'Something coaches only dream of': Historic Ball State women's basketball season comes to an end
One of the best seasons in the history of Ball State women's basketball ended on Friday night in the NCAA Tournament. In just the second March Madness appearance in program history, the No. 12 seed Cardinals lost 83-65 to No. 5 seed Ole Miss in the first round of the tournament.
It's easy to see why this year's Ball State Cardinals could be called the best team in school history. Ball State (27-8) swept the Mid-American Conference regular season and tournament titles and produced the conference's player, defensive player and coach of the year.
"The group I just got to coach this year, and some a little bit longer than that, it's something coaches only dream of," Ball State coach Brady Sallee said. "So proud of them, so happy for them that they got to end it in the NCAA Tournament.
"For us, we're upset because we don't get to do this anymore with each other."
For most of the Cardinals, it was the end of their college careers. Seven seniors — Lachelle Austin, Ally Becki, Madelyn Bischoff, Maliyah Johnson, Marie Kiefer, Alex Richard and Elise Stuck — made up the top half of the roster and saw more than 85% of the team's minutes over the course of the season.
Austin (Eastern Michigan), Johnson (Texas A&M) and Stuck (Michigan) all joined the team this year and provided a huge boost to an already-experienced roster. Austin provided a dynamic, multi-level scorer to the backcourt, while Johnson was an ideal sixth-player scoring option. Stuck missed significant time with a foot injury, but was a strong paint presence and rebounder when healthy.
Make no mistake though, this team was built around its "Core Four" — Becki, Bischoff, Kiefer and Richard.
Over four years at Ball State, Bischoff established herself as one of the MAC's premier 3-point shooters, while Kiefer emerged as an elite defender, breaking both Ball State's single-season and career blocks records this season en route to being named MAC Defensive Player of the Year.
Richard joined the fold as a sophomore after her freshman season at Butler. By her senior year, she had developed into an elite midrange threat and an excellent defender that paired perfectly with Kiefer.
But as deep and as talented as this roster was, one player set herself apart as an all-time great. Forget Ball State history, forget MAC history — Ally Becki is one of the best players in the history of women's college basketball, and she's got the stats to back it up.
A four-year starter, Becki is the only Division I women's college basketball player ever to average 10 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists over four seasons. She is also one of just seven players in women's college basketball history to amass at least 1,600 points, 700 rebounds and 700 assists — a list that includes names like Caitlin Clark, Sabrina Ionescu and Dawn Staley.
"The whole ride, my freshman through senior year, just amazing," Becki said. "All the people that have went through Ball State, with or without us, all of the coaches, just forever grateful for them. They made an impact on my life."
The Core Four represent an increasingly rare phenomenon in college sports — talented, accomplished players who chose to stick together at a mid-major school rather than pursue NIL money in the transfer portal.
Sallee made sure to thank that group for their loyalty throughout the season, and when it all came to a close on Friday in Waco, he took some time to reflect on their ultimate legacy.
"The whole group of them, they changed a really good program into a great program with the work they put in, the belief in each other and the system," Sallee said. "But here's their legacy — it's about the loyalty they showed our university. It's about the decision, when a lot of kids are jumping all over in the portal, they made the decision to do this together and to stick with Ball State.
"I don't know if we'll hear a whole lot of stories like that anymore."
Contact Cade Hampton via email at cbhampton@muncie.gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @CadeHamp10.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Ball State women's basketball: Historic season ends in March Madness
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