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ATHENS, Ohio -- After qualifying for the Mid-American Conference Tournament on Thursday (Oct. 26), the Ohio soccer team (6-7-5) will take on Ball State (8-7-3) in Muncie, Ind. at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow (Oct. 29). Ohio is the sixth seed in the tournament while Ball State is the third seed.
Ohio fought tooth and nail to earn the final tournament spot. The Bobcats took down Akron on Thursday by a score of 3-0. Senior Izzi Boyd (Gibsonia, Pa.) scored two goals in the win as Ohio picked up their sixth clean sheet of the season.
Along with favorable results around the MAC, Ohio finished the regular season with 15 points; tied with Buffalo and Miami. However, due to a better goal difference than the Bulls and RedHawks, the Bobcats worked their way into postseason play.
Series History
Sunday's matchup will be the 26th time Ohio and Ball State have played. The Bobcats currently have a slight edge in the all-time series record at 10-9-6.
This will be the third time the two programs will face off in the MAC Tournament. The last time, Nov. 8, 2002, the Bobcats took down Ball State by a score of 1-0 en route to a championship appearance.
Last Matchup
This will not be the first time Ohio and Ball State have faced off this season. The Bobcats traveled to Muncie earlier this year and fought to a 2-2 draw.
The game was a back-and-forth affair between the two sides. The Cardinals jumped out front with an early goal, but senior Shae Robertson (Lexington, Ky.) was able to equalize with a penalty kick before the first half came to a close.
Ball State regained the lead with a goal in the 57th minute but once again, Ohio was able to find the equalizing goal. Senior Carsyn Prigge (Lexington, Ky.) connected with sophomore Scout Murray (Chicago, Ill.) who was able to put the ball into the back of the net.
Sophomore goalkeeper Celeste Sloma (Columbus, Ohio) recorded seven saves in the game. Ball State's goalkeeper, Bethany Moser, had 12 saves.
Ohio totaled 23 shots, 14 of which were on target, and three corner kicks. On the other end, Ball State had 16 shots, nine shots on goal, and two corners.
Scouting Ball State
Ball State proved to be a formidable opponent during the 2023 season. With a tough out of conference schedule with the likes of Notre Dame, Texas Tech, and Vanderbilt the Cardinals fought to an overall record of 8-7-3. However, a strong conference record 6-2-3 helped propel Ball State to third in the MAC regular season standings.
It will be a difficult task for the Bobcats to take down Ball State in Muncie. The Cardinals compiled a home record of 6-1-1 with Ohio being the lone tie. Only Bowling Green, the second seed in the MAC Tournament, was able to knock off the Cardinals at the Briner Sports Complex.
Individually, Ball State is led by junior goalkeeper Bethany Moser who led the conference in saves this season with 108. She had a save percentage of 80.5% and a goals against average of 1.49 this year. Moser was named MAC Defensive Player of the Week twice this season and three times throughout her career.
Offensively, Ball State had three players with six or more goals: Avery Fenchel (11), Lexi Fraley (10), and Emily Roper (6). Like Moser, Fenchel and Fraley also earned MAC Player of the Week Awards for their offensive efforts. Fenchel and Fraley also scored Ball State's two goals versus Ohio earlier in the year. The trio up front helped Ball State score the second most goals in conference play with 23, just behind Western Michigan's 24.
Scouting Ohio
The Bobcats ended the regular season with an overall record of 6-5-7. In conference play, Ohio used back-to-back wins to close out the regular season to finish with a 4-4-3 record.
Ohio proved to be one of the best defensive teams in the MAC this season, only allowing 10 goals in 11 matches during conference matches. This was helped by stellar goalkeeping from Sloma, who finished the year with 75 saves, a GAA of 0.94, and six clean sheets.
While Ohio lost junior Kennedy Rieple (Kirtland, Ohio) to injury, the backline of junior Quintin Tostevin (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), sophomore Maia Soulis (Sylvania, Ohio), and graduate student Ella Bianco (Dayton, Ohio) have worked together with Sloma to make life difficult for opposing forwards.
In the midfield, Prigge and sophomore Eve Berish (Hudson, Ohio) helped the Bobcats transition from defense to offense. The duo was also stout in their defense, tracking back and making necessary tackles when called upon. Redshirt senior Haley Miller (Cincinnati, Ohio), senior Aubrey Rea (Akron, Ohio), and freshman Jaimason Brooker (Powell, Ohio) were also key contributors for Ohio in the middle.
Robertson, Boyd, and Murray were the leading scorers for Ohio on the year. Robertson led the way with seven, Boyd had four, and Murray totaled three.
While Ohio was only able to score 12 goals during MAC play, they were tied with Bowling Green for the second most shots as a team 179, behind Western Michigan.
MAC Tournament
The winner of Sunday's quarterfinal match will face off with Bowling Green on Thursday, Nov. 2nd. The semifinal and final matches will be played in Kalamazoo, Mich. with the top-seeded Western Michigan Broncos serving as host.
Find a full breakdown of the MAC Tournament structure and schedule here.
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