Does WSOC and FH End of Season Collapses signal changes are needed? -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Women's Soccer, Field Hockey are a combined 1-9-1 in last eleven matches. 

If you read us often, you've probably surmised by now that we basically throw our efforts into covering three sports in the fall UofL women's sports seasons. women's soccer, field hockey and volleyball. We're fortunate in the fact that we've got a photographer in Jared Anderson who loves all three and gets us great pictures, and our five combined writers have a lot of expertise in covering these three sports. They also get pretty decent venues to watch the sports they cover -- Trager Stadium for Field Hockey is one of the best venues in the nation for the sport. Lynn Stadium has a wonderful pitch  excellent seating for the women's soccer squad to conduct  business and Volleyball has two spots to pack -- the LNFCU, a smaller home court and the massive KFC YUM! Center for the huger matches. Word gets to me that Volleyball is considering  even more matches held downtown next year at the KFC YUM! Center and the huge crowds that have been attending them there are an encouraging sign that more success is likely in crowd attendance if they schedule more wide net events there. 

Two of these fall sports are struggling lately with the end of the season collapses and more than one of you, our readers, have asked me some pretty pointed questions on whether changes are needed in coaching direction at the top. 

For one of these fall sports, Field Hockey, I don't think any change in leadership or coaching is called for or needs to happen. 12-5 (the squad's current record) would be hailed as an incredible season so far at a lot of schools and, let's not forget -- at 11-1 Field Hockey was considered a top five school.. Three of the last four losses have also come at the hand of schools that are top 10, year in and year out, in the sport. 

If anything, all Field Hockey needs is one or two juggernauts who can become offensive threats beside the Plumb sisters.  Just one goal a game over the last five games is unacceptable and taxes too unfairly one of the best defenses in the nation. Let's also not forget the the ACC is the toughest league in DI Field Hockey and the Cards didn't take any easy non-conference roads, scheduling wise, with three top 10 foes. 

Being ranked #12 in the NFCHA poll is maybe not as good as some Cardinals fans might have wanted, but there are a lot of schools who would gladly have their name next to that record.  The Flock just needs to figure out how to start winning more end of the season matches, and that can be solved by scoring more. Not as easy as it sounds, but it is a logical cure. The Cards are probably on the fence for the Field Hockey NCAA Championships, a good ACC Tournament performance is imperative, in my opinion.

So...you don't throw Justine Sowry down the steep steps that lead to her office. She's one of the best at what she does and a less than top ten season can happen now and then. Load up on the scorers, coach. 

 

For women's soccer, the road is a bit rockier. At 3-9-5, WSOC has disappointed against several foes that weren't given much of a chance to beat an ACC school. Losses to Xavier and Dayton and ties against Indiana State, NKU and Wyoming are head-scratching. Turn those into "W"'s and 8-7-2 doesn't look too bad, but changes are needed in player personnel and offensive firepower. 

The Kickin' Cards are being outscored 25-14 on the season.

Louisville Women's Soccer doesn't have anyone on the roster who has scored three goals this season. And, they have only five players who have started in all 17 games. 

The roster is fairly young, with 14 players either sophomores or freshmen., but those underclassmen need to stick around and continue to grow with the squad and not leave. And, thee will be some big names to replace after this season...with Ravin Alexander, Autumn Weeks and Morgan Bentley in their final seasons.

The answer is fairly obvious, but not an easy one to come up with. Find better scorers. Giving up 1.47 goals a game did not tank this squad this season, scoring less than a goal a game did. 

Coaching change? Maybe not, but, more experts "in the know" see it as inevitable. On a personal note, I know of few people who work harder with their rosters and game planning than Karen Ferguson Dayes. A legend, like Ferguson-Dayes is, should be allowed the decency and the respect of deciding when to step down. She's piloted this soccer program since 2000. She's had rough seasons before and always came back. I'm confident she will again. 

So, be patient, fall Cardinal women's sports fans in the WSOC and FH sectors. You are under good leadership and things will change for the better. Just remember...scoring=wins.

We'd like your thoughts on it, if you have them. Hit us up in the comments section.

paulie.