ACC FIELD HOCKEY TOURNAMENT -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

ACC FIELD HOCKEY TOURNAMENT UNDERWAY

Although Louisville did not qualify for the ACC Field Hockey Tournament, we will be watching with some interest in the results here at Cardinal Couple.. The Tournament is being held in Winston-Salem, at the Wake Forest Field  (Gentner Stadium). 

The home team, Wake Forest played the third game out of four gmes on Tuesday, and...as a #7 seed, was a prohibitive underdog to #2 Duke, coached by former UofL Field Hockey Coach Pam Bustin. And, the Blue Devils won this "satanic" match-up over the homestanding Demon Deacons 4-1

Earlier in the day, #1 UNC opened the tournament and had no problems in diposing the #8 seed squad from California (that beat out Louisville for the #8 seed). The Golden Bears got stuck in the TarHeels trap and fell 5-0. That one was a 10 a.m. start. Who knows, but maybe the Cards were lucky not to get in the tournament. UNC is playing with their hair on fire lately. 

Next up was #4 Virginia vs #5 Syracuse, and we got maybe a slight upset in this one, with the Orange downng the Cavailiers 1-0. So, it'll be #5 Syracuse facing #1 UNC Wednesday at 1 p.m. Boston College gets Duke after the opener. 

The day's activities ended with #3 Boston College facing #6 seed Stanford. The Eagles beat the Cardinal 3-2. 

So, the #1, #2, #3 and #5 seeds advance to the semifinals today. ACC Network is showing all the contests, in case you want to get away from election results, and they begin at 1 p.m when North Carolina goes up against Syracuse. 

My pick? I loved the job that Duke's Pam Bustin did when she was Louisville's head field hockey coach and have been a fan of her ever since. I'd like to see her knock off B.C. and UNC. They also have former Louisvllle star, Charlie van Oirschot, who transferred there as a junior and is now a graduate student. In this rare case, I will say, "Go Duke..." 

 A lot of good Field Hockey players come from the state of Pennsylvania, so...why doesn't Pitt play Field Hockey?  Mystifying,isn't it? Penn State, Penn and Villanova do.  

paulie

ACC Field Hockey Championships Underway -- Cards play today -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CARDS FH FACES VIRGINIA TODAY

The 2020 ACC Field Hockey Tournament is off and running and three matches took place yesterday. In quarterfinal action, Virginia bested Wake Forest 2-1, North Carolina had no trouble with Boston College 4-0 and Syracuse got a goal in overtime to defeat Duke 3-2. Here's a recap of the quarters: 

VIRGINIA 2 - WAKE FOREST 1

Laura Janssen scored both the Cavalier goals to open quarterfinal action in a 2-1 win over the Demon Deacons. With the win, Virginia advances to the semifinals to face Louisville today at 1:30 on Karen Shelton Field in Chapel Hill on the North Carolina campus. The #4 seed Virginia squad got the first score of the contest when they earned a penalty corner with 58 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Janssen took a deflected shot by Wake Forest goalkeeper Tori Glaister and sent it back past the Wake goalie to make it 1-0 UVA

No other scores occurred in the remainder of the first half.

Wake Forest came back to tie the match with 7:29 remaining in the third quarter. The Deacs earned a penalty stroke off an illegal touching of the ball in front of the goal and Alexis Grippo won the one-on-one battle against Virginia goalkeeper Laura Hausheer to make it 1-1. The squads went into the fourth quarter locked up at 1-1 and were even in shots taken at eight each.

The game decider came just 1:11 into the fourth quarter. Virginia drew a penalty corner and , once again, Janssen tracked down a missed goal attempt and scooted the loose ball into the goal for a 2-1 Virginia lead that the Cavs would not relinquish the rest of the way.

NORTH CAROLINA 4 - BOSTON COLLEGE 0 

The #2 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels had little trouble against a #7 College squad that was playing only their third game of the fall season with a convincing 4-0 sweep of the Eagles. 

