MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State soccer team opened the home portion of the 2008 schedule in impressive fashion Friday afternoon as the Cardinals avenged a loss from last season and defeated Eastern Illinois 2-0 at the BSU Soccer Field. The Cardinals dominated play as they out-shot EIU by a 23-9 margin to improve to 2-3-0 on the season.
“Today was a total team effort as everyone contributed to this victory,” head coach Michael Lovett said. “We were excited about finally playing at home and that showed in our intensity. We played a full 90 minutes today and put the pressure on Eastern Illinois all game long.”
Senior goalkeeper Rachael Murphy (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville) recorded three saves in the victory to notch her second shutout of the season and the 19th shutout of her career. With the shutout, she moves past former Cardinal Alison Becker for the top spot all-time in Ball State history in career shutouts.
Ball State came out of the gate aggressive and dominated play from the start as it out-shot Eastern Illinois by an 11-3 margin in the first half. The Cardinals put pressure on the EIU defense all game long and that pressure led to their first goal in the 18th minute.
Freshman midfielder Abby Milillo (Fairfield, Ohio/Badin) took a pass inside the 18-yard box and got by an EIU defender before being pulled down from behind in the box for a penalty kick. Senior midfielder Annie Aiello (Granger, Ind./Penn) stepped forward and drilled the penalty kick into the corner to give the Cardinals the early lead. The goal was the first of the season for Aiello who finished 2007 a perfect five-for-five from the penalty spot during the year.
The Cardinals came close to scoring their second goal of the game in the waning minutes of the first half courtesy of senior midfielder Katelyn Alexander (Fort Wayne, Ind./Carroll). Alexander posted three shots in a span of two and a half minutes in the first half but wasn't able to get the ball past EIU goalkeeper Jenny Williams.
Ball State came out of halftime and continued to dictate the tempo of the game. The Cardinals found the back of the net again in the 51st minute as they used their pressure to force a scoring opportunity.
Senior forward Emily Rein (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) out-hustled an EIU defender down the side of the 18-yard box and ripped a shot that Williams was able to deflect. The rebound bounced out in front of the goal where senior midfielder Bailey Decker (Granger, Ind./Penn) beat the EIU defenders to the loose ball and buried the shot into the net for the 2-0 BSU lead.
Eastern Illinois (0-6-1) found a couple of openings in the second half in the Cardinals' territory, but the BSU defense and Murphy were there to thwart its efforts. Murphy came through with a stellar save in the 65th minute as Ashley Slota ripped a shot from eight-yards out that Murphy smothered to keep the shutout intact.
Ball State came within inches of an insurance goal in the 71st minute as senior midfielder Sarah Schumacker (Hamilton, Ohio/Badin) blasted a shot from the top of the 18-yard box past the out-stretched arms of Williams. The ball found the cross bar though to keep Schumacker off the board and Milillo's rebound attempt was stopped by Williams to keep the Cardinals lead at 2-0.
The victory avenges one of the Cardinals' five losses from 2007 as the Panthers downed Ball State 1-0 last season. Friday's victory evens the all-time series between the Cardinals and Panthers at one apiece and improves the Cardinals to 7-2-1 all-time in home openers. Ball State has won four straight home openers and is unbeaten in six straight.
The Cardinals will be back in action on Sunday afternoon as they host Southern Methodist at 1 p.m. at the BSU Soccer Field.
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