Ball State scored in the 59th minute to beat Ohio University 1-0 and earned its first Mid-American Conference win since 2011.
Today, the Cardinals won its sixth game this season at the expense of the Bobcats for the fourth and final spot in the MAC tournament.
“We have been working hard for a long time, and to finally see the reward of all of our hard work means a lot,” Ball State head coach Beth Maddox said about snapping its six-match losing streak.
Ball State earned 11 penalties and four player cards in the game. That didn’t stop the Cardinals from fighting as they managed to keep the Bobcats away from goalkeeper Shelby Henley and off the scoreboard.
Ball State felt a shift when the Ohio freshman Franziska Schmiedel had to sit out at the 56:36 mark with a yellow card.
Redshirt sophomore Bianca Velez celebrated her birthday as she came up with two defensive saves and the game-winning goal on Ball State’s third penalty corner, which was assisted on by Natalie Jardell and Tori Widrick. Velez leads the Cardinals in defensive saves.
Ball State hits the road to face the Hoosiers at 1 p.m. Sunday in Bloomington, Ind. This is Ball State’s third back-to-back this season and final non-conference game. Ball State closes out the season at rival opponent Missouri State University on Nov. 3.
“We have to take care of business next Sunday, and playing at Missouri State is tough.” Maddox said. “I’m hopeful that things will go our way.”
Ball State improves to 6-10 overall with a 1-3 MAC record. The Cardinals are currently fifth in the standings. They would need a win at Missouri State and an Ohio loss against the MAC leaders Kent State University. The conference records would result in a tie, but Ball State has the advantage with Saturday’s win.
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