off of their third straight loss as they dropped a 71-54 contest to regional foe Illinois State on Tuesday night. Ball State struggled from the field as it only connected on 29.8 percent (17-of-57) of its shots in the loss while Illinois State hit 46.2 percent (30-of-65) from the field.
The Cardinals jumped out to a 9-4 lead just four minutes into the game but saw the Redbirds respond with a 20-4 run to take the lead for good at 24-13. The Cardinals trailed at halftime 40-26 as they only hit 26.9 percent from the floor while allowing ISU to shoot 52.8 percent in the opening frame. Ball State was stronger in the second half as it only trailed by a 31-28 margin in the half.
Senior forward Julie DeMuth led the Cardinals' attack as she scored a game-high 19 points while also grabbing seven rebounds. Classmate Lisa Rusche was the only other Cardinal in double figures as she added 10 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Sophomore guard Audrey McDonald chipped in eight points in the loss. Junior guard Porchia Green and freshman guard Shannon Klei each added six points.
Scouting The Cardinals . . .
Ball State enters tonight's game with a 3-5 record overall on the season as the Cardinals have dropped three straight games. Ball State is averaging 63.8 points per game this season while allowing 68 points per game against.
The Cardinals have connected on 42.1 percent (168-of-399) from the field this season and 38.6 percent (49-of-127) from three-point land.
Senior forward Julie DeMuth leads the team in scoring at 15.3 points per game and in rebounding at 7.3 boards per contest. Junior guard Porchia Green is second on the team in scoring at 11.3 points per game. She is also averaging 4.9 rebounds per game and is tied for the team lead with 28 assists.
Sophomore guard Audrey McDonald is third on the team in scoring at 10.3 points per game. She has connected on 20-of-48 (41.7%) from three-point land so far this season. Senior forward Lisa Rusche adds 9.6 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per contest.
Scouting The Sycamores . . .
Indiana State enters tonight's game with a 4-2 record overall on the season. The Sycamores are coming off of an 83-70 loss to Butler in the State Farm Hoosier Classic at Valparaiso. The Sycamores have picked up wins against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, nationally ranked Vanderbilt, San Diego State and Eastern Illinois.
Indiana State is averaging 74.5 points per game this season while allowing 71.3 points against. The Sycamores are shooting 39.8 percent (134-of-337) from the field, including 32.3 percent (41-of-127) from long range.
Guard Angela Phillips leads ISU in scoring at 16.2 points per game. Forward Laura Rudolphi is second on the team in scoring at 15.5 points per game and leads the team in rebounding at 6.3 boards per contest. Guard Kelsey Luna rounds out the double figure scorers for the Sycamores as she adds 12.8 points per game.
Cardinals In MAC Stats . . .
Through the early part of the season, the Cardinals find themselves sprinkled throughout the Mid-American Conference individual statistics. Ball State is the only team in the MAC to have four players in the top 25 in scoring heading into the week. Senior forward Julie DeMuth is eighth in scoring (15.3), junior guard Porchia Green is 16th (11.3), sophomore guard Audrey McDonald is 23rd (10.3) and senior forward Lisa Rusche is 25th in scoring (9.6).
Green also is eighth in the conference in field goal percentage (.479), fifth in three-point percentage (.444), eighth in assist/ turnover ratio (1.08) and 10th in assists (3.50).
DeMuth is eighth in rebounding (7.4) and tied for ninth in free throw percentage (.778). Rusche is 14th in field goal percentage (.447) and tied for 11th in steals (1.88). McDonald is seventh in three-point percentage (.417), fifth in three-pointers made per game (2.50) and sixth in minutes per game (33.75).
Junior point guard Kiley Jarrett is 10th in assists (3.50) and fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.47).
DeMuth In The Records . . .
Senior forward Julie DeMuth is moving up the all-time charts in numerous statistical categories. DeMuth is in the top 15 in all-time double-doubles, scoring, rebounds, free throws made, free throws attempted and steals.
She is second all-time in free throws made, third all-time in free throws attempted, third all-time in double-doubles, fourth all-time in rebounds, eighth all-time in steals and 13th all-time in scoring.
DeMuth needs just 10 more free throws made to become the all-time leader in career free throws in BSU history. She moved into a tie for 12th all-time in scoring with her 19-point effort against Illinois State on Tuesday. She is now tied with Kelli Hipsher with 1,138 points.
