Atlantic Sun Conference Week 2 Notes Ball State Tournament Central
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University women's soccer team travels to Muncie, Ind., this weekend to participate in the Ball State Tournament at the Briner Sports Complex.
The Norse will face host Ball State on Friday at 5:30 p.m. On Sunday, NKU will play Western Kentucky at noon.
NKU has never met Ball State or Western Kentucky in women's soccer.
Xavier is also participating in the tournament but will not play NKU. The Norse will host the Musketeers on Sept. 4 at the NKU Soccer Stadium.
NKU enters the weekend with a 1-0 record after claiming a 2-0 victory over Canisius on Aug. 17.
Live stats for this weekend's action will be available at nkunorse.com.
ABOUT BALL STATE: Ball State, a member of the Mid-American Conference, is 0-1 on the season after dropping a 3-1 decision to Marshall last Friday. Senior Shaniece Thorpe scored the only goal for the Cardinals.
Ball State returns 21 letterwinners from last season's squad that finished 9-9-3 overall, including the top five scorers. Senior Brigit Reder and sophomore Jasmine Moses led the team with seven goals each. Senior Aubrey Buehler returns to the goal for the Cardinals. She collected 65 saves and five shutouts last season.
ABOUT WESTERN KENTUCKY: Western Kentucky enters the weekend with a 1-1 record. The Lady Toppers earned a 2-1 victory over Evansville on Aug. 17 and suffered a 4-1 defeat against Tennessee on Aug. 19. Senior Amanda Buechel leads the team with two goals this season.
Western Kentucky, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, finished the 2011 season with a 13-6-3 overall record and returns 16 letterwinners.
MEMORABLE FIRST GOAL: Freshman
Martha Staab scored her first collegiate goal against Canisius to give the Norse a 1-0 lead last Friday. Junior
Allison Ponzer passed the ball to Staab, and she was able to get her shot off as she was met by goalie Megan Tock.
Staab's goal in the 42nd minute marks the first official goal scored for NKU as an NCAA Division I member.
STRONG DEFENSE: The NKU defense continued where it left off last season against Canisius. The Norse limited the Golden Griffins to seven shot attempts and only one shot on goal last Friday en route to the first shutout of the season. NKU collected 11 shutouts and only allowed 15 goals during the 2011 season.
THEY SAID IT
Head coach
Bob Sheehan
On the first NCAA Division I victory: “It was really exciting. Our players are very much invested, and we know it is going to be a massive challenge as we work through the season. To come out on top in our very first game was just a wonderful feeling. Hopefully, we will enjoy and embrace every victory we have.”
On freshman
Martha Staab scoring NKU's first goal of the season: “Martha did really well. Allison (Ponzer) was running up the backline, and she got loose and found Martha running down the left flank. Martha showed great composure and just tucked it in for a beautiful goal.”
“Martha has a little bit of mustard on her hot dog, so she's got a little flash. We told Martha when we saw that coming that sometimes it is better to just tuck it in and you can do your flash at another time. She was thrilled with the goal, and we were thrilled for Martha to get the goal.”
On this weekend's games: “It is going to be a big challenge for us. These teams have been Division I and recruiting Division I athletes for many years. Both programs have had a tremendous amount of success. Obviously, going on the road in any division is a whole other issue. We are going to have our work cut out for us. We are going to give it our best effort, and that is all we can do.”
Junior
Allison Ponzer
On winning their first NCAA Division I game: “Switching from DII to DI, we knew it was going to be tough competition. We struggled at the beginning and we came out on top and won 2-0.”
On this weekend's games: “This will be our first weekend travelling, and we will be gone all weekend. I think it will be a big challenge for us because we are playing two different teams we have never played. We don't know what to expect from them, but I think if we come out as a team, play well together and play how we play, we will be successful.”
Freshman
Martha Staab
On scoring a goal in her first college game: “It was a good transition from the right side up the field to (
Allison Ponzer) and over to the left side to me. It was one on one with the goalie and a low shot to the right corner. The fact that I even got to play in the first Division I game was exciting enough and scoring a goal made all that much more special.”
On games against Ball State and Western Kentucky: “We take one game at a time, and that is what coach (Sheehan) stresses a lot, especially going Division I. First game is Ball State, and the game plan is to win and do what we did against Canisius. We've learned from Canisius and learned from practice this week to go hard against them and take on the next game right after that.”
