After receiving word that her women's tennis team was nationally ranked for the first time in school history, head coach Kathy Bull wore a target on her shirt as a joke to signify what the team should expect.
After what Bull called a "rough weekend" with two losses, the team finds itself facing a larger arrow shooting at the target.
Defending Mid-American Conference champions Eastern Michigan comes to Muncie Friday, giving Ball State a home-court advantage for what Bull calls the toughest match of the year.
"I'd like to hope that home is going to be friendly to us," Bull said. "I don't know if in tennis there really is a home-court advantage, because the crowd is relatively small."
Still,junior Alyce Zollman said seeing one familiar face in the crowd can be a glimmer of hope.
"Being home makes a big difference," Zollman said. "It's nice to look over and see your roommate or a friend cheering for you and feel at home. It gives me just that much more confidence."
Nonetheless, Zollman said she knows the Eagles have noticed Ball State's national ranking - which is No. 66 is the latest poll - and said they might be a little confused by it.
"I don't know if we're ranked ahead of them or not, but somebody like Eastern is wondering what's going on," Zollman said. "We lost to Northern (Illinois) and Western (Michigan), both of whom Eastern beat. They are going to come ready to play, and we have to be ready."
Eastern enters with one of the best doubles team in the nation with the pair of juniors Rebecca Hawkins and Lisa D'Amelio. While the veteran Eastern (12-3 overall, 4-0 MAC) team squares off with the inexperienced Cardinals (9-5, 1-2), Bull said the chemistry among her team gives the Cardinals an advantage most schools do not have.
"These are just lovely young people," Bull said. "It doesn't matter if they came from Michigan or Northern England. They are a group of people who have come together very quickly."
With little time to recover from Eastern, the Cardinals face a Toledo squad Saturday that Bull said could catch the Cardinals off guard following the tough match with the Eagles.
Zollman said the Cardinals' inexperience could be a factor because nobody can predict how freshmen, herself included, will play. Still, Zollman said that could give the Cardinals a slight advantage.
"No one is going to know how to prepare for us," she said. "We can surprise anybody."
Bull said, however, she is not looking past the first game which she said will be the toughest physically.
"The Eastern Michigan team we're playing, in my opinion, is the best team we play all year," Bull said. "They're better than Michigan State. They're better than IU, and we've got our hands full.
"But we can play with them. We can only hope they overlook us like we did Northern (Illinois) so we can get one past them."
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