The Ball State women's basketball team went 2-3 in games over the break and is now 5-8 overall and 1-1 in the Mid-American Conference.
Like most other students, the team battled the recent power outages. Since the Cardinals were in Toledo on Wednesday when the storm hit, they decided to stay there until things cleared up and powered up in Muncie.
They practiced in Bowling Green and didn't return until Friday night, the day before their matchup with Central Michigan. The team was, however, able to close out the break with a 81-78 win over Central.
Duke 81, Ball State 31
Duke outscored the Cardinals 45-7 in the first half on Dec. 20, leaving them with no chance to win.
"The fact is we didn't come ready to play," senior Kate Endress said. "Certainly our only shot against Duke was to come out and play fantastic from the start."
The Blue Devils recorded an ACC record 16 blocks -- eight by 6-foot-7 center Alison Bales -- in limiting the Cards to only 31 points. Endress never hit a shot and had just three rebounds.
"We knew she was a great player; we were trying to limit her touches," Duke head coach Gail Goestenkors said about Endress. "Tonight she wasn't getting those looks that she normally gets because of her size."
BSU coach Tracy Roller said the team can take something positive out of the second half, but will forget about the first.
"Our game plan was good; our execution just wasn't my team," Roller said. "There's just no way we can simulate what (Duke does) at practice. We tried with our scout guys but I think Duke could pummel our scout guys."
Ball State 75, Saint Louis 60
The Cardinals got their second win against Saint Louis this season and fourth overall with a 75-60 victory on Dec. 28.
Four of the five starters scored in double figures for Ball State. Endress led the team with 18, Kelsey Corbin had16, Becca Bajorek 15 and Tina Bolte 10.
After leading by only one point at the break the Cardinals outscored the Billikens 41-27 in the second half.
Kansas 80, Ball State 66
A 15-4 run by Kansas at the beginning of the first half and a 19-11 run at the beginning of the second half gave Ball State a loss in its final non-conference matchup on Dec. 30.
"That was the game, we didn't start well and I'm not sure why," Roller said. "They made us pay."
Ball State shot 31 percent from the field while Kansas shot 45 percent and that was the main difference in the game. After going 0 for 9 in the first half, Endress finished 6 for 25 with 15 points.
Toledo 74, Ball State 62
Endress got her first double-double of the season with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Bolte added 19, but it wasn't enough for the Cardinals to open the conference season with a win. The teams were tied at 24 at halftime, but Toledo never trailed in the second half.
Neither team shot well from the floor, with Ball State shooting 34 percent and Toledo 40 percent, including 56 percent in the second half.
Ball State 81, Central Michigan 78
The Cardinals didn't let Central score in the last 2:16 of the second overtime and recorded their first conference victory Saturday.
Ball State scored the last nine points of the first half to get within one point of CMU at the break, and neither team led by more then three the rest of the game. The score was tied 11 times, including at the end of regulation and end of the first overtime.
Ball State probably could have won the game in both regulation and the first overtime. The team was 14 of 27 from the free-throw line the entire game and at one point were hitting only 33 percent.
Freshman Julie DeMuth also committed a foul which allowed Central to complete a four-point play to tie the game at 74 at the end of the first overtime.
"I think it's real important for us just to learn from these close games and I think it says something about he character of this team," said Endress, who scored 23. "We didn't do everything perfectly, but if we can learn from those situations, I'm going to feel good about where we are in March."
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