The Ball State University soccer team’s defensive personality is beginning to take shape after four games into the season. After leading the Mid-American Conference in shutouts (9) and goals (16) last year, Ball State has already begun putting a defensive clamp on opponents this year, something senior defender Krista Mitts is proud of.“We take pride in allowing few scoring opportunities as a team,” Mitts said. “Coach tells us that pride is getting snotty and getting a tackle, and that’s what we strive to do.”The Cardinals allowed only one goal during the two games last weekend. They also held opponents to only 12 shots in both games, giving Ball State a 48-12 shot advantage. “Defensively, to give up one goal in two games is awesome and hard to do,” coach Ron Rainey said. “We’re going to have a good defense this year because we have too many people returning.“We have people a part of [the defense] that are going to make our defense stronger.”Ball State (3-1) is starting its weekend play today against struggling IPFW (0-3-1) at the Ball State Soccer Field. Ball State travels to Wright State (3-1) on Sunday. Both offensive and defensive sides of the ball came out flat against Illinois State last weekend. The Cardinals will have to come into today’s game mentally ready for a challenging IPFW team. The match-up between Ball State and IPFW has resulted in close games during their four meetings. Three of the four games between the two teams have either been decided by one point or ended in a tie.“They’re a type of team that is very well-coached and very well-organized,” Rainey said. “They play 90 minutes at the highest level.”IPFW has scored five goals over its first four games this season, and the Ball State defense will try to stop them from adding another goal to their total.Mitts and her teammates set a goal at the beginning of the season to give up only 11 goals on the year. So far, the team has allowed three goals, and with 15 games still remaining of the regular season, the Cardinals will have to shut out as many teams as possible. Rainey said that although the goal is high, Ball State’s defense can make it happen.“That’s a lofty goal, but we might as well have lofty goals because we have people with a lot of experience,” Rainey said. “We’ll strive to reach [the goal], and I think we have the personnel to do it.”
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