As soon as Ball State's season ended at 13-16 in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament, the underclassmen and coaches knew something had to change.
"I think the second the game was over we all realized what we needed to do and where we wanted to go," sophomore Becca Bajorek said. "I know everyone worked their tails of this summer and people stayed here and it was just a constant reminder of what we want to accomplish as a team."
Head coach Tracy Roller knew that something was missing during that season, but she thinks the Cardinals have found that now.
"It just seemed to me that everybody forgot about last year and moved forward," Roller said. "We had the potential, we had the personnel, we just didn't have the drive. I think that's the difference this year."
Roller's team will have to deal with the loss of two 1,000-point scorers in Johna Goff and Jessica Reiter. Reiter's might be the biggest; last season she was the MAC's rebounding leader, averaging 10.3 per game.
While the Cardinals have done well replacing starters in the past, they haven't had to replace two starters like Goff and Reiter. However, it may be better for the team because they realize everyone needs to step up and not just one person can fill the shoes.
"I think this year to be successful we're going to have to have a more well-balanced attack," said Kate Endress, the team's lone senior. "We might not have several 20-point scorers, but we need more people to score 10 a game."
"This is probably our toughest year to try and replace two players that really did set a tone for us," Roller said. "It's very early in the season to try and find someone to do that for us but I feel like from a team standpoint we've stepped up and we're going to get it done more as a team."
DEFENSE
Last season Ball State had the worst defense in the league, giving up an average of 75.3 points per game. The team knew it has to change that, so a lot of focus has been put on defense since the beginning of practice.
"It was a focus last year too, unfortunately I don't think we had the personnel to do it, whereas this year I feel really good about our athleticism," Roller said. "I think we improved from just having an athletic ability that's more capable of playing man(-to-man)."
Sophomores Tina Bolte and Erica Cotton give the team a boost defensively. Cotton was granted a medical redshirt last season and is expected to be healthy and ready this year. Freshman Julie DeMuth may also help contribute defensively as a guard that can do many things to force steals.
"I think our defense is going to set the tone as to what type of team we're going to be," junior point guard Dana Collins said. "That's what we play off of."
BACKCOURT
Ball State has always had strong guard play and this season will be no different. With Collins and Bolte running the point, sophomore shooting guard Kelsey Corbin and Endress at the three-guard, the Cardinals return plenty of experience. Despite losing Goff the Cardinals remain strong and deep.
Endress has the most experience of anyone on the team and was last year's scoring leader, averaging 18.8 points per game.
Collins got off to a slow start and was unable to play at the beginning because of an injury, but this season she expects to be ready from the start.
Collins was named to the MAC's All-Freshman team in 2003. Since last year didn't go as planned she wants to improve upon her freshman year's performance.
"I don't want to be where I was last year," she said. "I want to be better then I was my freshman year so that's what's motivating me right now."
Over the summer Corbin worked on her shot and Roller said fans may not recognize her new shot.
"I'm much more confident with my shot," Corbin said. "It's still not where it needs to be but day in and day out we'll still work on it. Hopefully it will get there and we'll be able use my threats along with everybody else's threats the way we need to."
FRONTCOURT
Bajorek and juniors Raechelle Hampton and Krista Stewart all know they must step up this season and fill the shoes of Reiter.
Reiter's 10.3 rebounds, but there has been a lot of competition within the position, which helps make it stronger.
Endress said stronger play in the post will allow the guards to play more of their game.
"I think we're a lot more well-balanced then we have been in the past," Endress said. "I think that allows the guards to be guards."
SCHEDULE
Ball State gets to play some of the top teams in the country this season, including Duke and Kansas on their home court.
"Now [fans] get to see them here and see us compete against them and you never know what happens at home," Roller said.
While the Duke (Dec. 20) and Kansas (Dec. 30) games may attract attention of the fans early on, Endress and the team aren't worrying about those games until the time comes.
"Right now we're just going to take it day by day," Endress said. "I think last year we kind of got off to a rocky start and it filtered through the season."
Roller said she believes eight teams could challenge for the MAC title this season, but Eastern Michigan has the edge because of its experience in the NCAA Tournament last season.
"They all are important right now, the MAC has got that much parity," Roller said. "We've all stepped up or non-conference schedule so we can get ready for a competitive MAC season."
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