Ball State has caught few breaks the past season, but a chance to change its luck comes today as it takes on Northern Illinois in the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament.
"For us it has been a bit of crisis management," coach Bill Richards said. "No one on our team is happy with our results this year. [We need to] try to put it together and make something for the tournament."
Ball State is the No. 4 seed, while Northern Illinois holds the No. 5 seed. The match is set for 2 p.m. in Kalamazoo, Mich.
The Cardinals defeated the Huskies 7-0 in Muncie on April 8, but four of the six singles matches were tightly contested.
"We had a tough match with them in the regular season," Richards said. "[We] hope to find a way to get four points against them."
Even though Ball State is the No. 4 seed, it is not uncommon for lower-seeded teams to win the MAC Tournament. Western Michigan won the tournament as a No. 3 seed last year and earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Ball State finished the regular season 12-14 (2-3 MAC). Richards said he hopes the three conference losses do not have a psychological impact on the team if Ball State meets a school it lost to.
"We hope it has no bearing on it," Richards said. "Your record is 0-0. What happened in the past is gone."
The winner of today's match will take on No. 1 seed Western Michigan on Friday. Western Michigan defeated Ball State 7-0 April 16. Western Michigan is the host school of the MAC Tournament.
Senior leadership is a disadvantage for Ball State. The Cardinals don't have any seniors in their lineup, with three sophomores and three juniors playing singles. Western Michigan plays four seniors and Toledo plays three.
"I don't think it has affected us much," Richards said about the youth of his team.
What has been a problem for Ball State is injuries. Three of the Cardinal's six singles players have battled through ailments this season. Juniors Zane Smith and Andres Monroy have recovered, while junior Cliff Morrison is playing despite knee problems. Morrison was ranked No. 103 in the nation in singles before sitting out three matches in March.
Morrison sat out the fall season because of the same knee injury. The injuries come on top of Eduardo Pavia's summer transfer to the University of Miami. Pavia was expected to be Ball State's No. 1 singles player this season.
"We've been through a lot of battles this season," Richards said. "In terms of being battle tested, we've certainly been there."
Ball State's regular season by the numbers
12-14 record
2-3 in MAC play
2 - Matches Ball State lost in the MAC by a 4-3 score
13 - Matches junior Andres Monroy missed with a hip injury
3 - Matches junior Cliff Morrison missed with knee injuries
2 - Matches junior Zane Smith missed with an ankle injury
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