No. 11 Field Hockey Set for BIG EAST Championship
November 01, 2007 | Field Hockey
Nov. 1, 2007
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The eleventh-ranked, second-seeded University of Louisville field hockey team is set to open BIG EAST Conference tournament play against No. 20 and third-seeded Providence Saturday at 11 a.m. at Syracuse's J.S. Coyne Field.
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. Both team finished with a 5-1 mark in the conference with UConn's loss coming to Villanova.
Second-seeded U of L will face third-seeded Providence (12-7, 4-2) in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament. The BIG EAST Conference, in conjunction with its Web site partner JumpTV Sports, announced it will stream each of the three games in the 2007 BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship live from J.S. Coyne Field in Syracuse beginning Nov. 3 at 11:00 a.m. ET. Viewers can sign up by visiting www.bigeast.tv
The first semifinal game will feature No. 2 seed Louisville (14-1, 5-1 BIG EAST) against No. 3 seed Providence (12-7, 4-2 BIG EAST) at 11:00 a.m. ET; the second semifinal will highlight No. 4 seed Syracuse (12-6, 3-3 BIG EAST) and top-seeded Connecticut (18-2, 5-1 BIG EAST) 30 minutes after the completion of the first game.
The winners of each semifinal will face off at 12:00 p.m. ET and will compete for the right to earn the BIG EAST's automatic bid to the 2007 NCAA Championship.
All three games can be seen by accessing the field hockey tournament package for a one-time price of $9.95. Fans are encouraged to access all premium BIGEAST.tv video for the next 30 days by buying a monthly subscription for the same one-time price.
About Louisville
The Cardinals 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.
At 14-5 on the season, the Cards have posted the most wins since 2001, when they set a school record, going 16-5.
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.
Scouting Providence
The 20th-ranked Friars (13-7) wrapped up the regular season with a 6-1 win over cross-town rival Brown. PC closed league play with a 3-1 loss to Connecticut (18-2, 5-1), which gave the Huskies a share of the league crown and the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Meghan Holden leads the Friars with 21 points (6G, 9A). Michalagh Stoddard follows closely with 20 points (7G, 6A). Julie Ruggieri 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.
Cardinals in BIG EAST Tournament
Louisville has posted an 0-2 record in the league tournament since joining the BIG EAST in 2005.
Both of the Cardinals' losses have come against Connecticut in the semifinal - both in overtime. In 2006, UConn defeated U of L 3-2 in overtime at Trager Stadium. In 2005, the Cards fell 1-0 to the Huskies in overtime.
Last up for the Cards
Senior Allison Maffitt scored twice, including the game winner, as the 13th-ranked University of Louisville field hockey team staged a dramatic comeback, overcoming a 2-0 second half deficit to beat Indiana 3-2 in overtime Thursday evening at Trager Stadium.
The Hoosiers took at 2-0 lead in the second half. Maffitt finally put the Cardinals on the scoreboard with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation. Freshman Julie Barton scored the equalizer with 19 second on the clock to send the game into overtime. Maffitt delivered the game-winner just 44 seconds into the extra period.
On a Winning Track
Louisville is in the midst of an eight-game winning streak, tying the school record for most consecutive wins set in 1980. The 2001 Cardinals also tied the record.
The current streak began with the 2-1 win over Providence on Sept. 20. During that time, the Cards have outscored opponents 26-6 and picked up 3-0 overtime wins. U of L's last loss was a 6-0 decision against (then) fourth-ranked Connecticut.
Going the Extra Mile
U of L is 4-0 in overtime games this season with 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).
Home Sweet Home
The Cardinals were tough at home this season with a 9-1 record at Trager Stadium. Louisville's only home loss came at the hands of (then No. 15) Michigan who edged the Cards 3-2. The home wins included: Albany, (4-1) Vermont (4-2), Syracuse (2-1/OT), Saint Louis (3-1), Rutgers (4-0), Virgijnia (2-1/OT), Stanford (2-1/OT), Georgetown (9-0)and Indiana (3-2/OT).
