Kent State University
Ball State
Flashes Soccer To Start Home-Stand Against Ball State Thursday
10/14/2026 5:41:00 PM | Women's Soccer
KENT, Ohio- The Kent State Soccer team returns home to Zoeller Field at Dix Stadium for a three-game home-stand, including four home games for the last five of the season. The first of those games will come on Thursday night at 7 P.M. against the Ball State Cardinals.Â
Last Time Out
The Kent State Soccer team exploded for a season-high four goals against the Ohio Bobcats on Sunday for their first road victory of the season by a score of 4-0.Â
The team picked up an important three points in the Mid-American Conference standings behind a pair of goals from freshman forward Lila Simon. It was her second multi-goal game of the season with both coming in conference play.
Kent State got on the scoreboard first in the 16th-minute as Simon put the ball in the back of the net for the first time of the day off an assist from junior Allison Collins. Later in the half, sophomore midfielder Maya Justice capitalized on a great ball from Allison Burkey in transition to put the ball in the back of the net for her second goal of the year to give the Flashes a 2-0 lead heading into the halftime break. Â
The blue and gold kept their foot on the gas in the second half as Simon scored again in the 54th-minute right in front of the net to finish the day with her second two-goal day in just two and a half weeks.
Twenty minutes later, the Golden Flashes scored in what would be their final goal of the game as Kiyomi McCausland fired a shot from distance from the left side of the field that went in the back of the net for her first goal of the season.
KSU won in the shots category over the Bobcats by a count of 18-11, while the Flashes finished with nine shots on goal compared to Ohio's four. OU edged Kent State in the corner kicks category 7-5, while senior goalkeeper Leah Shaffer produced a clean sheet for the Flashes in her third shutout of the season. She was able to contribute four saves for her team on 11 shots faced.
Scouting Ball State
The Cardinals come into the game with an overall record of 5-5-3 and a 2-2-2 mark in Mid-American Conference play. The first four conference opponents of the season for the Cardinals were common opponents that the Flashes also went up against. Ball State managed to draw against Miami and Western Michigan, while dropping close 1-0 losses to both UMass and Eastern Michigan.
The offensive leader for the Cardinals so far this season has been Kaelyn Valleau who has contributed seven points off of three goals and one assist. Also scoring three goals this season has been Anna Kate Robillard. Lg Moncrief leads the team in assists this season with three to go along with a goal.
In net for Ball State will be Kate Pallante who has played all 1,170 minutes as the goalkeeper this season. On 154 shots faced, she has been able to produce 49 saves which is 6th in the conference among goalkeepers. She has also produced a save percentage of .790 and one goal allowed per game average. She is also tied for third in the MAC in shutouts with five.
Series History
Sunday's game will be the 31st all-time meeting between the Flashes and the Cardinals as Ball State currently leads the series by a count of 14-13-3. Last season, Kent State defeated Ball State in Muncie in the regular season by a score of 1-0. However, in the postseason, the Cardinals defeated the Golden Flashes in penalty kicks after a 0-0 regulation and overtime score to advance to the conference semifinals.
Up Next
After a match-up with Ball State, the Golden Flashes will return home for another MAC contest on Sunday against Bowling Green. First kick is slated for 1 P.M.
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