MUNCIE, Ind. – Ball State’s first offensive drive during Saturday’s matchup against the NIU football team set a tone for what was to come.

After shutting the Cardinals down on the first series and forcing them to punt on fourth and 10, NIU was called with a 15-yard roughing the kicker penalty.

Instead of having the ball at their own 17-yard line, the Huskies were back on defense with Ball State on a first down.

“They were kicking into the wind there, and we would have had decent field position,” NIU coach Joe Novak said. “That just wasn’t a good start.”

The Cardinals took advantage of the penalty by working their way up field to take the lead with a 27-yard field goal.

For the rest of the day, NIU dealt with nothing more than frustration on special teams.

Gusty 20 mph winds didn’t help NIU kicker Chris Nendick. He missed a 35-yard field goal in the third quarter after kicking two kickoffs out of bounds.

“I don’t know what we did right in the kicking game,” Novak said. “We work so hard in that kicking game, and we’re still not getting it, and that’ll kill you.”

NIU’s woes on special teams didn’t end with kicking. Terry Moss returned a Nendick kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, narrowing the Huskies’ lead to 21-10 and giving Ball State a chance in the second half.

“I knew the momentum was strung,” said Novak of the return. “The longer they stayed in there, the more they got excited.”

It was later in the game when Nendick got his redemption. With the Huskies up by four points and 4:28 left in the game, Nendick had to attempt a 41-yard field goal, the longest of his career.

“I wouldn’t say I was that nervous about it,” Nendick said. “I was more nervous about kickoffs, but you can’t really think about that, because whatever happens, happens.”

From the sidelines, the team watched, hoping to build their lead to seven points.

“I knew he had a very strong leg, but I was just praying to God that he’d make it,” NIU running back Garrett Wolfe said. “The wind was very tricky out here, you could see that in one end zone – the flags were blowing in the opposite direction of the other end zone.”

Nendick’s kick went up and sailed in between the uprights.

“It was a great feeling,” Nendick said, “but it shouldn’t have come to that.”