Since arriving at Ball State University in 2006, women's soccer coach Michelle Salmon has implemented an attacking style of offense.
Salmon's offense led to 39 goals for the Cardinals last season, second most in school history.
"We're a high pressure team," junior Sarah Schumacker said. "We're very aggressive and that's kind of who we are and what Ball State is."
Last season, Ball State scored 1.95 goals per game, 40th in Division I. The mark was also best in the Mid-American Conference.
In their two exhibition games this season, the Cardinals averaged four goals a game. The Cardinals defeated Indiana State University 2-1 Sunday. In their first scrimmage of the year, the Cardinals beat IUPUI 6-0.
"We battle through and we force teams to be perfect, and in soccer, there are very few teams that can play perfect soccer," Salmon said. "So by putting teams under the pressure we put them under and the way that we attack, great things happen."
Amy Holst and Emily Rein led Ball State's attack last year with a conference best nine goals each. The nine goals were also fourth best in a single season for Ball State.
Holst is gone from the Cardinals due to graduation but Rein returned for her junior season.
Rein is not the team's lone scorer though as nine players who scored a goal in 2006 return this season.
"We're very much an attacking team," Salmon said. "The goal scorers are never really the same, they bounce around from our team and that's just because we play a great team attacking system."
One way in which Ball State utilizes its ability to attack the goal is with corner kicks or set pieces, Salmon said.
When the ball crosses the goal line and it was last touched by a defender, the offense is given a corner kick.
An offensive player kicks the ball from the corner of the field closest to where the ball went out of play. The offensive players generally set up in front of the net and try to get the ball in the goal after it is kicked by the player in the corner.
"We focus a lot on the details and a set piece is a detail," Salmon said. "It's a little thing, and a lot of teams don't focus on it or put emphasis on it. I believe if you take care of the details, the big things fall into place, and right now this team is taking care of the details."
In 2006, Ball State had a MAC best 136 corner kicks. The University of Toledo had the second most in the conference with 121 corner kicks and the Cardinals' opponents had 71. Last season Ball State scored goals on approximately 40 percent of its corner kicks, Salmon said.
"We are very good on set pieces," Salmon said. "We are a very tough team to defend on set pieces and so if we get ourselves in a corner, where you see it a lot of times where [Rein] will get herself in a corner with two defenders and we talk about it, just get us a corner."
Most of Ball State's corner kicks will be taken by senior Angie Heyer and junior Katelyn Alexander, Salmon said. Alexander takes the kicks from the left side of the field while Heyer takes the kicks from the right side.
"You're looking at two of the best players in the MAC," Salmon said. "When they're on the ball, only good things happen."
Alexander said she tries to put the ball around the six-yard box off of corner kicks.
Against IUPUI, Alexander had two assists off corner kicks.
In their two exhibition games, the Cardinals had 17 corner kicks compared to three at the IUPUI and Indiana State games.
Members of the Ball State soccer team said they like the attacking offense Salmon brought to Ball State last year.
"I love it," Alexander said. "We have the ball going forward and it makes it a lot easier for everyone to get involved."
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