LIVE STATS
(for Sunday's Game)
MUNCIE, Ind. ? The two-time defending Mid-American Conference regular season champion Ball State soccer team opens its title defense this weekend when the Cardinals begin MAC play at Central Michigan Friday at 4 p.m. and at Eastern Michigan Sunday at 1 p.m.
“We have been preparing the past five weeks to be ready for this weekend,” head coach Michael Lovett said. “Starting MAC play on the road with Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan is going to be a tough test for our team. We have to bring our emotion and intensity to the field for the entire game to have the end result that we are aspiring for.”
Ball State enters MAC play with a 4-4-0 record on the year after posting a 1-1-0 record last weekend. The Cardinals picked up a 3-1 victory at Loyola on Friday night before falling 2-0 at home to Dayton. Last year, the Cardinals entered MAC play with a 3-4-0 record before turning it on with a 9-1-1 record in conference play.
The Cardinals have scored nine goals through the first eight games this season, while allowing eight goals against. Ball State has used a balanced scoring attack so far this season as eight different players have found the back of the net.
Sophomore forward Jacki Eft (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) is the only Cardinal so far this season to score multiple goals after posting two goals last Friday night against Loyola. Senior forward Emily Rein (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) leads the team in overall scoring with five points as she has scored one goal and dished out a team-high three assists.
Senior goalkeeper Rachael Murphy (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville) has been the anchor of the Cardinals' defense this season as she has played all but one half in goal. Murphy owns a 0.93 goals against average this season and has posted three shutouts on the year. She holds the Ball State career record for shutouts with 20.
The Cardinals are 6-2-1 all-time in their MAC openers and have posted a 6-0-1 record in the last seven openers. This year marks just the third year that BSU has opened conference play on the road in program history and is the second straight year the Cardinals have opened league play against the Chippewas.
Friday's game is the 11th meeting all-time between Ball State and Central Michigan. The Cardinals are 2-7-1 all-time against the Chippewas. Last year, Ball State claimed a 1-0 victory over CMU, which was the Cardinals' first victory in the series since the 2001 season. Rein scored the lone goal in the victory as BSU out-shot CMU by a 17-6 advantage.
Central Michigan enters the weekend with a 5-2-0 record on the year after opening the season with three straight victories. CMU is coming off of a 1-0 loss Sunday at Valparaiso. The Chippewas have scored 11 goals in seven games this season, while only allowing four goals against.
Midfielder Stephanie Martin leads the team in scoring with 10 points on the strength of four goals and two assists. In goal for CMU, Shay Mannino has played every minute and owns a 0.57 goals against average on the year.
Sunday's game marks the 10th meeting all-time between Ball State and Eastern Michigan. The Cardinals own a 4-3-2 record against the Eagles, including a 2-0 victory last season at home in Muncie. Forward Sarah Schumacker (Hamilton, Ohio/Fairfield) scored in the fourth minute to give BSU the early lead, while midfielder Annie Aiello (Granger, Ind./Penn) converted a 78th minute penalty kick to cap the scoring.
Eastern Michigan comes into MAC play with a 5-2-2 overall record and opens conference on Friday afternoon against Miami. The Eagles have won three straight games heading into the weekend with wins at Florida Atlantic, Indiana State and IUPUI.
EMU has scored 16 goals in nine games this season while allowing nine goals against. Forward Chelsea Detrick leads the team with seven goals on the year and 14 total points. The Eagles have split time in goal between Maggie Manville and Monique Budani. Manville owns a 0.94 goals against average while Budani boasts a 1.00 goals against average.
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