Payton Wirth got the Tar Heels on the board for the first time midway through the first quarter when she field an attempt from the left side of the net that got past B.C goalkeeper Jonna Kennedy. The unassisted score made it 1-0 and that's the way the first quarter ended. UNC would look to Wirth again in the second quarter and the sophomore got her second score with about 12 minutes left in the second frame off a rebound on a penalty corrner attempt to give UNC a 2-0 lead that they would take to halftime. 

The squads played a scoreless third quarter until the final 44 seconds, when Madison Orobono tracked down a blocked shot by Kennedy and knocked it past the BC defense to set the tally at 3-0. UNC would add a final goal with a little over two minutes remaining in the game, Erin Matson following up a blocked shot on a UNC penalty corner attempt and drilling the rebound into the back of the net for the Tar Heels final score of the contest. 

UNC held a 26-13 advantage in shots in the second quarterfinal game and dre 15 penalty corners, compared to five for Boston College. Wake goalie Kennedy was busy, collecting 11 saves and North Carolina goalie Amanda Hendry turned away nine Boston College attempts. 

The win was legendary UNC head coach Karen Shelton's 700th of her career. 

SYRACUSE 3 - DUKE 2

The #3 seed Syracuse spotted #6 seed Duke two first quarter goals but rallied back to tie the contest and force an overtime. In the "first score wins" extra session, the Orange got the victory to advance to the semifinals.

Early on, it was all Duke. Just a minute into the contest, the Blue Devils found Alayna Burns wide open in front of the net and she blasted a shot past Syracuse goalkeeper Piper Hampsch to make it 1-0. Nine minutes later, the Durham squad found success again when Darcy Bourne took the feed on a penalty corner and tallied the Blue Devils second score. Duke scored a third time in the quarter but the call was reversed and the initial period ended with Duke on top 2-0.

Syracuse methodically battled back and found success five minutes into the second quarter. Laura Graziosi took a feed a let a missile loose from the left side of the circle after some fancy footwork and drew the Orange within one. The half ended with the score 2-1 Duke leading.

Eefke van der Niewenhof tied the contest up with a shot off a penalty corner after 5:22 of play in the third quarter. Try as they might, neither squad could find a deciding goal in the fourth quarter and the squads went to overtime. 

Overtime in college Field Hockey is a 7-vs-7 set up on the pitch, with each team using a goalie and six other players. It opens up the field quite a bit and the action is a bit more frentic and fast-paced than in the regular time. 

Duke's upset bid ended rather quickly in overtime. With just 2:56 expired in the ten-minute overtime, Syracuse's Graziosi created a steal from the Duke attack and took the ball in front of Syracuse goal, where she fired a missile past Hampsch for the game winner. 

So, the action held true to seedings yesterday, as the #2, #2 and #4 seed advance to he semis. Let's take a look at Louisville vs. Virginia today: 

LOUSIVILLE VS VIRGINIA

The Louisville Cardinals come into the semi-final tilt against UVA with a 7-1 record. The Cards scored two victories over the Cavaliers in the fall regular season matches. Louisville defeated UVA 5-2 on October 23rd and 2-1 on the 24th. 

In the first match, the Cards took it took the home-standing UVA squad early with two first quarter goals, one by Mercedes Pastor and the other from Aimee Plumb. The Cards led 2-1 at the half, but Pastor found success early in the third quarter with a score and, after a Virginia score, Madison Walsh gave the Cards a 4-2 lead after three. The Cards would get a final score from Margot Lawn with about four minutes left in the contest for a convincing 5-2 win. 

The following day, UVA gave the Cards a much tougher contest. The two squad battled through a scoreless first half and it wasn't until midway through the third quarter that UofL got on the board, when Pastor knocked in a shot on a penalty corner. UVA would tie it with six minutes gone in the fourth quarter but Louisville got the win as time was running out of regulation when Charlie van Oirschot intercepted a Cavalier pass, forwarded the ball to Pastor and she fed Madison Walsh near the UVA goal.

