NOT JUST A T-SHIRT

Softball

Kyle Smedley News Editor

Competitive. Hardworking. Accountable. Prideful. Tough. Invested. Selfless. The seven pillars of Ball State University Women’s Basketball. It is these seven words that head coach Brady Sallee built his program on when he took the reins in 2012.

“They’re in our locker room. They’re in our office hallway. They’re on every practice plan I make. They’re on kids’ T-shirts,” Sallee said. “That’s all fine and good. Every program prints the T-shirt, has the saying on the back and the whole thing, [but] ours has been the same for 11 years, and really, where it starts to take shape is you’ve got a group of kids that buy into it. Without buy-in, culture is just a poster. It’s just a T-shirt. It’s really, really shallow. But, man, when you get buy-in behind it, it can be special.”

Every program prints the T-shirt, has the saying on the back and the whole thing, [but] ours has been the same for 11 years, and really, where it starts to take shape is you’ve got a group of kids that buy into it. Without buy-in, culture is just a poster. It’s just a T-shirt”

- BRADY SALLEE, Ball State Women’s Basketball head

coach

Sallee said when he began his position at Ball State, the culture coaches and players now pride themselves on did not exist for Ball State Women’s Basketball. Sallee said he landed on these seven pillars through lessons he learned during his coaching experience prior to Ball State, as an assistant or head coach, and found things he liked and didn’t like and drew on those experiences.

“You have to be genuine,” Sallee said. “You have to be who you are because people see through fake. So if you put a bunch of words up there, and that’s not who you are, how in the world is anybody going to buy into that? ... I had to look myself in the mirror and say, ‘Can I walk this walk and talk this talk? Can I be about the same things?’”

Not only was it important for Sallee to buy into the culture but for players and assistant coaches to do the same. Assistant coach Jauwan Scaife, who is in his first year in the position, was able to notice the culture Sallee brought to the program from day one.

Following a no-hitter and 10-1 win Feb. 19 against Lindenwood University, sophomore pitcher Angelina Russo was named the Pridemark Construction Student Athlete of the Week. Russo pitched the 18th no-hitter for Ball State Softball since 1980 while only surrendering one walk and striking out three batters over the course of five innings.

Women’s Tennis

Russo named Pridemark Construction Student Athlete of the Week Cardinals split weekend matches, end weekend with a win over Oakland

Ball State Women’s Tennis completed a 7-0 sweep of Oakland Feb. 19 after a singles win from second-year Elena Malykh on the No. 4 singles court over the Golden Grizzlies’ second-year Tegan Heaton. Fourth-year Amy Kaplan and second-year Ella Hazelbaker clinched the doubles win for the Cardinals on the No. 1 court over the Oakland duo of fourth-year Nirva Patel and fifth-year Yasmin Glazbrook.

Gymnastics

Floor performances earn Cardinals 10th consecutive head-to-to-head victory

Third-year Suki Pfister and fourthyear Megan Teter tied for the team lead with a 9.875 and followed assisted by a 9.850 from third-year Victoria Henry, a 9.825 from first-year Zoe Middleton and a 9.800 from third-year Hannah Ruthberg on the floor en route to the fourth-best team score in program history and Ball State’s 10th-straight head-tohead win over Kent State Feb. 19.