Ball State Resumes MAC Play at Kent State and Ohio

MUNCIE, Ind. – After opening the conference slate by splitting a pair of home matches, the Ball State University soccer team will be back on the road this weekend to take on Kent State and Ohio in a key pair of MAC matches.

GAME INFO

Game 10
Ball State at Kent State
Friday, Sept. 28 (7 p.m.)
Kent, Ohio (Dix Stadium)
Watch | Live Stats | Match Notes

Game 11
Ball State at Ohio
Sunday, Sept. 30 (1 p.m.)
Athens, Ohio (Chessa Field)
Watch | Live Stats | Match Notes

ABOUT KENT STATE (4-5-1, 0-2-0)

The Golden Flashes entered conference play off a strong win against Syracuse. Kent State then fell to Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan as it opened the MAC portion of its schedule. Vital Kats leads KSU with 11 points coming from three goals and five assists. Isabelle Mihail has also tallied three goals while adding one assist.

SERIES HISTORY

Ball State leads the series with Kent State 11-9-2. The Cardinals and Golden Flashes last met in 2017 when BSU won a 1-0 contest in Muncie.

ABOUT OHIO (3-5-1, 1-1-0)

The Bobcats took Centran Michigan to double overtime in the MAC opener before eventually falling 1-0. Ohio quickly rebounded though as it took down East- ern Michigan 2-1 in the next match. Abby Townsend leads Ohio with six points from three goals scored. Two Bobcats have scored five points from two goals and an assist. Ohio will play Miami before squaring off with Ball State.

SERIES HISTORY

Ohio leads the series with the Cardinals 7-11-3. Ball State took home the last contest by a score of 3-1 in Muncie.

MAC PRESEASON POLL

The cardinals were picked by the MAC coaches to finish second in the league this season. BSU received one first-place vote and the second-most points to land them behind Kent State, which received eight first-place votes. Ball State also received one vote to win the tournament championship at the end of the season. Kent State was also selected to win that competition.

2018 MAC Preseason Poll
1. Kent State – 134 (8)
2. Ball State – 119 (1)
3. Bowling Green – 114 (2)
4. Buffalo - 111
5. Central Michigan - 81
6. Toledo - 74
7. Eastern Michigan - 70
8. Ohio - 65
9. Western Michigan - 58
T10. Akron – 40 (1)
T10. Northern Illinois - 40
12. Miami – 30

Tournament Champion: Kent State (6) Buffalo (1), Ball State (1), Bowling Green (1), Central Michigan (1), Toledo (1) Western Michigan (1)
(first place votes)

MAC OPENING WIN AGAINST TOLEDO

Lauren Roll headed in a corner kick in the first half and Julia Elvbo headed in a goal of her own in the second, and Ball State opened its Mid-American Conference slate with a 2-0 win over Toledo. The Cardinal defense worked hard to shut down one of the top scorers in the MAC as part of the winning effort.

HOME OPENER VS OMAHA

In its first home match of the season and the night on which it honored its seniors, the Ball State University soccer team erased an 0-1 deficit by scoring three-unanswered, second-half goals to defeat Omaha, 3-1. Julia Elvbo, Tatiana Mason and Paula Guerrero all scored goals for the Cardinals.

WIN AT COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON

After a scoreless first half, the Ball State University soccer team got a trio of goals from Tatiana Mason, Peighton Cook and Sam Kambol in just an 18-minute span to take down College of Charleston, 3-0, at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium. Tristin Stuteville recorded her second-consecutive shutout and the Cardinals advanced to 3-1-0 with the win.

OVERTIME WIN AT MOREHEAD STATE

Ball State created several chances but could not score until Jenna Dombrowski's header hit the back of the net in overtime to earn the Cardinals a 1-0 victory over Morehead State. BSU fired off 22 shots for the match and finally scored on the very last one. Paula Guerrero was credited with the assist off a free kick that resulted in the golden goal for the Cardinals. Tristin Stuteville earned her first clean sheet of the season.

SEASON OPENER AT PURDUE FORT WAYNE

Ball State survived a lightning delay that lasted over an hour as well as pouring rain all night, and took down Purdue Fort Wayne, 2-1, in the season opener at Hefner Soccer Complex. BSU tallied 20 shots on the night, 10 of which were on goal. The Cardinals got their scoring from fifth-year senior Allison Abbe and true freshman Tatiana Mason. Tristin Stuteville was solid in goal, saving two of the three shots she faced.

EXHIBITION WITH EASTERN ILLINOIS

Ball State prepared for the season with an exhibition on Friday, Aug. 10, against Eastern Illinois. The match featured three 30-minute periods and saw the Cardinals come out on top. BSU earned a corner kick in the 75th minute and senior captain Lauren Roll found the back of the net for the lone goal of the match. Tristin Stuteville was solid in goal for Ball State, making several saves to preserve the shutout. The fifth-year senior will look to anchor the Cardinal defense this season after splitting time at the position a year ago.

QUOTES

Coach Craig Roberts on expectations for the season… "The team is equally ambitious as it has been in previous seasons. We're ambitious again and eager to put our best foot forward to compete within the MAC. Obviously, the desire is to go on to the NCAA's but the main thing for us is just to keep that enthusiasm about being ambitious and we'll see where everything ends up."

Coach Roberts on opening MAC play with a win against Toledo… "Obviously it's very important to open conference play with a win. Toledo is a good team, so it was a big win for us. We did some really good things tonight. There's still a lot we can improve on and we'll address those things before Sunday's game, but overall I was pleased with our efforts."

Coach Roberts on the win over Omaha… "It was already a special night because of senior night, but it makes it even better when you can play well and get a win. We obviously never want to concede the first goal like that, but I thought the girls responded and did well to keep attacking and convert the chances they created."

Coach Roberts on the win at College of Charleston… "I'm very pleased with our performance tonight. The first half started a little slow as we adjusted to the conditions, but we made some adjustments at halftime and it really paid off. The girls had a strong desire to improve and they did so with a solid group effort."

Coach Roberts on the win over Morehead State… "I'm really proud of our team. I thought the girls improved on the things we addressed from the previous game and put together a complete effort. It was a really hot day on a difficult surface, and we battled through and got a good result. This match will come in handy come MAC play when we need to be at our best."

Coach Roberts on the season opener… "The weather conditions really impacted the game and turned it into a scrap and a fight, but I felt we rose to the occasion. The players responded well and fought hard through adversity to get a win. Hats off to PFW and their fight, but I was proud of our girls for finding a way to get a victory."

Coach Roberts on Ball State's 1-0 exhibition win over Eastern Illinois… "I felt that we learned a lot from the game in regard to what we need to address and what we need to do. Our mentality was good overall, we just needed to come out stronger from the start. Everybody contributed and did really well as far as their efforts and doing what we asked them to do. I felt we dominated the game throughout, we just need to find a way to convert more goals so we aren't just winning one to zero."

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Players Mentioned

Allison Abbe

Peighton Cook

Jenna Dombrowski

Julia Elvbo

Paula Guerrero

Sam Kambol

Tatiana Mason

Lauren Roll

Tristin Stuteville