Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
Central Michigan
Soccer Falls At MAC Leader Central Michigan, 3-0
October 09, 2009 | Soccer
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - The Ball State soccer team dropped a 3-0 decision to Mid-American Conference leader and regionally ranked Central Michigan Friday afternoon at the CMU Soccer Complex. The loss drops the Cardinals to 4-8-0 on the season and 2-3-0 in MAC play while Central Michigan improves to 10-3-0 and 5-0-0 in league action.
"We played a strong first half today but were unable to keep that going in the second half," head coach Michael Lovett said. "Central Michigan was the more aggressive team in the second half and took advantage of its opportunities."
The two teams battled back-and-forth for most of the first half with freshman defender Brigit Reder (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) posting two shots in the first 25 minutes of play. Central Michigan tallied the first goal in the 43rd minute of action as Amanda Waugh beat BSU freshman goalkeeper Nicole Wood (Strongsville, Ohio/Strongsville).The Chippewas ended the first half with a 12-3 advantage in shots, with Stephanie Martin leading the way with five.
Central Michigan came close to adding its second goal in the 64th minute off of a corner kick but Wood stood tall. Brielle Heitman had the initial shot that Wood was able to save and Laura Twidle was thwarted by Wood to keep the Cardinals within one goal.
The Cardinals fell behind 2-0 in the 69th minute of play as the Chippewas were awarded a free kick just outside the 18-yard box. Claire Horton stepped up to the set piece and ripped a shot off of the cross bar. Valerie Prause was able to jump on the rebound and poke it past Wood for the CMU goal.
Ball State kept battling and junior forward Missy Gordon (Carmel, Ind./Marshall Univ.) had a strong chance in the 72nd minute as she ripped a shot that CMU goalkeeper Shay Mannino had to make a diving save on to keep the Cardinals off of the board. Ball State kept the pressure on and junior midfielder Cortney Coombs (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain) had a shot go just wide in the 77th minute.
The Chippewas added their third goal in the 79th minute of play as Bethany Allport found the back of the net. CMU finished the game with a 28-5 advantage in shots while Ball State falls to 2-10-1 all-time against the Chippewas and 0-6-0 all-time in Mount Pleasant. With the shutout, Central Michigan has now posted a school-record eight straight shutouts as the Chippewas have posted 752:09 minutes without allowing a goal.
The Cardinals wrap up the MAC road weekend Sunday afternoon as they take on the Eastern Michigan Eagles at 1 p.m.
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