Ball State women’s basketball (25-7, 17-2 MAC) put up an impressive defensive performance in the opening game of the 2025 MAC Tournament at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, beating the Western Michigan Broncos (12-18, 8-11 MAC) by a score of 82-53.
The Cardinals handled the pace right from the early 11 a.m. start, taking a swift eight-point lead at the beginning of the first quarter and expanding on it throughout the first half, allowing senior guard Lachelle Austin’s three-pointer at the end of the second quarter to put Ball State up by 18 at the 50% mark.
A 20-point first half was detrimental to a Broncos team that more than doubled their point total in the third quarter alone after multiple long-scoring droughts in the second quarter.
“I thought we executed defensively very well,” Ball State head coach Brady Sallee said postgame. “They’re a tough guard when you have some bigs like we do, but we’ve got enough versatility that I thought we could do what we needed to do that way.”
Courtesy of a seven-point quarter from senior Ally Becki and a six-point quarter from guard Madelyn Bischoff, Ball State extended their lead going into the third, firmly putting away the hopes of a Bronco upset away for good.
An all-around effort pulled the Cardinals over the top with four players in double figures led by senior Alex Richard with 17 points. Becki led the squad with eight assists, and senior Marie Kiefer’s 13 rebounds were a team-high.
“The effort that everyone gives on the court is amazing”, Becki said. “Once we got our run in, that’s when it was foot to the gas pedal and from there, it was hard to stop us.”
Junior guard Marina Asensio led the Broncos with 22 points on top of graduate student Hannah Spitzley with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Western Michigan put up a battle in the late fourth quarter, wasting as much Cardinal time and energy as possible, but it made no difference as the Cardinals will move on to play the Toledo Rockets (23-7, 13-5 MAC) in the first MAC Tournament semifinal on Friday, March 14 at 10 a.m.
