With an 11-8 season-ending victory against the University of Toledo on Saturday, the Ball State University baseball team gained much needed momentum entering the Mid-American Conference tournament Wednesday.
After losing close games to the host Rockets on Friday and Saturday, the Cardinals scored seven runs in the eighth inning to finish the season on a positive note and snapping a six-game losing streak. The No. 5-seed Cardinals will play No. 4-seed Northern Illinois University in the first game of the MAC tournament Wednesday.
Coach Greg Beals said Saturday's win provided his team a shot of confidence heading into the tournament.
"We had a tough couple of days, and to come from behind today, it was really important for the team," Beals said. "We went to the bench a lot today, and three guys all had big days for us. We got the whole team involved."
Starting center fielder Wayne Bond said the team was able to learn a valuable lesson from the three-game series in Toledo. Instead of playing passively, Bond said, his team needed to play every game to win.
"The first two games we played not to lose," Bond said, "and in the last game we played to win."
Ball State struggled against Northern Illinois in a three-game home stand a week ago. The Cardinals were swept and outscored a combined 11-7 in the two games. Rain canceled the final game of the series.
Regardless of the two losses, Bond said his team was optimistic that it could beat Northern Illinois in Wednesday's matchup.
"We want to win a MAC championship," he said. "That's all we expect to do."
If playing for the opportunity of a MAC title weren't enough, Bond said revenge also would help motivate his team to win.?
"They took two [out of two] from us in the last series we played them," Bond said. "So we'd love to put a hurting on them."
Ball State's prospective starting pitcher Wednesday is Tyler Pritchard, who is 3-6 in the season with a 5.50 ERA.
Pritchard said the Cardinals would have to keep Northern Illinois' strengths in mind and try to play to the Huskies' weaknesses.
"They're a good defensive team," Pritchard said. "They'll cover the outfield, and they can make plays in the infield. They won't give us runs; we've got to earn them."
Despite his ERA, Pritchard said he was confident he could have success on the mound against Northern Illinois' lineup. The key, Pritchard said, is to be aggressive with the top of the order.
"They've got a lineup that we can get outs on," Pritchard said. "I've realized that the key to their offense is to get the leadoff hitter out."
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