Walsh took aim and managed to scoot the ball between the legs of UVA goalie Laura Hausheer with 10 second left in the match...for the 2-1 Cardinal "W". 

What do I expect today? First off, the weather won't be a factor with ideal conditions, sunny skies, no rain threat and unseasonably warm temps expected in Chapel Hill in the mid seventies for the early afternoon opening pass-back. The only dubious factor is the annoying shadows cast on Karen Shelton Field in early afternoon contests. 

The Cards can expect an intense effort from the Hoos to shut down Pastor, but this is a Louisville team with plenty of scoring options -- so we might see Lawn, Walsh, Erica Cooper and a multitude of other Cards take aim at the UVA net. 

Defensively, Louisville will rely on the strong goal-tending abilities of Hollyn Barr and the defensive play of Alli Bitting and Megan Schneider to keep the ball away from danger. I'll guess a 4-1 Louisville win over UVA and also predict that UNC will hold field against Syracuse to set up a Cards vs Heels final on Sunday. A tired UVA squad might have trouble keeping up with the fresh-legged Cardinals, UVA's opening match forced them to exert a lot of effort and energy. 

As mentioned earlier, game time for Louisville vs Virginia is 1:30 p.m. and the Orange and Heels will follow about an hour after the first game is completed. The matches are being shown on the ACC Network and the commentary/play-by-play has been quite good and accurate so far. 

Go Cards! 

paulie

  

Tough loss for Field Hockey at Syracuse...Volleyball falls to Wake Forest...Radio Today! -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FIELD HOCKEY LOSES TO #4 SYRACUSE 2-1

It's always tough to lose on the road...especially when it goes to overtime and the contest is decided on a questionable call that led to a one-on-one penalty stroke for Syracuse.

With about nine minutes in the first overtime...Syracuse was working in the circle when Ayeshia McFerran charged out of the net and accidentally bumped into Syracuse's Laura Hurff. A referee immediately called for a penalty stroke and Lies Lagerweij was awarded the shot (not Hurff). The shot got past McFerran and into the upper left part of the net for the game-ender at the 9:44 mark.  

McFerran's bump did not look intentional...just a stumble where she fell into the back of Lagerweij. Although UofL head coach Justine Sowry had a lengthy talk with the officials about the issue after the contest...

According to the rule book, there are two reasons for a penalty stroke.

1) If a intentional foul is committed on a attacker who is trying to score or has an opportunity to play the ball in the circle.
2) For a foul in the circle that prevents "the probable scoring of a goal".

Neither happened during the play in question. The defender was advancing away from the net, did not have the ball and was certainly in no position to score. It was not an intentional foul either...merely a stumble into the Syracuse player's back. 

The game had Louisville drawing the first score when Minout Mink drove the baseline and fired an unassisted shot past Syracuse goalie Regan Spencer with just 15 seconds left in the first half. Syracuse got the equalizer in the second half...with 17 minutes left in the game. 

McFerran had eight saves in the game...a season high for her. 

The Cards return home to face Iowa Sunday at 1 p.m.

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VOLLEYBALL FALLS TO WAKE FOREST IN FOUR SETS

The University of Louisville Volleyball squad stayed competitive most of the way in a 25-23, 24-26, 23-25, 19-25 loss to Wake Forest Friday night in the KFC YUM! Center...but squandered a 13-7 lead in the pivot-able fourth set to fall to 5-8 on the season and 0-3 in the ACC.

Head coach Anne Kordes on the loss: 

"It is a tough loss and it will be tough to bounce back from. We have to be able to execute under pressure. We worry about each mistake and let it affect our next play." 

Janelle Jenkins had 16 kills for the Cards but Louisville ended up with only a .194 attack average against the Wake Forest Demon Deaconesses (6-8, 2-1).

Jeff and I will discuss it on today's radio show from the Louisville Rowing Red and Black Regatta and he'll have an article here at the site Monday that will analyze the loss and the next game...which is Sunday at the YUM! against Duke.

