John Manzo

The inside-out approach head coach Dan Enos talked about during signing day Wednesday inside the media room of McGuirk Arena is the perfect plan for success.

That approach means having a solid offensive and defensive line first and foremost to find success.

If a quarterback has time, the team usually has success. When the quarterback doesn’t have time, the team suffers.

Toledo, Ball State and Northern Illinois were the top-three teams in sacks against in the Mid-American Conference. The Rockets went 7-1 in the MAC, the Cardinals went 4-4 and the Huskies went 7-1, winning the MAC Championship.

The New York Giants and New England Patriots rank sixth and ninth in the NFL in sacks allowed during the regular season. Both teams are in the Super Bowl.

Protecting the quarterback does not always guarantee success because the Buffalo Bills were No. 1 in the NFL in sacks allowed, but it can’t hurt to keep the quarterback safe.

Seven of the top 12 NFL teams in recording sacks made it to the playoffs. The cellar dwellers of this category did not.

Enos went out and executed his philosophy by adding nine offensive/defensive linemen.

His inside-out plan of success gets better.

He went inside and built the trenches, but also went out and addressed areas of need.

Enos realized the secondary personnel wasn’t where it needed to be for success in the MAC.

He went out and signed 13 new defensive recruits – five of which are defensive backs and two that most likely will convert over to the position – knowing that his offensive personnel is more advanced than the defense.

Enos said in the press conference that people told him that you need to outscore opponents in the MAC to win games.

He said he didn’t believe it, and that there can be winning as a result of good defense and that’s what his team plans to do.

Enos gets it.

The starting job at the quarterback position is Ryan Radcliff’s to lose. With time, I think he can have a better season. Radcliff, combined with a solid rushing attack and playmaker wide receivers, can be a potent offense.

That side of the ball can compete, but the defense couldn’t.

With the recruits from last season and this one, the Chippewas should improve.

Enos for president?

Not quite, but the plan is set, from the inside-out.

Just winning is no longer good enough for coach Jerry Reighard and the Central Michigan gymnastics team.

CMU defeated Ball State on Saturday afternoon in Mount Pleasant 193.350 to 190.100 to improve their record to 3-0.

But despite the win, poor performances made Reighard visibly frustrated.

“I was disappointed in the fact that we couldn’t close it, the way I know we can close it,” Reighard said. “We actually let Ball State believe they were competitive with us, and we can’t do that. That’s not CMU gymnastics.”

Senior Kristin Teubner scored a 9.8 on the vault and floor, but fell off the balance beam.

“It’s not the outcome we were looking for,” Teubner said. “Me personally, I can’t fall on beam, that’s not acceptable and it will definitely change.”

CMU wanted to achieve certain goals; one of them was to have an all-arounder score a 39 or better for the meet.

All three all-arounders for CMU failed to do so.

“We set some lofty goals for this meet that we did not obtain,” Reighard said. “I know that they are obtainable, and it’s my job to get those things to happen, and they will happen.”

The Chippewas were successful on the bars. Four out of six members scored a 9.7 or better.

“We had a few highlights today, some people scored better than their best,” Teubner said. “That’s something we are always striving for.”

Because of the poor performances a lot of pressure has been put on the shoulders of Teubner and sophomore Brittany Petzold.

That’s a big burden for Teubner which may have felt some of that pressure Saturday.

“Yeah there has always been pressure since I was a sophomore here,” Teubner said. “That’s my role here, I have to be the leader. I have to be the one getting the 9.8’s, I have to step up and be the senior I know I can be.”

Freshman Rebecca Druien had the top CMU all-around score with 38.725. Druien was pleased with her performance, but still has a lot to work on.

“Overall I did a lot better on certain areas,” Druien said. “I know my vault can be better, and I have to fix some form issues, the little steps.”

It is the little steps that will be driving Reighard the next few weeks to beat Kent State on Feb. 11. Kent State put a 194.150 in its meet.

“We are competing against a team that is in Ohio that scored a 194,” Reighard said. “I won’t rest until I know we are better than they are.”

The gymnastics team is back in action 7 p.m. Friday when the team travels to Eastern Michigan.

CMU gymnastics team will look to make it 23-straight Mid-American Conference wins against Ball State Saturday at 1 p.m. in McGuirk Arena. (Paige Calamari/Staff Photographer)

The Central Michigan gymnastics team looks to continue the streak of domination over Mid-American Conference teams at 1 p.m. Saturday at McGuirk Arena against Ball State.

With 23-straight MAC wins, head coach Jerry Reighard and his team are looking to continue the streak.

“We are here to do just that, we want to control the conference as our number-one goal,” Reighard said.

