MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State soccer team saw its three-game winning streak come to an end on Sunday afternoon as the Cardinals dropped a 2-0 decision to regionally ranked Dayton at the BSU Soccer Field. The loss drops the Cardinals to 4-4-0 on the season, while Dayton improves to 6-3-0 on the year.
“Today was a learning experience for our team as we have to play a full 90 minutes for us to get a positive result,” head coach Michael Lovett said. “Dayton is a very good team and today was a good test for us. We battled hard today and we will work on what we need to as we prepare for the Mid-American Conference season starting next weekend.”
Dayton came out of the gate on fire as the Flyers registered five shots in the first 15 minutes of the game. BSU goalkeeper Rachael Murphy (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville) came up with a big save in the 14th minute as she stonewalled Jerica DeWoulfe from close range.
The Cardinals weathered the early storm and started to work the attack as sophomore midfielder Meg Mellott (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Ursula) ripped a shot from 18-yards out that Dayton goalkeeper Deana Waintraub was able to stop. The ball popped loose but Waintraub was able to recover before senior midfielder Bailey Decker (Granger, Ind./Penn) could poke it into the back of the net.
Ball State thought it had a prime opportunity in the 30th minute as a Dayton defender pulled down sophomore forward Jacki Eft (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) just inside box. The call was ruled at the top of the 18-yard box for a free kick instead of a penalty kick and senior midfielder Annie Aiello's (Granger, Ind./Penn) shot from 18-yards out went just wide.
The two teams battled back and forth for the remainder of the first half before heading into the break scoreless. Dayton came out of the break and again started quickly as the Flyers took advantage of a failed BSU clearing attempt just inside the 18-yard line. Dayton midfielder Amanda Gallow ran onto a loose ball from 10-yards out and put it just over the out-stretched arms of Murphy to give Dayton a 1-0 lead in the 50th minute.
The Flyers added a second goal just minutes later as Mandi Back got free behind the defense and ripped a shot from 10-yards out in the 52nd minute. Murphy was able to punch the ball away from goal but it ricocheted off of the cross bar and back into play. Dayton midfielder Eileen Hughes ran onto the rebound and put it into the back of the net for the 2-0 lead.
Murphy kept the Cardinals' hopes of a comeback alive in the 65th minute as Caitlin Proffitt got behind the BSU defense. Proffitt was one-on-one with Murphy and blasted a shot that Murphy was able to save to keep the game a two-goal affair.
Ball State tried to mount a comeback late in the second half as it recorded eight shots in the half and notched four corner kicks in the final 10 minutes of the game. The Cardinals' best opportunity came off of a corner kick as senior midfielder Sarah Schumacker (Hamilton, Ohio/Fairfield) ripped a shot from the back post that Waintraub was able to save to keep the Cardinals off of the scoreboard.
Dayton finished the game with an 18-15 advantage in shots. Murphy finished the game with six saves in the loss for the Cardinals while Waintraub added six saves in the UD victory.
Ball State will open Mid-American Conference play next weekend on the road when it travels to Mount Pleasant, Mich., Friday afternoon for a 4 p.m. contest against Central Michigan.
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