Tuesday, May 28, 2019

FIELD HOCKEY FEATURES LONG HOME STRETCHES, TEN TOP 25 FOES -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE



One caveat we have seen here hold true at Cardinal Couple since the days of Louisville joining the ACC is...that if it is ACC competition, it's going to be tough competition. This especially holds true in Field Hockey, where the other six schools that compete in the sport besides Louisville all finished in the top 20 in 2018. 

 Add in four other schools on the schedule that finished in the top 20, plus one that played in the NCAA Tournament, and the 2019 Louisville Field Hockey slate looks daunting, challenging and highly competitive. 

 It is also an interesting schedule in terms of travel and home games. The Cards will play their first five contests (which include the annual Alumnae Game and a scrimmage) at Trager Stadium. Then, it's on the road for six straight. Beginning in October, it's back to Trager for six in a row, and then two on the road before the regular season home finale.

 From 2018, the ten top 25 on the schedule are #1 UNC, #3 Duke, #7 Iowa, #9 Penn St. #12 Wake Forest, #13 Virginia, #14 Boston College, #20 Syracuse, #21 Ohio St. and #23 Stanford. North Carolina was the NCAA Tournament Champion. 

2019 LOUISVILLE FIELD HOCKEY SCHEDULE 

 (home games in bold italics)
( * indicates conference game) 
AUGUST

 Saturday, August 24th. -- ALUMNAE GAME   1 p.m.
Sunday, August 25th. -- Scrimmage vs. Miami  2 p.m.
Friday, August 30th. -- Indiana  3 p.m.

 SEPTEMBER

 Sunday, September 1st. -- UMass  noon 
Wednesday, September 4th. -- Kent State  3:30 p.m.
Sunday, September 8th. --  at Michigan State  11 a.m.
Monday, September 9th. -- UC Davis (at Mich. St.)  11 a.m.
Sunday, September 15th. --  at Ohio State  1 p.m.
*Friday, September 20th. -- at North Carolina  5 p.m.
*Friday, September 27th. -- at Boston College  6 p.m.
Sunday, September 29th. -- at Providence  1 p.m.

 OCTOBER

 *Friday, October 4th. -- Wake Forest  6 p.m.
Sunday, October 6th. -- Penn State  noon
*Friday, October 11th.  -- Virginia  6 p.m.
Tuesday, October 15th. -- Stanford  noon
Saturday, October 19th. -- Longwood  noon
Sunday, October 20th. -- Iowa  1 p.m.
Thursday, October 24th. -- at William and Mary  6 p.m.
*Saturday, October 26th. -- at Duke  noon

 NOVEMBER 

 *Saturday, November 2nd. -- Syracuse  1 p.m.

November 6th.10th.  ACC Tournament  Chestnut Hill, MA.

 November 16th.-17th.   NCAA Tournament 1st and 2nd rounds

 November 22nd.-24th.  NCAA Tournament Championships   Winston-Salem, NC

The era of All-Universe goalkeeper Ayeshia McFerran has ended with her graduation. Senior Hollyn Barr saw the backup minutes between the pipes last year and the Cards also have sophomore Sam Minrath, from Louisville's Christian Academy, for goalkeeping needs. 

 Besides McFerran's graduation, the Cards also lose Maria Gomez, Taylor Stone and Katie Walsh via diploma route. 

 Who's back? Some names you might want to get familiar with are: 

 On the attack, the Cards have their top three leading scorers back in Bethany Russ, Erica Cooper and Mercedes Pastor. Complimenting them on offense are Alli Biiting, Katie Schneider and Whena Munn. Katie's sister Meghan Schneider returns and veteran Carter Ayars will grace Trager also. The Cards return 19 letter-winners in all from 2018. 

 Justine Sowry also has seven freshman for the 2019 class on campus. From Louisville, Mattie Tabor (Sacred Heart) and India Reed (Manual). Joining them are a pair of players from the Netherlands in Julie Kouijzer and Thirsa Kho. Emilia Kacmarczyk hails from England and Minna Tremonti (Ann Arbor, MI) and Margot Lawn (Pasadena, MD) round out the newbies. 

 The Cards went 13-6 last season with a 3-3 ACC record. They fell to Wake Forest in the first round of the ACC Tournament and were not selected for the NCAA Tournament. 
88 days until the water cannons and competition begin at Trager. We'll keep you updated here at CARDINAL COUPLE with news as it develops. 
Have a thoughtful Tuesday,
Paulie











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3 comments:

  1. Anonymous5/28/2019 9:35 AM

    Despite the loss of McFerran, Stone and Walsh, it looks like Sowry returns a strong roster and some interesting freshmen.

    Paulie, or anyone. I've heard that the best Field Hockey in the world is played in the Netherlands and Holland. I remember the Cards had a pretty good one in Minout Mink a couple of years ago. Did she go pro, graduate, what's the story on her?

    Curtis "Likes the chicks who swing sticks" Franklin

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Case Hoskins5/28/2019 9:43 AM

      Minnie left UofL to return home after the 2017 season. Believe she just tired of being stateside and pursued her interests back in Europe.

      Delete
    2. Cardinal Couple5/28/2019 9:45 AM

      The question is a good one, Curtis. The Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, England, Holland and New Zealand are all strong countries for Field Hockey.

      On Minout...or "Minnie", our columnist Jared Anderson stayed in touch with her and may have some insight about her these days. I believe she returned to go to school in the Netherlands but we'll see if Jared can update on "Minnie".

      Paulie

      Delete

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