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RADIO ON THE RIVER

We'll be doing THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR this morning live from Louisville Rowing's Red and Black Rowing Regatta on the Ohio River. Don't worry, we're pretty sure that they're not going to put us on the water participating (I'm bringing my floatie, just in case) but we will have the chance to chat with head coach Derek Copeland and a couple of the student-athletes. 

It should be great fun as we discuss the joy and excitement of UofL athletics with a special emphasis today on the rowing squad! It's a free event and there's food around lunchtime...so come join us and see our new banner! 

Join us at 11 a.m. on WCHQ 100.9 FM or through the WCHQ app. Here's a link to the station website...where you can also listen to the rebroadcast...in case you missed the live feed! 

LINK : REBROADCAST OF OCT. 1st LIVE REMOTE RED AND BLACK REGATTA

paulie
xxxxx

Five Questions for...Justine Sowry -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

9-1 CARDS HEAD TO #4 SYRACUSE

COACH HAS A NEW RED WALL IN HER OFFICE! 

Undefeated on the road this year and ranked #7 in the nation...the Louisville Field Hockey team is off to their best start since 1977. We had the chance to catch up with head coach Justine Sowry on Wednesday prior to their departure for Syracuse and took a look at past, present and future for the Trager Stadium dwellers...here's five questions with Justine:



1) TELL US ABOUT THE TRIP TO CAROLINA LAST WEEKEND? 

"It was a great trip, Paulie. In our many conversations about the team, I've been critical about areas we need to improve upon...but playing against Wake Forest was probably our best game of the season so far...and maybe over a few years. I had to watch video to find areas to improve upon because we played fantastic field hockey winning 2-0."

"We followed it up against Appalachian State. It's always hard to come back on a Sunday after a tough contest on the road and they had more energy than us in the first half probably...but we eventually controlled the tempo and went pretty deep into our squad to get the 4-1 victory. To come away with two road trip wins in an environment that wasn't always easy is very pleasing."

2) YOU HEAD TO SYRACUSE FRIDAY FOR MAYBE YOU'RE TOUGHEST GAME OF THE SEASON? THEY WERE #1 AND NOW #4...

WILL Q SHOW UP FOR THE SYRACUSE
VS. LOUISVILLE FIELD HOCKEY GAME?

"This is definitely a challenging stretch for us. Syracuse is a quality program, they're the defending national champions. They attack with numbers. They put a lot of pressure on you defensively. Wake Forest prepared us for that pressure...we just have to tidy up a couple of areas and make sure we're on the same page up there. They're strong in the midfield and it'll be our job to put pressure on their backfield." 



3) AFTER SYRACUSE, YOU RETURN FOR A FIVE GAME HOME STAND. FOUR OF THESE OPPONENTS ARE IN THE TOP 25. A TOUGH CHALLENGE.

" It is really a tough stretch for us. We know our ACC opponents are always going to be tough and the two BIG 10 opponents coming in are tough as well. The BIG 10 is much stronger this year...they go five, six teams deep in the rankings. It is an incredible opportunity for us to see where we're really at." 

4) THE NORTHWESTERN GAME IS ALL-AMERICAN BANNER REVEAL AFTERNOON. WHO ARE THE PLAYERS THAT WILL BE REVEALED ON THE BANNERS? 

" Vic Stratton, who was a excellent defender for us and is currently a volunteer coach for us is one. Her parents will be here from New Zealand for the ceremonies and that's a very exciting thing for her and our team . Ayeshia McFerran became an All-American last year also, as a freshman, which is a first for us. 

Step Dancing is quite difficult...it's trained Ayeshia
well for goalkeeping, we surmise. 

5) I RECENTLY DISCOVERED THAT AYESHIA IS SKILLED AT IRISH STEP DANCING AND PLAYING THE FLUTE. ANY CHANCE WE COULD GET HER TO PUT ON A HALFTIME SHOW? 

