A thrilling comeback capped a successful first weekend for theBall State soccer team at the Central Michigan Invitational.
With BSU trailing 1-0 to DePaul on Sunday, junior forwardLindsay Wiltshire scored two goals less than six minutes apart --at the 51:57 and 57:55 marks -- with senior forward Dee Noceroassisting on both.
DePaul's Jennifer Dyer had given the Blue Demons -- ranked fifthin "SoccerBuzz" magazine's pre-season poll -- a 1-0 lead in the25th minute of the first half.
Coach Ron Rainey was obviously pleased with the weekend'sresults.
"Everything got a little bit better -- possession [of the ball]got better, we capitalized on chances better," Rainey said.
"The first goal was a play we had been working on in practice,"he said. "Both goals were the product of good running up top."
Ball State (2-0) also found success on Friday, when it beatDetroit, 1-0. Sophomore Amy Holst scored in the 65th minute of thegame, with Laura Bandy getting the assist.
In winning both games, the Cardinals overcame being outshot --9-7 against Detroit and 16-8 against DePaul. The Blue Demonsoutshot the Cardinals 8-2 in the first half. Against Detroit,Nocero led in shots with three, while Vandi Ogden and GretchenEchelbarger took two each.
Sophomore Alison Becker made her debut as starting goalkeeper bystopping 25 shots over the weekend and only allowing one to get by.Although she played in 14 games last season, she hadn't started ina collegiate game.
"She played a lot of minutes last year, so we knew what toexpect with her," Rainey said. "She played very solid, played withconfidence."
"We played a very good team in DePaul," he said. "The reality isthat we have a ton of stuff to improve on, but that's what everyteam across the country will be doing this week."
The Cardinals continue their road trip this week when theytravel to Indianapolis to face Butler on Thursday, then go toBloomington on Friday to face Indiana.
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