Senior Kristin Teubner and sophomore Brittany Petzold will need to perform well to keep the streak alive.

They both contributed early this season with Teubner scoring a 9.825 on the floor against Bowling Green, while Petzold scored a 9.8 on the bars.

“There is a great deal of pressure on them, they are almost our sole returners,” Reighard said. “They will feel the weight of the team, especially this weekend.”

Reighard has the team working on becoming a balanced team, something he is always striving for his teams.

“It’s still very early in the season but, we’ve been good on bars. I’ve been very pleased with our performance on the balance beam,” he said. “Just like in other sports, the team has to be complete in all phases. A football team can’t just be a third quarter team and win.

“We just can’t be a one-event team. Being good on one event won’t carry a team to victory.”

Kylie Fagan won MAC specialist of the week after posting a 9.7 on the bars and 9.75 on the balance beam.

CMU will be competing against tMAC gymnast of the week, Ball State senior Kayla Kmiecik.

Kmiecik posted a career high 9.8 on the floor, and 9.625’s on the bars and balance beam in the Cardinals first victory of the season over Illinois State.

Reighard would like to see one of his all-around members get a 39 overall score. It hasn’t happened yet this season, but it’s something that Reighard wants his team to focus on at this meet.

“I’d like one of our athletes to hit 39 as a totaled score for their events,” Reighard said. “I think Teubner, Petzold and Druien all have the ability to hit 39. That’s something that has to happen at this meet, one or even all of them hit 39.”

Senior center Andre Coimbra, left, drops his head on the bench as sophomore guard Trey Zeigler watches the time tick off of the clock in the final seconds in the fourth quarterof CMU's 73-52 loss to Ball State on Wednesday night at McGuirk Arena. (Jake May/Staff Photographer)

John Manzo/Staff Reporter

The Central Michigan men’s basketball team is young.

It can’t be changed this season. Center Andre Coimbra is the only senior starter and it is only his second year on the team. There hasn’t been a consistent leader on the team, both on and off the court.

Sophomore guard Trey Zeigler should be the odds-on favorite as the team leader. He was the most highly recruited, and has the ability to lead the team through his play.

He has been benched twice for violating team rules, despite scoring a team-high 16.4 points per game.

Sophomore guard Derek Jackson has played well throughout the season, but found himself on the wrong side of the out-of-bounds line during the start of Wednesday’s 73-52 loss against Ball State at McGuirk Arena.

He also violated team rules.

“We’re so immature, our best and most talented players are probably are most immature players,” said head coach Ernie Zeigler following the loss. “We just got to continue to nurture them and hopefully keep them on a path. When they are focused and have a sense of purpose, there is a lot of talent there, but it’s more than just talent.”

Whether it’s on or off the court, the positive consistency hasn’t been there. Off the court issues have forced different starting lineups throughout the season and inconsistency from different players has shown.

Trey entered Wednesday’s loss shooting 55.1 percent from the free throw line. He decreased that percent, shooting 0-for-3. He also shot 3-of-12 from the field.

Junior forward Olivier Mbaigoto scored a career-high 23 points against UC-Irvine on Nov. 25, 2011. He hasn’t done it consistently only scoring double-digits four times in 17 games.

“Right now there isn’t that type of leadership within that group because of the youth and some of the freshness of just being a part of the program or being Division I,” Ernie said. “Some guys aren’t quite ready to do it, and the guys that need to do it aren’t mature enough to do it yet.”

Tyrae Robinson started what Tyler Koch finished.

Robinson scored 15 first-half points and Koch scored nine second-half points, both had career-highs in the Ball State men’s basketball team’s 73-52 victory against Central Michigan Wednesday night at McGuirk Arena in front of 1,541 fans.

“Our guys did a great job of recognizing who had the hot hand, trying to get the ball to those guys in scoring positions,” said BSU head coach Billy Taylor.

Robinson and Koch entered the game as the team’s fourth and sixth-leading scorers respectively, but the Chippewas limited the touches for the Eagles leading scorer Jarrod Jones, who finished with four points on 2-of-5 shooting.

The focus on Jones forced the Cardinals to look elsewhere.

“Tyler was able to make shots for us,” Taylor said. “Tyrae Robinson was able to make shots, so fortunately we had some guys step up and make shots since Jarrod didn’t get his normal touches.”

Robinson outscored CMU 15-12 with 6:30 remaining in the first half.

Ball State made it difficult for the CMU leading scorer. It wasn’t until 4:18 remaining in the half before guard Trey Zeigler scored.

He finished with six points on a lackluster 3-of-12 shooting, well below his team-leading 16.4 points per game.

CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler

“He struggled tonight, amongst everyone on our team,” said head coach Ernie Zeigler about Trey. “He just has to be able to continue to work and put himself in position to be more efficient himself as well. He, along with his teammates, have a lot of work to do.”

With 11:33 remaining in the half, it was 15-11. The Chippewas never got closer. They went into the locker room trailing 38-22, just in time for Koch to heat up.

The sophomore forward scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting in the second half, adding to his eight in the first half.

“Tyler is a key player for us because he can make perimeter jump shots and he’s also a skilled player that can drive the basketball to the paint and make passes,” Taylor said. “Having him on the floor is a big asset for us.”

Taylor felt like his team was ‘very unselfish.’ It was opposite for Ernie.

“Everybody started trying to do it themselves, versus moving the ball, cutting hard and playing off each other as we had been doing previously,” Ernie said.

BSU finished with 18 assists in comparison to four by CMU.

Sophomore guard Derek Jackson didn’t start because he violated team rules. He was the first off the bench, finishing with seven points.

CMU players were unavailable for comment during the post-game press conference.

The Chippewas look to get back to .500 at 2 p.m. Saturday in Kalamazoo against in-state rival Western Michigan.

The Broncos lost 62-59 in overtime against rival Eastern Michigan Wednesday night.

CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler

An opportunity was missed, and head coach Ernie Zeigler realizes it.

Entering Saturday’s game against 1-13 Northern Illinois, the Central Michigan men’s basketball team had a chance of starting Mid-American Conference play 3-0 for the first time since 1992. The Huskies only win was against NAIA Roosevelt, a team that considered the game a scrimmage on its schedule. But an uncharacteristically strong shooting performance, coupled with travel issues before the game, shocked the Chippewas.

Now, CMU is 2-1 in the league and part of a logjam atop the MAC West.

“We’re just really focusing on a missed opportunity to be sitting at the top of the heap right now,” Zeigler said following the Chippewas 74-66 loss in DeKalb, Ill. “There’s a lot of basketball left to be played, now we got to go and take care of home.”

CMU welcomes Ball State to McGuirk Arena at 7 p.m. Wednesday in what could turn out to be a pivotal point in the season. Last season, while still in the hunt for a MAC West title, the Chippewas blew a 23-point second-half lead and lost to the Cardinals. The team went on to lose in the first round of the MAC tournament, ending a season they would rather forget.

Heading into Wednesday’s game, Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan and Ball State sit tied with CMU atop the MAC West at 2-1. The Chippewas play BSU and WMU (in Kalamazoo) over their next two games, and Zeigler said winning at home is going to be key.

“The team that can get the most road wins is probably going to win our side, and get a chance to get one of those seeded births in the tournament,” Zeigler said. “It’s still locked up early.”

The Cardinals boast the best scoring defense in the league, allowing an average of 58 points per game and a conference-best 37 percent defensive field goal percentage. Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team with 17.8 points per game, second in the MAC.

Freshman guard Crystal Bradford runs the ball down court during the second half Saturday against Ball State at McGuirk Arena. Bradford scored 16 total points in the teams 84-66 win. (Jeff Smith/Staff Photographer)

The Central Michigan women’s basketball team played one of its best games of the year en route to an impressive 84-66 win against the Ball State Cardinals Saturday afternoon at McGuirk Arena.

“Today was a nice win for us,” said head coach Sue Guevara “Our bench came to play today again. I think that’s one of our biggest strengths, our ability to have different people come in and make contributions.”

BSU didn’t score its first basket until the 17:40 mark of the first half.

Romulus senior Kevin Stobbe plays the drums during the women's basketball game Saturday at McGuirk Arena. Stobbe has been playing the drums at games during his five years at CMU. "It's a lot of fun, I love this place," Stobbe said. "I just wish they would let us play more during time-outs." (Jeff Smith/Staff Photographer)

With the score tied at 11, junior guard Jalisa Olive had a steal and layup to give CMU the two-point lead. Sophomore forward Taylor Johnson then made two-straight layups to give the Chippewas a 17-13 lead at the 11:39 mark of the first half. CMU did not trail the rest of the game.

Johnson played her best game of the season, scoring seven points and 13 rebounds.

“I knew once I got in the game that it was going to be physical and that I had to be physical,” she said. “I knew I had to get rebounds and just do what was best for the team.”

Sophomore guard Niki DiGuilio made her first 3-point shot of the game with 4:45 left in the first half to give CMU a 33-22 lead. Moments later she made another one to make it 36-22.

A 3-point shot by Ball State guard Shelbie Justice cut the CMU lead to 38-32 with 49 seconds left in the first half, but Chippewa freshman guard Crystal Bradford spun into the lane and knocked down the jumper with 5 seconds left to give CMU the 40-32 lead at halftime.

