DEKALB, Ill. - In installment No. 3 of what head coach Tracy Roller has affectionately named "Hell Week," the women's basketball team defied the odds to defeat Northern Illinois, 67-58, Wednesday night.
Ball State (14-5, 8-1 Mid-American Conference) had not won at Northern since 1998, and Roller said she was looking to change that in its new arena, despite the Huskies' four-game winning streak.
"We knew coming in that one streak would end," Roller said. "Be it their bid for five in a row or our not being able to win here - luckily we came out on top."
The Cardinals led by 12 with just under eight minutes to play, but Northern mounted its comeback with a defensive intensity that the Cardinals did not seem ready for. As NIU's full-court press continually forced Ball State into turnovers, it looked as if the its late-game heroics might be able to pull off the game.
"We just had a breakdown," Roller said. "It was probably due to Northern defense, but we just seemed to let down mentally."
A main key for the Cardinals was in containing All-MAC player Jennifer Youngblood. While she did lead the Huskies (9-11, 5-4) with 16 points and 13 rebounds, she did not control the game the way Roller feared she might.
"We just brought everyone to help," Roller said. "She's just such a good player you have to hope that you can limit her touches and keep her away from the boards."
One thing that the Cardinals managed was to play consistent from start to finish, but the ever pessimistic Roller would not concede to the team's improvement.
"The first half was good for our post players but our guard play was horrid," Roller said. "But then in the second half, we all had times we seemed to play horrid. I guess I'm just not a good one to measure that off of."
With "Hell Week" 75 percent complete, Roller said the first three victories could not be any more huge and will do a lot more for the team than just improve its record - they would boost the team's confidence.
"We made it a big key to go through this portion 4-0," Roller said. "Before this we were taking games one at a time, and all we needed was to survive this week. These wins can do nothing but help us as we get ready for the big games."
Tamara Bowie paced BSU with 20 points, while Johna Goff added 16 and Jessica Reiter 14.
Ball State's win, coupled with Toledo's overtime win over Western Michigan, puts the Cardinals in a tie for first place in the MAC West.
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