A final regular season record of 7-13, including nine losses in the last 10 matches, for Ball State University will be wiped clean this afternoon as it takes on Northern Illinois University in a play-in match to secure a spot in the Mid-American Conference Tournament.
Ball State enters the match as the No. 8 seed of the tournament being held at the Western Michigan University.
After capturing a 5-2 victory over Northern Illinois on April 2, Ball State is entering today's match full of confidence.
"I'm expecting us to beat Northern," sophomore Kylee Johnson said. "But I also know it'll be a really tough, intense match, so it's going to come down to who wants it the most."
The Cardinals are planning on coming into the match almost injury free, a luxury they haven't had for the past four matches.
Junior Georgina Thomson injured her knee two weeks ago against the University of Akron and hasn't played at full health since. Coach Amy Behrman said she expects Thomson to be ready this week.
"She's not 100 percent by any means," Behrman said. "But she's competitive, and athletes will always try to play through injuries. She'll do the same."
If Ball State wins its play-in match, it will move on to face Miami University, owner of the top seed in the tournament.
The Cardinals have to win to get there, but some players are already looking ahead to facing the RedHawks.
"We lost to Miami before, but we actually played really well against them — we had a close match," sophomore Dena Boulieris said. "I think if we had the chance to play them again, we'll compete really well."
For Behrman, the focus today is to play like it's any other match.
"I just expect them to play hard, have fun, and not really thinking about winning or losing," she said.
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