Thursday, October 12
Akron, Ohio
7 p.m.
Ball State University
7-5-2, 5-0-2
2
at
1
Akron
2-12-0, 0-7-0
1
2
F
Ball St.
1
1
2
Akron
1
0
1
Soccer Climbs Into First With 2-1 Win At Akron
October 12, 2023 | Soccer
AKRON, Ohio - - In a down-to-the-wire finish, the Ball State soccer team used an 87th-minute goal from senior forward Avery Fenchel to earn a pivotal 2-1 Mid-American Conference victory at Akron Thursday night at FirstEnergy Stadium.
The result, coupled with a 2-0 loss by Bowling Green at Kent State, helped the Cardinals (7-5-2; 5-0-2 MAC) climb into first place in the league standings.
Despite still searching for its first league win, the Zips (2-12-0; 0-7-0) gave Ball State another tough road test, but one the entire squad battled through to pass.
"We turned in a great team effort," head coach Josh Rife said. "The subs who came on gave us a lift tonight and were huge. We know it's going to take everyone to contribute to get us where we want to go, and tonight we saw that. I'm proud of Alex McPhee, Kaelyn Valleau and Ryann Locante who all gave us great minutes."
Fenchel, who also opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a tally assisted by graduate defender Maya Turner and junior defender Maya Millis, raised her season goal total to 10 and her career total to 23 with her second consecutive brace.
Akron, which amassed 17 shots in the opening 45 minutes and finished the match with 25, would get the equalizer in the 32nd minute to set up the thrilling finish.
However, that was the lone shot which would get past Ball State redshirt junior goalkeeper Bethany Moser, as she racked up a career-high 10 saves. Moser currently leads all MAC keepers with 66 saves, making an average of 4.71 saves per match.
McPhee led Ball State's reserves with 48 minutes of solid action, while Valleau and Locante played 31 minutes apiece to help limit Akron to the one goal.
All that defensive effort paid off in the end, as a battle in the Akron penalty area helped the ball find junior midfielder Kaitlyn Fraser just outside the box, who in turn passed the ball into Fenchel just in front of the penalty spot for the match-winner.
Fenchel led Ball State with four total shots, three of which were on goal and two of which scored.
The Ball State soccer team will return home Sunday, October 15 to take on the Ohio Bobcats. They are set for a 1 p.m. start time at the Briner Sports Complex.
The result, coupled with a 2-0 loss by Bowling Green at Kent State, helped the Cardinals (7-5-2; 5-0-2 MAC) climb into first place in the league standings.
Despite still searching for its first league win, the Zips (2-12-0; 0-7-0) gave Ball State another tough road test, but one the entire squad battled through to pass.
"We turned in a great team effort," head coach Josh Rife said. "The subs who came on gave us a lift tonight and were huge. We know it's going to take everyone to contribute to get us where we want to go, and tonight we saw that. I'm proud of Alex McPhee, Kaelyn Valleau and Ryann Locante who all gave us great minutes."
Fenchel, who also opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a tally assisted by graduate defender Maya Turner and junior defender Maya Millis, raised her season goal total to 10 and her career total to 23 with her second consecutive brace.
Akron, which amassed 17 shots in the opening 45 minutes and finished the match with 25, would get the equalizer in the 32nd minute to set up the thrilling finish.
However, that was the lone shot which would get past Ball State redshirt junior goalkeeper Bethany Moser, as she racked up a career-high 10 saves. Moser currently leads all MAC keepers with 66 saves, making an average of 4.71 saves per match.
McPhee led Ball State's reserves with 48 minutes of solid action, while Valleau and Locante played 31 minutes apiece to help limit Akron to the one goal.
All that defensive effort paid off in the end, as a battle in the Akron penalty area helped the ball find junior midfielder Kaitlyn Fraser just outside the box, who in turn passed the ball into Fenchel just in front of the penalty spot for the match-winner.
Fenchel led Ball State with four total shots, three of which were on goal and two of which scored.
The Ball State soccer team will return home Sunday, October 15 to take on the Ohio Bobcats. They are set for a 1 p.m. start time at the Briner Sports Complex.
Team Stats
BSU
AKRON
Goals
2
1
Shots
10
25
Shots on Goal
4
11
Saves
10
2
Corners
4
9
Fouls
6
7
Scoring Plays
Avery Fenchel (10)
Assisted By: Maya Turner , Maya Millis
tap in off header on corner
16:21
Ella Hadley (2)
Assisted By: Anna Simmons
GOAL by AKRON Hadley, Ella Assist by Simmons, Anna.
31:35
Avery Fenchel (10)
Assisted By: Kaitlyn Fraser
ball played in from top box off blocked shot
86:07
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
4
SOG
3
Goals
2
Assists
0
Shots
0
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
0
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
0
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Players Mentioned
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