Double-Doubles
1. Emma Jones - 49
2. Tamara Bowie - 31
3. Julie DeMuth - 26
Points
10. Jessica Reiter - 1,171
11. Shala Crook - 1,162
t-12. Julie DeMuth - 1,138
t-12. Kelli Hipsher - 1,138
Rebounding
3. Tamara Bowie - 933
4. Julie DeMuth - 790
5. Karen Bauer - 760
Free Throws Made
1. Tamara Bowie - 379
2. Julie DeMuth - 370
Free Throws Attempted
1. Tamara Bowie - 510
2. Emma Jones - 504
3. Julie DeMuth - 493
Steals
7. Emma Jones - 168
8. Julie DeMuth - 158
9. Jane Emkes - 155
DeMuth Honored . . .
Senior forward Julie DeMuth was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week after guiding the Cardinals to the La Quinta Inn & Suites Thanksgiving Tournament title. DeMuth was named Tournament Most Valuable Player for her efforts in BSU victories against Vermont and host Northern Arizona.
She averaged 21 points in the two victories as she shot 50 percent (12-of-24) from the field and 84.2 percent (16-of-19) from the free throw line. She also averaged nine rebounds per game while averaging just 26.2 minutes per game.
Against Vermont, she was unstoppable as she scored a tournament-high 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in 29 minutes. She hit seven-of-14 shots from the field and was 12-of-15 from the charity stripe. She followed that performance up with a 16-point effort against NAU in just 24 minutes of action. She was five-of-10 from the field against the Lumberjacks and hit all four of her free throws.
She has now been named tournament MVP for four straight midseason tournaments dating back to her sophomore season.
Midseason Tournaments . . .
The Cardinals have taken part in a midseason multi-day tournament for 12 straight seasons and 23 times in the last 24 seasons. The Cardinals have posted success in midseason tournaments as they have claimed five straight tournament titles, including the La Quinta Inn & Suites Thanksgiving Tournament championship earlier this season.
In fact, the Cardinals have won at least one multi-day midseason tournament for the past six seasons.
Tournament Championships
2007-08
La Quinta Inn & Suites Thanksgiving
2006-07
BSU Credit Union Thanksgiving
SPC Holiday Classic
2005-06
BSU Credit Union Thanksgiving
2004-05
Seton Hall Tournament
2003-04
East Carolina Invitational
2002-03
Lehigh Invitational
1999-2000
Minnesota Regal Classic
Coll. Of Charleston Classic
1997-98
Beach Blast Tourney
1990-91
Cardinal Roundball Fest
All-Tournament Honors . . .
Senior forward Julie DeMuth and junior guard Porchia Green were named to the La Quinta Inn & Suites Thanksgiving Tournament All-Tournament Team. DeMuth picked up Tournament Most Valuable Player honors as she averaged 21 points and nine rebounds per contest.
Green picked up her second career All-Tournament honor as she scored 14 points per game in the tournament. She scored 14 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists in the tournament championship game against host Northern Arizona.
Night Of Firsts . . .
The Cardinals' victory at Wright State was a night of firsts for the Cardinals as redshirt freshman Kyleigh Jones along with true freshmen Emily Maggert and Shannon Klei each recorded their first career collegiate points. Jones scored late in the first half to give the Cardinals their first lead, Maggert scored early in the game on her way to 10 points and Klei hit a couple of big three-pointers in the second half.
The game marks the first time since the 2004-05 season opener against Wagner that three Cardinals have scored their first collegiate points in the same game. In that game, Julie DeMuth, Lisa Rusche and former Cardinal Brandy Ross scored their first points of their careers.
Tough Schedule . . .
The Cardinals boosted their strength of schedule this season as four opponents advanced to the postseason last year, and 11 of a possible 15 non-conference opponents had winning records in 2006-07. The non-conference opponents averaged 18 victories last season with Louisville and Temple leading the way with 27 and 25 wins respectively.
Below is a list of non-conference opponents and their 2006-07 records:
Louisville 27-8
Wright State 10-18
Indiana 19-14
Vermont 19-12
Northern Arizona 20-12
Fairliegh Dickinson 11-18
Temple 25-8
Valparaiso 20-11
Illinois State 22-11
Indiana State 19-11
Evansville 19-12
Liberty 19-12
UNLV 14-15
Austin Peay 10-20
Butler 16-15
Early Signing Period . . .
The Cardinals picked up four high school standouts on as Jade Barber, Amber Clark, Suzanne Grossnickle and Patrice King signed national letters of intent on the first day of the early signing period.
Barber, a 6-2 forward from Ballard High School in Louisville, Ky., averaged 12 points per game and 10.3 rebounds per contest as a junior. Her 10.3 rebounds per game were 18th best in the state last season. She was rated the fifth best prospect in the state by the Rick Bolus Report.
