University of Louisville
Michigan State
Field Hockey Drops Season Opener
August 25, 2007 | Field Hockey
Aug. 25, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. - - The No. 14 Louisville Cardinals fell 4-1 to No. 19 Michigan State on Saturday in the Champions Invitational Tournament. It was the season opener for both teams.
The Cardinals jumped ahead early as senior forward Allison Maffitt took a feed from senior forward Missy Briery to take 1-0 just three minutes into the contest.
The Spartans responded two minutes later. Jeamie Deacon connected on penalty corner assists from Charlotte van der Laag and Amy Schneider to tie the game at the 4:08 mark.
Michigan State pulled ahead with less than a minute left in the first half, again capitalizing on a corner when Geraldine Raynor scored with assists from van der Laag and Schneider.
The Spartans entered halftime with a 2-1 lead, outshooting the Cards 8-2 and holding a 7-0 advantage in penalty corners.
The lead was stretched to 3-1 when Becky Manning scored on a feed by Gwen Riley at the 44:55 mark. Deacon capped the scoring ten minutes later.
Senior goalkeeper Marie-Claire Heller collected 11 saves for Louisville. Elissa Unger posted two stops for the Spartans.
Michigan State held an 8-3 corners advantage and outshoot the Cardinals 17-5.
U of L will face fourth-ranked Duke Sunday at 2 p.m. in the final game of the Champions Invitational Tournament. The Blue Devils were upset by Ohio 2-1 in their first game.
