Sophomore midfielder Eva Usoz found the back of the net with 1:35 left in the second quarter, which was the only offense the Kent State Field Hockey team needed to defeat Ball State University 1-0 Friday.

Assisted by junior midfielder Maia Sarrabayrouse, the goal gave Kent State the lead, and it never looked back, recording the shutout and the win.

“Eva putting the goal in was awesome, and Maia had the perfect send into the circle on that for the corner,” coach Heather Hefner said.

The Flashes are now 1-6 overall and 1-0 against the Mid-American Conference. The Ball State Cardinals dropped to 1-4 and 0-1 against the MAC.

It was the first win at Kent State for first-year coach Hefner.

“It was awesome,” Hefner said. “Well deserved by the girls, it was awesome to have it– now we’re looking to take steps forward from here.”

KSU put on a defensive clinic, only yielding one shot on goal, which was saved by junior goalkeeper Allison Wood. It was also Kent State’s first shutout since Oct. 27 of last year at Bellarmine, 1-0 the score.

“Defensively, we’re working on being at an engaging distance and not overcommitting– we’re going to continue to work on that into next week,” Hefner said. “In the circle, we’ve been working a ton on being physical and not giving up the ball.” 

Going into the half, the Flashes held the lead for the first time this season.

“The message was that we still need to be intense, we still need to play but be poised,” Hefner said. “We still wanted to play hard and attack while being poised, especially in a MAC game.”

KSU didn’t let up, recording seven shots on goal in the fourth quarter. Although there were none that connected, getting those opportunities are important for the Flashes.

“It’s encouraging,” Hefner said. “A lot of shots, but the goals aren’t going in– that’s more work for us as a staff to go back to the drawing board and see how we can be most successful when we enter the circle. It’s one thing to generate those shots and it’s another thing to put them in the back of the net and put them on the scoreboard– it’s about being more efficient.”

Kent State is a perfect 12-0 on its home field against Ball State and has won 15 in a row against the Cardinals. 

“We keep sending the message that it doesn’t matter who’s on the other side, our confidence should come from our preparation and the things we’re putting in place,” Hefner said.

The Flashes will look to string together some more wins moving forward.

“We told them after the game to enjoy it– a win is a win in the column, but there’s a lot to go, and we need to keep growing if we want to achieve our goals to make it to a MAC championship and win it,” Hefner said.

The first road conference test

The Flashes move their attention to their game Friday against the Longwood University Lancers. Longwood is 3-2 overall.

The Lancers grinded out a 2-1 overtime win against the Central Michigan Chippewas Friday to start 1-0 in MAC play.

“It’s going to be a gritty game, Longwood is always a tough, relentless opponent,” Hefner said. “It is the same as every MAC opponent, we’re going to do a good job scouting to try and take away their strengths and make sure we’re at our best.”

The Flashes play seven out of their next ten games against the MAC, so the team knows the importance of every one of these games.

“Our girls are pretty good when it comes to the MAC,” Hefner said. “They know every game matters and every game is going to be a battle.”

Andrew Gold is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].