Clark, a 6-3 center from Huntington North High School in Huntington, Ind., averaged 18 points per game as a junior as she connected on 55 percent of her shots from the field. She finished eighth in the state in rebounds as she averaged 11.7 boards per game.
Grossnickle, a 6-2 forward from Belleville, Ill., spent the last three seasons at Marian Catholic before transferring to Belleville East for her senior season. She guided Marian Catholic to a 29-4 record as a junior as she averaged 12.4 points per game and eight rebounds per contest. She helped her team to a third place finish in the Class AA State Tournament last season as she connected on 70.1 percent (148-of-211) from the field. She led her team in scoring 20 out of 33 games last season.
King, a 5-6 point guard from St. Louis, Mo., also spent the past three seasons at Marian Catholic in Chicago before transferring to St. Joseph's Academy for her senior season. She was the floor general of the Marian Catholic team that won 52 games over the past two seasons. She averaged 6.8 points per game as she connected on 98-of-159 (61.6 percent) of her shots from the field.
Leading The Way . . .
Head coach Tracy Roller enters her seventh season at the helm of the Cardinals. She is the all-time winningest women's basketball coach in Ball State history and the third winningest coach, men's or women's, in BSU history. Roller has amassed a 118-69 overall record during her time, including the program's three 20-plus win seasons.
New Faces In The Crowd . . .
Head coach Tracy Roller welcomes in three new faces to her coaching staff this season with the additions of Marsha Frese, Charlie Hall and Kelsey Corbin. Frese returns to Ball State for her second stint as an assistant coach after spending the last four seasons at the University of Illinois.
Hall comes to the Cardinals after being the varsity head girls' coach at Kokomo High School (1997-2004, 2005-06). Corbin joins the staff as the Director of Basketball Operations after completing her stellar playing career last season.
Captain's Choice . . .
Head coach Tracy Roller announced her team's tri-captains for the 2007-08 season in senior Julie DeMuth and juniors Porchia Green and Kiley Jarrett. Last season, seniors Kelsey Corbin and Becca Bajorek were named team captains.
Cardinals MAC Favorites . . .
For the first time in program history, the Cardinals have been picked as the 2007-08 preseason favorite to win the Mid-American Conference West Division and the MAC Tournament title. The preseason poll is voted on by league coaches and institutional voters.
The Cardinals were picked to repeat as West Division champions with 240 total votes, including 36 out of 41 potential first place votes. Ball State held a 56-point lead over second-place Northern Illinois (184) which recorded two first place votes. Eastern Michigan (150) was tabbed third while Western Michigan (122) was fourth and received three first place votes. Rounding out the division, Toledo (106) was picked fifth and Central Michigan (59) was tabbed for sixth.
Ball State returns seven letterwinners and four starters from last season's 24-7 team that advanced to the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). The 24 victories last season were tied for the single-season record for wins in Ball State program history.
Radio Air Time . . .
The Cardinals will again have most of their games broadcast on the student station WCRD 91.3, including all home games and selected road games. All games broadcast by WCRD will also be streamed online at www.ballstatesports.com. Kyle Trompeter, Karl Mandik and Joel Nickels will do the honors for WCRD.
WCRD will also broadcast the Tracy Roller Show again this season on Monday nights from 7-8 p.m.
Ball State will also have 15 regular season games broadcast on Muncie's WXFN 1340 AM this season as well as being streamed online at ballstatesports.com. Jay Garrison will handle the play-by-play duties this season. The 15 games broadcast on WXFN are:
Nov. 10 vs. Louisville
Nov. 17 vs. Indiana
Dec. 1 at Valparaiso
Dec. 4 vs. Illinois State
Dec. 6 at Indiana State
Dec. 29 vs. Butler
Jan. 15 vs. Eastern Michigan
Jan. 23 vs. Central Michigan
Jan. 26 vs. Bowling Green
Feb. 3 vs. Buffalo
Feb. 9 vs. Akron
Feb. 13 at Miami
Feb. 19 vs. Toledo
Mar. 1 vs. W. Michigan
Mar. 5 vs. Northern Illinois
MAC TOURNAMENT
Looking Ahead . . .
The Cardinals will conclude their grueling week of four games in eight days Saturday night when they travel to Evansville to take on the Purple Aces. Ball State will then have 11 days off to concentrate on finals before heading to Las Vegas, Nevada for the Lady Rebel Christmas Classic Dec. 20-21.
