Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
14-3-3
Akron
6-12-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | OT 3 | OT 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akron | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ball State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Soccer Falls to Akron in PKs in MAC Quarterfinals
November 01, 2015 | Soccer
MUNCIE, Ind. -- Ball State soccer coach Craig Roberts probably summed it up best Sunday.
“Soccer sometimes is a pleasurable game, and sometimes it's a cruel game,” he said after Akron eliminated the top-seeded Cardinals on penalty kicks in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament.
All signs pointed to a good result for Ball State (14-3-3). The Cardinals were riding the emotional high of winning the regular season conference championship just three days earlier, and they were on their home turf at the Briner Sports Complex where they were perfect all year long.
Even within the game itself, Ball State completely controlled the action, just as it had done three games ago against the same Akron team. The Cardinals registered 23 shots on the afternoon, 17 of them after halftime, and held the eighth-seeded Zips (6-12-2) to three shots.
But not one of those looks found the net, and a gritty Akron team took the Cardinals to penalty kicks after 110 scoreless minutes of regulation and overtime.
Akron converted four of its penalty kicks, and the Cardinals were only able to make three. Hannah Werth's successful PK proved to be the decisive one as the Zips advanced to the semifinals. They will face No. 5 seed Miami, which also used penalty kicks to get past No. 4 seed Kent State.
“We needed to be a lot more consistent with finishing,” Roberts said. “You have to convert or else you let the game go where it ended up going. At the end of the day you have to score the goals, and we just fell short in that area. When it came down to PKs, somebody had to lose, and unfortunately it was us.”
Ball State really ramped up its attack in the latter part of regulation, creating more looks at that elusive goal against an Akron team that was playing five defenders. The Cardinals even moved Lorina White up top from her back line position, and that resulted in some good chances down the stretch.
Off a corner kick late in the game, Ball State peppered Akron with four shots before the ball could be cleared, but all of them were blocked. The Cardinals held a 13-1 advantage in corner kicks for the day.
Annabelle Hegeman made seven saves for the Zips and successfully batted away some other Ball State scoring opportunities to keep a clean sheet. Alyssa Heintschel recorded the shutout for the Cardinals, her fourth in a row. Ball State finished with nine shutouts for the third straight season, one shy of the school record.
The team's 14 wins were also just one away from the Ball State record of 15 from 2005. This year's squad already set the school mark for conference wins, going 10-1 during the MAC season on the way to the Cardinals' first regular season title since 2007.
“We're deeply disappointed, but I am immensely proud to be their coach,” Roberts said. “They have achieved so many accolades this season, and they will continue to do so. We have improved in each of the last six seasons, and this was our best one yet. We will once again reflect and reevaluate and come back stronger.”
