The offense was not there Sunday for the Ball State University field hockey team as they dropped their third straight match to the University of Michigan by a score of 4-0.
This makes for the second straight year that Michigan has defeated Ball State.The Cardinals are ranked first in the MAC for shots per game at 19.5, but that skill was not shown as Ball State was outshot 24-4 in the contest.
The match was evenly played until the Wolverines took the lead at the 25:25 mark of the first period, the only goal of the first half.
By this point, Michigan had already out shot Ball State 14-to-3, something that the Cardinals are not used to.
"We definitely could have fielded the ball a lot better," coach Annette Payne said. "During the half, we talked about some of the great things we did and the adjustments we would need to make."
Ten minutes into the second half, Michigan scored on an unassisted goal by sophomore midfielder Bryn Bain, putting the score at 2-0.
"We didn't field the ball well and we didn't have the attacks we needed," Payne said.
Ball State found themselves only taking one shot in the second period compared to Michigan's 10.
Michigan put the game out of reach by finding the back of the net two more times before the contest was over; one coming at the 53:53 mark, and the final goal with five minutes remaining at 65:03.
This was the Cardinals' first shut out of the 2009 season.
"We competed," Payne said. "We had good attacks for some of the first half but we didn't make the adjustments in the second half that we needed,"
Payne said the score does not tell the real story of the game, but she and her team are already looking toward their next game.
"We have to fix our mistakes," Payne said. "We need to use this to get ready for Miami and that's where it counts. We need to get prepared for upcoming MAC play."
Ball State kicks off its Mid-American Conference schedule at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Miami.
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