With an explosive offensive attack led by Nathalie Fontaine, Ball State picked up a 69-61 road victory over Toledo for the first time since 2009 in Savage Arena.
"We just tried to get control early and followed the game plan," head coach Brady Sallee said. "It felt good to be able to go to their big arena that's a hard place to play at and take the lead early like we did."
The Cardinals controlled the game from the tip, going into halftime with a 32-23 lead.
Ball State's defense shut down Toledo's offense during the first half, holding them to just 26 percent from field goal range, and 25 percent from three point range, way below Toledo's season averages (39 percent and 31 percent.
The Cardinals' offense continued its pace in the second half. The center of this offensive attack was led by Fontaine, who led all scorers with 20 points. Her aggressive style led to a 7-13 day from the field 6-8 on free-throws.
She also impacted the game on the glass, finishing with 11 rebounds and a double-double.
"She was incredible today, almost every rebound she got she went up and you knew she would be coming down with the ball," Sallee said.
Three other Cardinals finished in double-figures as well. Senior Shelbie Justice scored 17 points, Moriah Monaco came off the bench to pick up 12 points and Jill Morrison added 10.
The majority of the team's offense came from 3-point range as Justice, Monaco and Morrison made 11 3-point shots combined.
"When we have the likes of Justice, Monaco and Morrison shooting from the arc and others like Fontaine controlling the inside, we were able to shoot from anywhere and were a threat inside and out," Sallee said.
Ball State now moves to 11-10 on the season. The Cardinals will battle with Eastern Michigan (11-9; 4-5 MAC) at 7 p.m. on Feb. 11.
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