Ball State University Athletics
Thursday, August 27
West Lafayette, Ind.
7 PM
Ball State University
at
Purdue
Photo by: Z McClung
Soccer Playing at Purdue Thursday and at Home vs Cincinnati Sunday
August 26, 2026 | Soccer
The Ball State soccer team plays a pair of power conference opponents coming up in contests at Purdue on Thursday and at home against Cincinnati on Sunday.
The match at Purdue is set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on B1G+, while Sunday's game vs the Bearcats is at 1 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+. Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
The Cardinals (1-1-1) most recently fell 2-0 at Western Kentucky on Sunday after a 1-1 draw with Butler last Thursday. Mary Jane Keller scored her first collegiate goal early in the second half against the Bulldogs.
The Boilermakers (3-0-1) have posted 7+ goals in each of their last three games, beating Eastern Illinois 8-0 on Sunday after a 7-0 decision over Chicago State last Thursday. Other results for the team include a 1-1 draw vs Evansville on Aug. 13 and 7-1 win vs Purdue Fort Wayne on Aug. 16.
Purdue is in its third season under head coach Richard Moodie and was picked to finish 13th in the 18-team Big Ten preseason poll after going 6-10-3 (3-7-1 Big Ten) last year.
The Bearcats (1-1-1) opened the season with a 3-0 win over Eastern Kentucky (Aug. 12) followed by a 2-1 loss at Illinois (Aug. 20) and a scoreless tie against Bowling Green last Sunday.
Cincinnati is in its fourth season under the direction of head coach Erica Demers. The Bearcats finished in a tie for 10th in the 16-team Big 12 standings last year with a 5-8-6 (3-6-2 Big 12) record.
Ball State's next match after this weekend is set for Sept. 6 with Eastern Illinois in Muncie.
FIRST GOALS FOR FRESHMEN: Anna Kate Robillard and Mary Jane Keller scored their initial collegiate goals in the first two matches of the season.
Robillard found the back of the net in the 54th minute of the season-opening win over IU Indy before Keller scored in the early moments of the second half at Butler as part of a 1-1 draw.
MATCHING UP WITH POWER CONFERENCE FOES: Thursday's match at Purdue will be the seventh in series history with the Boilermakers, while Sunday's contest vs Cincinnati will be the second against the Bearcats.
Purdue won 5-2 last year in the season opener for both sides on Aug. 17 in Muncie. Ball State will be looking for its first win vs Purdue since a 1-0 decision on Nov. 1, 2003 in Muncie. The only other matchup for the Cardinals against Cincinnati was a 2-1 setback in Cincy on Sept. 2, 2021.
BACKLINE IS BACK: The Cardinals bring back plenty of experience in its back line as senior defenders Delaney Ahearn (39 starts at Ball State) and Audrey Goodyear (44) and sophomores Jordyn Klaasen (23) and Grier Isaacson (20) have been mainstays in the defensive backfield. Junior goalkeeper Kate Pallante returns after being the primary goalie in 2025.
BEATING EXPECTATIONS: Ball State was picked sixth in this year's MAC preseason coaches poll but significantly outperformed its preseason prognostication in 2025, finishing fourth in the final MAC standings after being picked 11th leading up to the campaign.
TEN TIMES: Last year's Ball State soccer team reached 10 wins for the program's first 10-win season since 2019.
That season's Cardinals went 15-5 and posted a 9-2 record in the Mid-American Conference.
ROAD RUNNERS: Ball State went 8-2 in road contests in 2025.
The Cardinals concluded the season as the only team in the MAC with more than six wins in away games on the year.
The match at Purdue is set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on B1G+, while Sunday's game vs the Bearcats is at 1 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+. Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
The Cardinals (1-1-1) most recently fell 2-0 at Western Kentucky on Sunday after a 1-1 draw with Butler last Thursday. Mary Jane Keller scored her first collegiate goal early in the second half against the Bulldogs.
The Boilermakers (3-0-1) have posted 7+ goals in each of their last three games, beating Eastern Illinois 8-0 on Sunday after a 7-0 decision over Chicago State last Thursday. Other results for the team include a 1-1 draw vs Evansville on Aug. 13 and 7-1 win vs Purdue Fort Wayne on Aug. 16.
Purdue is in its third season under head coach Richard Moodie and was picked to finish 13th in the 18-team Big Ten preseason poll after going 6-10-3 (3-7-1 Big Ten) last year.
The Bearcats (1-1-1) opened the season with a 3-0 win over Eastern Kentucky (Aug. 12) followed by a 2-1 loss at Illinois (Aug. 20) and a scoreless tie against Bowling Green last Sunday.
Cincinnati is in its fourth season under the direction of head coach Erica Demers. The Bearcats finished in a tie for 10th in the 16-team Big 12 standings last year with a 5-8-6 (3-6-2 Big 12) record.
Ball State's next match after this weekend is set for Sept. 6 with Eastern Illinois in Muncie.
FIRST GOALS FOR FRESHMEN: Anna Kate Robillard and Mary Jane Keller scored their initial collegiate goals in the first two matches of the season.
Robillard found the back of the net in the 54th minute of the season-opening win over IU Indy before Keller scored in the early moments of the second half at Butler as part of a 1-1 draw.
MATCHING UP WITH POWER CONFERENCE FOES: Thursday's match at Purdue will be the seventh in series history with the Boilermakers, while Sunday's contest vs Cincinnati will be the second against the Bearcats.
Purdue won 5-2 last year in the season opener for both sides on Aug. 17 in Muncie. Ball State will be looking for its first win vs Purdue since a 1-0 decision on Nov. 1, 2003 in Muncie. The only other matchup for the Cardinals against Cincinnati was a 2-1 setback in Cincy on Sept. 2, 2021.
BACKLINE IS BACK: The Cardinals bring back plenty of experience in its back line as senior defenders Delaney Ahearn (39 starts at Ball State) and Audrey Goodyear (44) and sophomores Jordyn Klaasen (23) and Grier Isaacson (20) have been mainstays in the defensive backfield. Junior goalkeeper Kate Pallante returns after being the primary goalie in 2025.
BEATING EXPECTATIONS: Ball State was picked sixth in this year's MAC preseason coaches poll but significantly outperformed its preseason prognostication in 2025, finishing fourth in the final MAC standings after being picked 11th leading up to the campaign.
TEN TIMES: Last year's Ball State soccer team reached 10 wins for the program's first 10-win season since 2019.
That season's Cardinals went 15-5 and posted a 9-2 record in the Mid-American Conference.
ROAD RUNNERS: Ball State went 8-2 in road contests in 2025.
The Cardinals concluded the season as the only team in the MAC with more than six wins in away games on the year.
Players Mentioned
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
GK
/ Soccer
M
/ SoccerMonday, August 24
Wednesday, August 19
Thursday, August 13
Wednesday, August 05