October 18, 2009

BOX SCORE

MUNCIE, Ind. -- Longwood University took a 2-1 field hockey road victory at Ball State University of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Sunday afternoon in Muncie, Indiana. Sophomore Amanda Babineau/Stafford (Mountain View) scored what proved to be the game-winning goal for the second straight day as the Lancers improved to 7-7 overall, while the Cardinals dropped to 3-12 overall. Longwood will play again this Friday evening, October 23, hosting Radford University for a Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference (NorPac) match on Senior Day at the Athletics Complex in Farmville beginning at 5 p.m..

Longwood and Ball State battled through a scoreless first period before senior Kelsey Turner/Virginia Beach (Tallwood) scored on a penalty corner opportunity at 39:48, assisted by both junior Lauren van de Kamp/Midlothian (Trinity Episcopal) and senior Julia Hernandez/Norfolk (Maury). Babineau made it 2-0 at 46:59 when she found the back of the cage on a fast break assisted by freshman Taylor Bender/Harrisburg, Pa. (Central Dauphin). The host Cardinals avoided the shutout with a late penalty-stroke goal from Leann Carroll at 67:33.

“The team showed a lot of heart today and we're happy to get two wins this weekend in Indiana,” said second-year head coach Iain Byers. “We're looking forward to hosting Radford this week in an important conference game.”

Ball State took a 24-9 advantage in shots, including 8-4 in attempts on-goal, and had an 11-7 edge on penalty corners. Junior keeper Erin Bollinger/Midlothian (Clover Hill) played the duration for Longwood with seven saves. Tiffany Shifflett played the duration for the Cardinals as well with two saves. It was the first-ever meeting between the two schools in field hockey.

Longwood will take a 2-1 NorPac record into Friday's contest against Radford as the Highlanders are a perfect 4-0 in NorPac matches this fall.