Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
Murray State
Soccer Opens Season With A Victory Over Murray State
August 20, 2011 | Soccer
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Ball State soccer team opened the 2011 season in impressive fashion Friday afternoon as the Cardinals dominated play on their way to a 3-0 victory over Murray State in the WKU Tournament at the WKU Soccer Complex. The victory marked the Cardinals' second straight season-opening victory under second-year head coach Craig Roberts after downing Xavier last season (2-1).
"We played very well today and turned in a consistent, solid effort," Roberts said. "We were strong in the back with Layne (Schramm) in goal and our back four were solid. Our midfield did a good job maintaining possession and our forwards were aggressive all game long. Overall, I am pleased with our performance and how we maintained our composure late in the game as it got physical."
Sophomore goalkeeper Layne Schramm (The Colony, Texas/The Colony) posted her second career shutout and her second straight dating back to the season finale last year when she blanked Toledo (Oct. 28). Schramm posted four saves in the games and controlled play in front of the net for the Cardinals.
After the two teams played through a scoreless first half, the Cardinals' pressure paid dividends early in the second half as BSU picked up a corner kick in the first minute of play. Junior midfielder Amanda Dreyfus (Grove City, Ohio/Grove City) drove the corner kick into the box where junior defender Skylar Chew (Mason, Ohio/Mason) got her head on the ball and buried it in the back of the net for the first goal of the season just 55 seconds into the second half. The goal was the first of Chew's career while the assist was also the first of Dreyfus' career.
Ball State used the same tactics to score its second goal, coming off another corner kick. This time Dreyfus sent the ball into the box where junior captain Brigit Reder (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) got her head on the end of the cross and drove it past Murray State goalkeeper Yi Du for the 2-0 lead in the 56th minute.
The Cardinals closed out the scoring in the 87th minute of play to finish with at least three goals in a season-opener for the first time since 2007 (5-1 vs. IPFW). Junior midfielder Maggie Brown (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) tallied her fourth career goal as she blasted a shot from eight yards out into the back of the net off an assist from freshman Becca Sutton (Channahon, Ill./Minooka Community) for the 3-0 advantage.
The assist was the first career point for Sutton as she is one of 12 true freshmen on the team for the Cardinals. Ball State dominated play for most of the game as it held a 14-8 advantage in shots and a commanding 7-2 edge on corner kicks.
The Cardinals will wrap up their season-opening weekend Sunday afternoon as they play tournament host Western Kentucky at 2:30 p.m. (CT).
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