Field Hockey Earns No. 2 Seed in BIG EAST Tournament
October 29, 2007 | Field Hockey
Oct. 29, 2007
The 13th-ranked University of Louisville field hockey team earned a No. 2 seed in the BIG EAST tournament and will face third-seeded Providence College in the semifinals Saturday at 11 a.m. at Syracuse's J.S. Coyne Field.
The winner of that game will play the winner of the 1 p.m. game featuring top-seeded and sixth-ranked Connecticut and the No. 4 seed, host Syracuse in the finals which will take place Sunday at 12 p.m. The tournament champion will receive the league's automatic bid to the 16-team NCAA tournament.
U of L (14-5) has clinched a share of the BIG EAST regular season title for the second consecutive year. The Cards share the crown with Connecticut, who handed them their only league loss, thereby earning the top seed in the tournament. Both team finished with a 5-1 mark in the conference with UConn's loss coming to Villanova.
About Louisville
The Cardinals have won eight consecutive games and 11 of their last 12. They are led offensively by senior forward Allison Maffitt's 28 points (11G, 6A). Freshman midfielder Nicole Youman follows with 24 points (8G, 7A) and senior midfielder Janelle Avila rounds out the top three scorers with 18 points (7G, 4A). Eleven players have combined to score Louisville's 52 goals this season.
Senior goalkeeper Marie-Claire Heller carries a 1.63 goals-against average. wins coming against Syracuse (double OT), Virginia, Stanford and Indiana. Senior Allison Maffitt has scored the game-winner in three of those four games (Syracuse, Virginia and Indiana).
Scouting Providence
The Friars closed league play with a 3-1 loss to Connecticut (18-2, 5-1). Meghan Holden leads the team with 21 points (6G, 9A). Michalagh Stoddard follows closely with 20 points (7G, 6A). Julie Ruggier has a team-leading nine goals with an assist for 19 points. PC will wrap up the regular season on Oct. 30 against Brown.
The Cardinals and the Friars have met four times with Louisville winning all four. Earlier this season, Louisville picked up a 2-1 win in Providence.
