Jordan Dues
Jersey number - 27
Position - Goalkeeper
Year - Junior
Hometown - Fallbrook, Calif.
High school - Fallbrook
Major - Athletic training
Experience - 2 letters
She’s quiet, shy and fun to be around off the field. But teammate Lexi Kavanaugh said she's “scary good” when she is wearing jersey No. 27.
Ask any Ball State field hockey player about junior goalkeeper Jordan Dues, and they will tell you she's a gamer. In her first year as the starting goalkeeper, Dues is showing she can be a leader based on her work ethic in the net.
“She is really shy,” Kavanaugh said. “It's actually pretty weird because as soon as she puts on that goalie equipment, she’s like a silent assassin—she comes out and destroys everything.”
Patrick and Erica Dues, Jordan's parents, are used to her competitive nature. She has been working to be a good athlete since she was a kid.
“Jordan always wanted to be the best at everything she did,” Patrick said. “We did everything [as parents] that we needed to for her to be where she is today.”
Erica participated in sports growing up, too, and raised Jordan in the same manner that her mother brought her up. She taught Jordan a "no regrets" mentality and not to look back on things.
Patrick is an active veteran with the Marine Corps for 25 years, so the Dues family has lived in four different states. He had Jordan by his side whenever he could, whether he was watching her play or watching NFL games together.
“[Erica] and I have two daughters,” Patrick said. “I would take Jordan everywhere I could while my other daughter was out shopping with her mother—Jordan has always been an athlete.”
Jordan started off playing soccer in first grade and made the switch to field hockey in sixth grade. She was a quick learner and participated in different camps, most notably the Disney Junior Field Hockey Classic in 2012 at Disney World.
Jordan even did some training at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. with former U.S. National Team goalkeeper Amy Swenson.
“She was my idol growing up for field hockey,” Jordan said. “I was honored to be able to have worked with her and get advice from her. She was amazing.”
Jordan played field hockey all four years at Fallbrook High School in California where she earned several accolades. As a senior, she led her team to a 17-6 record while recording 11 shutouts and 0.91 goals against average. Dues logged 1,440 minutes during her final season.
Hard work on the field has always come easy to Jordan. But the transition from California to Muncie wasn't as smooth.
“The weather is the biggest transition,” Erica said. “We’ve been in North Carolina before but the difference is mainly the weather, and Jordan has already said she’s moving back to California after she graduates.”
For Jordan, the people are different too.
“People are different here in Muncie than in California, so it was kind of hard to adjust my freshman year," Jordan said. "But I had my team to back me up a lot, too. I’ll never get used to the winters, though.”
When Jordan got to Ball State, she was the third-string goalie. She admitted it was tough to go from high school star to reserve, but she knew her place. All she could do was try to show the coaches what she had, she said.
After playing a total of 70 minutes last season, Jordan had the opportunity to compete against Shelby Henley for the starting job this season when Sally Northcroft was named head coach.
Northcroft saw the ability of both keepers, but said Jordan has excelled due to her work ethic.
“One thing our coach told us was that it was really hard to pick the starting goalie because we were pushing each other so much,” Jordan said.
“[Henley] has been a really good leader; she’s someone I want to strive to be on the field—more competitive.”
Jordan has started all eight games this season, recording 44 saves with a .629 save percentage.
Her biggest impact may be in leadership, however, as she works to lead Ball State into conference play. She'll try to instill her "assassin" mentality into the Cardinals' home stretch of the season.
“The fact that she’s open to suggestions and feedback has really flowed to the rest of the team, especially from a defensive standpoint,” Northcroft said. “She's willing to give feedback, which is important as a goalkeeper, not only about her duties but what is happening on the field.”
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