" I know she'd certainly be up for that challenge and we're well aware of her dancing skills. The flute I wasn't as aware about. I don't want her playing the flute, though...[ laughter ]... 


( Be sure to catch the entire Sowry interview on our Saturday radio show...THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR. This week (weather permitting) we'll be doing the show live from the Ohio River at Louisville Rowing's RED AND BLACK REGATTA. 
The show starts at 11 a.m....on WCHQ 100.9 FM and streams live on the Internet at www.crescenthillradio.com  Take Crescent Hill radio with you wherever you go by downloading the WCHQ app...available at the website.)

paulie
xxxxx 

Louisville Field Hockey falls 2-1 to #1 Syracuse...Volleyball wrecks Georgia Tech with a sweep -- Saturday Cardinal Couple

STICK CARDS BATTLE BUT FALL TO #1 SYRACUSE

Louisville Field Hockey rallied from a 1-0 deficit to tie #1 Syracuse with 13 minutes left in regulation but with six minutes remaining...a untimely and  costly penalty call resulted in Syracuse receiving a penalty stroke they converted on with six minutes remaining to defeat the Cards 2-1 Friday night in Trager Stadium.

With the physicality involved in this 70 minute battle (a total of seven penalty cards were issued) it seemed rather lame that a penalty stroke was awarded to the 'Cuse after a grabbing incident in front of the Louisville goal.

Nevertheless the referees awarded the visitors a penalty stroke and Syracuse's season-leading scorer Roos Weers managed to slip the shot by Louisville goalie Ayeisha McFerran for the game winner. After the contest, Coach Sowry did verify that the call was a correct one, though. 

Syracuse grabbed an early lead in the first half on a nice feed from Serra Degnan to Alma Fenne in the circle...who sent a rocket into the net. 

That lead held until Chile Garcia connected in the second half for the Cards...taking a penalty corner feed from Katherine Gwynne-Wood and finding the back of the net at the 56:44 mark. 

Syracuse had several players that would merit consideration for our esteemed columnist Jeff McAdams all-name team. Jess Jecko, Alma Fenne, Serra Degnan, Roos Weers and Liz Sack won't be mistaken for Carol Brown or Mary White anytime soon. 


Louisville (7-5, 0-5) crosses the Ohio River for a Sunday match against the Ohio State Buckeyes ( 7-4) next. It'll be nice to face someone out of the super-conference that is the ACC...

Hear Coach Sowry's post-contest remarks at the link below:

COACH SOWRY DISCUSSES SYRACUSE GAME



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LOUISVILLE VOLLEYBALL STINGS YELLOW JACKETS IN STRAIGHT SETS

They're known either as the Yellow Jackets or the Ramblin' Wreck of Georgia Tech as a rule... but last night they felt the sting and were wrecked by the Louisville Volleyball team in straight sets in Atlanta 25-18, 25-17, 25-13.

We'll have great coverage on this on our weekly radio show The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour tomorrow, but the Cards were never seriously challenged in the match.

Louisville (11-4, 5-0) remained unbeaten in the ACC thanks to Janelle Jenkins 12 kills and holding Ga Tech to .161 hitting.

The Wide-Net Cards will travel to Clemson next for a Sunday tilt against the Tigers. 

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RADIO TODAY! 

Our weekly CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR airs at 11 a.m. on 100.9 FM WCHQ today. It can also be accessed at:

www.crescenthillradio.com


We'll have a jam-packed broadcast today with interviews from Field Hockey, Soccer and Volleyball and reports on these sports and more.

Join Worldwide and I for the broadcast this morning. In fact, why not stop by the studio and just grab a microphone and a tuba and chime in? Bring danish and coffee!

paulie
xxxxx

Catching up....Louisville Softball and Lacrosse announce signing classes...Saturday Cardinal Couple

We've been so caught up in women's basketball and volleyball these days that we're behind in bringing you some great news about the Louisville Softball and Lacrosse signing classes for 2015. We love these two spring sports...so here the newcomers!

