Beating the odds: CMU captures share of MAC title with win, Toledo loss
Celebration rung out with 15 seconds remaining in the CMU soccer team’s 3-0 win against Eastern Michigan Thursday.
Not because the team won its regular season finale, but because word came out that Mid-American Conference No. 1 seed Toledo lost to Ball State, giving the Chippewas a share of the regular season conference title.
“We went crazy and had a moment of pure celebration,” said junior Chelsi Abbott, who scored the team’s first goal in the ninth minute. “We weren’t even thinking about Eastern, we were just thinking about getting back at Toledo.”
CMU (13-4-1 overall, 10-1-0 MAC) lost 1-0 on a penalty kick to Toledo on Oct. 20, which gave the Rockets a leg up in the conference standings. But with Toledo’s loss Thursday against Ball State, who was winless in the MAC, CMU wins at least a share of the conference championship for the second consecutive year.
Head coach Tom Anagnost said being co-champions means a lot to the team and program as a whole.
“We’ve demonstrated a championship mentality and I think our performances have been that,” he said.
With the win, the Chippewas finished 7-0 at home this season. While Anagnost said he was happy with the team’s performance, attention quickly shifts to Northern Illinois, who the Chippewas will host in the first round of the MAC tournament on Sunday. NIU lost to Western Michigan 2-1 Thursday, dropping to a No. 6 seed in the tournament.
CMU defeated the Huskies 3-0 at home on Oct. 17. But despite the lopsided win earlier this month, Anagnost said the team respects NIU and expects a tough match.
“We’re going to have to be what we were today, and if we are like that, we can be very good,” he said. “Any team can beat anybody on any given day. That happens every day in this league.”
Abbott opened the scoring in the first 10 minutes with her second goal of the season.
New focus
Abbott said celebration will be short and the team’s focus move toward NIU, which finished the season 9-8-1 and 5-5-1 in the MAC.
“If we don’t beat Northern Illinois, then we can’t face Toledo and then we can’t go to the (NCAA) Tournament,” she said. “This is where the hard stuff starts.”
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Sunday at the CMU Soccer Complex. Now, the slate is wiped clean and a loss results in an end of the season.
Senior midfielder Valerie Prause said the thought of playing her last game in a CMU uniform is scary.
“It’s crazy. I can’t even imagine it being my last game,” she said. “Hopefully everyone comes out playing hard and then we won’t have to worry about that yet.”
Prause said the team will watch film on Northern Illinois today in preparation but said if CMU plays within itself, it’s hard to beat.
“We just have to come and play our game and apply a lot of pressure,” she said. “Most teams can’t handle that.”
