The Ball State University field hockey team hopes it will get a couple program firsts with a win in its first home game of the season today.
The Cardinals open the home portion of their schedule against the University of Michigan at 3 p.m. In addition to not having to board a bus for the game, Ball State is looking to win its first home opener since beating Northwestern University 2-1 in 2002 and to snap a seven-game losing streak to the Wolverines.
"[The team] practices here day in and day out," coach Annette Payne said. "It's a comfort place for them. It's their home away from home and their family away from home."
While the game presents a chance for the players to play in front of their "family away from home," some players will be playing in front of their actual families. Senior forward Casey Hunsicker said her parents come to every home game, and freshman forward Brittany Hammer will get a chance to play for her family for the first time in college.
"Both of my parents are coming up for the weekend," Hammer said.
Hammer's parents will make the trip from St. Louis and won't be the only ones making the five-hour drive from the Gateway City to Muncie. Ball State will also play host to St. Louis University Sunday. St. Louis and Michigan will play each other Saturday.
"There are a couple of girls I want to show some things to," Hammer said.
If Hammer plays the way she did the first weekend of competition against the University of Richmond and Davidson College, she should have no problem making an impression on her former high school opponents.
Hammer scored three goals that weekend in the Miami Kick-off Classic, including the game winner in the Cardinals' 2-0 defeat of Davidson. Those three goals make her the leading scorer for Ball State. Hammer said she was recruited by St. Louis but chose Ball State instead of the Billikens.
"I just loved it way more," Hammer said.
Sophomore midfielder Maura Sawicki is also from St. Louis and sophomore midfielder Gretchen Lulow is from Ballwin, Mo., a St. Louis suburb.
Before those players get a chance toplay some of their former rivals, the Cardinals will get a chance to play their first ranked opponent of the season. Michigan comes into Muncie ranked 16th in the coach's poll. The Wolverines are 1-3 on the season, identical to Ball State, but the three teams they lost to are ranked one, two and three in the country. Despite Michigan's reputation, Payne said, the team needs to focus on itself.
"We have to go in there and take care of Ball State," Payne said. "Michigan is fast, they're strong and they're quick. We need to do what we can to be prepared."
The team prepared all week in practice, trying to improve an attack that was stagnant last weekend. It is unclear whether the team will be without last year's leading scorer Brooke MacGillivary, who missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury. Payne refused to comment on the situation. The team has also been working to shore up its defense after allowing 37 shots in two games last weekend.
"We've been working on a lot of stuff with the defense," Hunsicker said. "A lot of things we can take directly into Friday."
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