Pearsall brings in five NLI's


Coach Sandy Pearsall is bringing in five Louisville signees for the 2015-2016 season. Coach indicates that all five have had Louisville on their radar for quite some time and offer a multitude of skills for the "Hit and Pitch" Cards.

-- Lillie Goetz 2B/LF Owensboro (KY) Catholic

No slouch here...Lillie was the 2014 Kentucky Softball Coaches Class "A" Player of the Year and is a member of the Louisville Lady Sluggers.

-- Megan Hensley RHP/OF Ashland (KY) Blazer

She's the 2014 Kentucky Gatorade Softball Player of the Year and a MaxPreps All-American. She also played on the Louisville Lady Sluggers. 

-- Jordan Lane (Infield)..College of Central Florida

Jordan had a .374 batting average where she led her team to the 2014 NJCAA Championships second place finish. She also played for the Louisville Lady Sluggers.

-- Shelby McCombs pitcher Newark, OH.

Shelby was the Division II State Pitcher of the Year and also has a strong bat and can play multiple positions. She. too, played for the Louisville Lady Sluggers. 

- - Jordan Vorbrink OF/1B Mercy Academy, Louiville

Jordan was considered one of the best softball players in Kentucky last season and was another member of the Louisville Lady Sluggers. 

WE wish all five the best of luck and successful careers at the University of Louisville!

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LOUISVILLE LACROSSE ADDING NINE FOR 2015 



Coach Kellie Young is welcoming what she considers her best recruiting class in her seven years at Louisville. The future stars are:

-- Allison Ferrara (Morristown, NJ)
-- Meghan Siverson (Morristown, NJ)
-- McKayla Conti (Ocean Township, NJ)
-- Jody Julmice (Plantation, FL)
-- Sarah L'Heureux (Winter Springs, FL)
-- Alexandria Rich (Lebanon, PA)
-- Casey Cummo (Smithtown, NY)
-- Elise Koehl (Arlington, VA)
-- Madeline Beck (Louisville, KY)

Young develops them into winners, whether they're east coast, west coast, Canadian, Louisvillians or aliens...into hard nosed, team-dedicated players. She says:


"They're passionate, driven, and feisty players who already bleed red for the Ville. They will impact our defense, our midfield and our attack and will continue to push this program forward throughout their entire athletic careers."

They'll join a team that has been toughened by their first year in the ACC. A team that gets better each year. Spring Lacrosse can't get here soon enough!

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DUKE VOLLEYBALL DOWNS CARDS IN THREE SETS


Volleyball went 0-3 last night to ACC powerhouse Duke last night in Cardinal Arena. Worldwide Jeff McAdams was there and will recap it on our radio show CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR this morning at 11 a.m. at WCHQ 100.9 FM and on the internet at www.crescenthillradio.com

Hoops talk and Volleyball will be featured, we'll have a Worldwide Quiz and comments from Jeff Walz, Bria Smith, Sara Hammond, Mariya Moore and "E" !! plus much, much more. 

Louisville fell 25-15, 25-12, 34-32 to the #21 Blue Devils...the last game a wild affair with Louisville serving for set point four times and Duke serving for match point six times. 

The Cards fall to 15-13 overall on the season and 7-9 in the ACC. The home stand doesn't get any easier for Anne Kordes' wide netters...they entertain #7 UNC in Cardinal Arena at noon. 


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NCAA FIELD HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP GAME SET

It looks like the ACC's Syracuse and BIG EAST's Connecticut will play it out for the NCAA Field Hockey title. 

Syracuse upsetting UNC in a shootout after overtime and regulation and ended in a 2-2 tie. UConn stopping upstart Albany's bid 1-0.

We watched the replays. Those girls looked cold, cold, cold out there. In addition to increasing the field, the NCAA should also look at moving the championships to either a dome or a warm weather climate. Might increase attendance and interest? 



paulie
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