Going in to Friday's game, Ball State knew Buffalo wasn't a team that would overextend its defense.
The Bulls style is to sit back in a compacted formation and wait for their counterattack opportunities.
For 110 minutes, they stuck to it.
Ball State penetrated line after line of Buffalo defenders with passes and crosses, but could never get the final push to make it a goal. The game ended in a 0-0 tie after two overtimes.
"They [Buffalo] are a good team, in the sense that they can keep themselves in games," coach Craig Roberts said. " But I'm sure a lot of teams come away feeling very frustrated with not getting results because they feel like the better team."
That was certainly the case Friday night. When the final whistle blew, heads hung as Ball State players walked to the sideline.
Despite improving their record to 4-1-2 in the Mid-American Conference (9-4-3 overall), freshman forward Hannah Chadick said the team wanted more. The Cardinals dominated possession and play in the second half, but couldn't find the back of the net.
"We obviously should have put some goals in," Chadick said. "I still think we played pretty well, but just couldn't finish the way we wanted to."
Among the 33 shots Ball State had, at least four were one-touch volleys with only the keeper to beat. Balls would be played in, but the Cardinals would either hit off the wrong side of their foot or not get enough pace on the shot. Either way, Roberts said those are chances the team should convert.
"I think technically, they needed to focus a little bit more to finish them," Roberts said. "They were getting underneath the ball a little too much instead of striking through the ball and controlling their effort. Consequently, it wasn't on frame and couldn't get the goal."
Ball State has a chance to quickly correct its problems. The team takes on Kent State on Sunday in the final home game of the season.
After the game, Roberts said he wasn't upset with his team's negative reaction. Instead, he thought it showed the progress of the players and their expectations moving forward.
"I think this is where we've come with the program," Roberts said. "I just said to them we're deeply disappointed with not getting the results. We're not settling. That may be a good result for Buffalo to tie us and be happy with that. But we weren't happy. We felt we were more deserving of a positive result."
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