As Ball State's offense constantly pressured the attacking third in Sunday's game, Kent State preferred a more conservative approach.
The Golden Flashes countered the Cardinals' aggression with breakaways that left Ball State defenders scrambling to get back.
Such plays left the team disorganized and allowed Kent State to score twice and take the game 2-0.
Ball State continued the seasonal theme of outshooting its opponents, but not converting. Among the team's 21 shots, two hit off crossbar. Junior defender Amanda Dreyfus came the closest to scoring in the 36th minute, but her penalty kick was blocked.
"We just have to keep plugging away," Reder said. "We had the opportunities, it's just a matter of finishing now. We need to just keep creating. It [goals] will come."
Offensive struggles plagued the team in the past, but solid defense kept Ball State in games long enough to tie. Junior co-captain Brigit Reder said the defensive effort in Sunday's game just wasn't good enough.
In the 41st minute, Megan Repas dribbled down the right sideline and took on five Ball State players. The strength in numbers didn't stop her. None of the defenders stepped up as Kent State's junior forward ripped a shot from 18 yards. It sailed over the goalkeeper's head and into the top right hand corner of goal.
Kent State added another goal in the second half off another breakaway. Too many Ball State defenders converged on a ball outside the box and it squirted out to Repas. She finished once again for her second goal of the game.
"We didn't get numbers back in the correct position from the midfield or the defensive line," Reder said. "We rotated wrong, dove in on defense and we didn't recover as we needed to."
Despite giving up the two goals, coach Craig Roberts said he felt his team dominated the game, particularly after halftime. Ball State seems like a second half team, but Roberts said recognizing weaknesses earlier is something the team is working on.
"Halftime allows the coaching staff to evaluate what the other team is doing," Roberts said. "We see what strategically needs to happen to expose them a little bit more. But we're young, so we have to keep teaching them about the tactical awareness to fix it themselves. They're getting better with it and it will all come in time."
It didn't come in time Sunday. The final home game of the season wound down with Ball State losing its first contest in over three weeks.
With only three regular season games left in Mid-American Conference play, Reder said the team realizes the importance of getting problem areas fixed.
"Getting opportunities and finishing them is what it's going to come down to as we go into the tournament and finish out the season," Reder said. "We just have to put our opportunities away."
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