“I thought we got tired and started playing one on one at the end of the first half,” Guevara said “We missed three 3-point shots and had three turnovers so that’s 0-6. We had a talk at halftime changed the lineup and I thought we did a good job getting going in the first few minutes.”

CMU dominated the Cardinals in the second half.

CMU guards penetrated into the Ball State defense on virtually every possession which freed up there shooters for open looks. A layup by Olive at the 11:32 mark of the second half gave CMU a 26-point lead; it’s largest of the game. The Chippewas continued to play well, getting open looks for 3-point shooters.

“There are a lot of teams in this league that play man to man,” Guevara said. “Our offense is based on the dribble so in order for us to be successful we need to be able to penetrate; we did a good job finding the open players today.”

The Chippewas went 5-for-8 from behind the arc in the second half.

Bradford led the Chippewas with 16 points and eight rebounds.

DiGuilio and senior forward Skylar Miller each had 11 points for CMU. Bracey finished with nine points, sophomore Jordan LaDuke, freshman Jessica Green, and freshman Kerby Tamm each had eight.

The Chippewas are now 11-7 overall and 3-1 in the Mid-American Conference, tied for first place.

“It feels good to be in first place, Bradford said. “But there is still a lot more work to be done.”

The Chippewas next game is at Eastern Michigan on Jan. 19.

The Chippewas, 10-7 overall, 2-1 Mid-American Conference, are coming off of a hard fought, come from behind, victory against rival Western Michigan on Wednesday.

They are looking to keep that momentum going against the Cardinals.

CMU head coach Sue Guevara

CMU shot 40 percent from the field in the win over the Broncos, but head coach Sue Guevara thinks that her team can improve.

“I still think that we can shoot better from the field,” she said.  “With all the shots we put up in the paint we should make more of them.”

CMU had 34 points in the paint against WMU.

Five players scored in double figures against WMU, led by freshman guards Jessica Green and Crystal Bradford who had 22 and 20 points respectively.

Sophomore Jordan LaDuke scored 13, junior Jalisa Olive had 12, and sophomore Taylor Johnson had 11. That balance will be key for the Chippewas to have success against Ball State.

The Cardinals, 7-9 overall, 2-1 MAC, are coming off a 50-43 win against Northern Illinois.

Their leading scorer is sophomore forward Jazmin Hitchens who is averaging 11.6 points per game. She is the only player averaging in double-digit scoring for the Cardinals.

“Against Ball State we need to play good defense and keep the other teams players in front of us,” Green said. “Playing together and finding the open player is going to be key for us as well.”

Freshman guard Jessica Green drives to the basket during the second half of Wednesday's game against Western Michigan at McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant. Green finished the game with a team high 22 points, six assists and seven rebounds during the 93-85 win over the Western Michigan Broncos. (Andrew Kuhn/Staff Photographer)

Basketball can be a game of runs.

The Central Michigan women’s basketball team found itself on the winning end of a sprint with rival Western Michigan 93-85 Wednesday night in front of 831 fans at McGuirk Arena.

“It was nice to be home and I think we were a little shell-shocked early,” said head coach Sue Guevara. “Western Michigan put us on our heels and played their offense pretty well.”

The Broncos (5-11, 2-1 MAC) jumped out to a 21-6 lead on the Chippewas (10-7, 2-1 MAC) in the first five minutes of the game.

But CMU used its bench to answer with a 26-6 run of its own to take back the lead. The Chippewas went into the locker room with a 41-34 lead.

Sophomores Niki DiGuilio and Taylor Johnson, along with junior guard Jalisa Olive, combined for 24 points off the bench in the first half.

“Our bench came in and did a nice job for us,” Guevara said.

WMU didn’t go down without a fight. After falling behind 53-36 within the first two minutes of the second half CMU freshman guard Crystal Bradford left the game with a leg cramp.

“We weren’t switching fast enough and they were hitting threes,” Guevara said. “They got the momentum going a little bit.”

In Bradford’s absence the Broncos went on a 14-1 run and tied the game at 59 with 9:50 left.

“My legs started cramping up and I tried to stretch them out so I could get back on the court,” Bradford said.

Five Chippewas scored in double figures with freshman Jessica Green leading the way with 22 points.

“At first things weren’t going in my favor,” Green said. “Coach told me to stop and gather myself and things started falling.”

Bradford had 22 points, along with six rebounds and five five steals, blocks and assists.

“I knew I had to bring intensity and pump my team up,” Bradford said. “We couldn’t afford a loss.”

Sophomore forward Jordan LaDuke had 13 points while Johnson and Olive added 11 and 12 points off the bench.

CMU hosts Ball State at 2 p.m. Saturday.