To help bring some closure to another year of Ball State University sports, the members of the Ball State Daily News sports staff voted on the top five Ball State sports stories of the 2006-2007 school year.
While the soccer team's Mid-American Conference championship and the arrest of two freshmen football players were big stories, they were not big enough.After a heated debate and a narrow vote, the staff chose the following as the biggest stories of the past year:
1. Death of Travis SmithBall State golfer Travis J. Smith died in an automobile accident Jan. 27 on Riverside Avenue. The freshman from Terre Haute was 19.
"Travis isn't going to be around like he was in the fall, but he was one of our better players, one of our top players actually," coach Mike Fleck said. "Not only did we lose a great friend, but a great athlete."
Smith's average round of 75.2 was second-best for the Cardinals in the fall season. He was expected to be one of the top players for the Cardinals this spring. Smith was named an honorary captain by the golf team for the 2007 season. The team is wearing black ribbons on its hats and golf bags in honor of Smith. A letter jacket Smith earned in the fall was presented to his family at a memorial service in Terre Haute.
2. Randy Litchfield gets the axeBall State women's volleyball coach Randy Litchfield was let go after 18 seasons at the university in December.0 The Cardinals went 12-18 and 8-8 in the MAC in his final year. It was the first time he had a losing season at Ball State.
The reason Litchfield was let go is still not known today.
"It's a personnel decision," Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Tom Collins said. "At the end of the day, I'm responsible for the overall health of the program. I felt it was a decision that had to be made, and we needed new leadership."
In his tenure at Ball State, Litchfield had a career record of 373-179 and a MAC record of 229-60. He won seven regular season conference titles and six conference tournament titles. Under Litchfield, Ball State had 59 All-MAC selections and 50 Academic All-MAC selections, more than any other school in the conference. He was also named the MAC Coach of the Year five times.
3. Ball State nearly upsets MichiganIn front of 109,359 fans, the Ball State football team was down 34-26 with three minutes left against No. 2 University of Michigan. The Cardinals had seven opportunities inside the 10-yard line but could not score.
"Knowing they're number two in the country and seeing that we haven't played as well as we wanted to play this year, they thought it could've been an easy game, and maybe they were on cruise control," Ball State linebacker Brad Seiss said. "It proves you have to play the game. If things could've gone a little different for us, we could've shocked the world."
The Cardinals had trailed 31-12 before battling back against the undefeated Wolverines. A final "Hail Mary" by quarterback Nate Davis was intercepted by Michigan's Ryan Mundy in the end zone to end the game and the upset bid.
4. Roller gets hefty pay raiseBall State women's basketball coach Tracy Roller signed a four-year contract worth $181,000 per-year in March to remain the Cardinals' head coach.
"I'm ready to work whatever [the administration] wants me to do and be whatever they need me to be because I understand what this salary means at this level," Roller said. "I'm very honored and privileged, and I'm going to work my tail off. I think it shows a lot about the commitment this administration has for women's basketball."
Roller's new deal increases her base salary by more than 70 percent compared to last year. With her new contract, Roller is tied with men's basketball coach Ronny Thompson as the highest paid coach at Ball State. Roller is under contract until March 31, 2011.
5. Women's basketball team reaches NITThe Ball State women's basketball team ended its season with the MAC West Division championship and a birth in the Women's National Invitational Tournament. At 24-7 and 13-3 in the MAC, it was the most successful season in the program's 33-year history.
"When we came into this year, we said we wanted to take this program into the next level," Roller said. "It was a sad day from [long-time PA announcer] Tom Hammond's moment of silence to the moment the final buzzer sounded. It was a sad ending to a really awesome year."
The Cardinals' season came to an end in the second round of the WNIT March 19. Ball State trailed the University of Kentucky 85-82 with 6.5 seconds on the clock. Sophomore Porchia Green got the rebound and dribbled to the basket but could not get a shot off before time expired.
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