University of Louisville
Sacred Heart
Women's Lacrosse Stays Perfect with Win over Sacred Heart
March 17, 2011 | Women's Lacrosse
March 17, 2011
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - When the Cardinals set the tempo in the game, it has been tough for opponents to stop runs or battle back.
Behind a 6-1 run to open the game and a 12-2 spurt to close it, the University of Louisville women's lacrosse team improved to 5-0 on the year, with a 19-8 victory at Sacred Heart on Thursday at Campus Field in Fairfield, Conn.
Liz Lovejoy scored the first goal of the afternoon less than a minute into the game to put Louisville ahead. She tacked on the next two goals and finished the contest with a career-high six. Lianne Bobal tallied the next score, putting the Cardinals up, 4-0.
Sacred Heart's Emily Pepe registered her lone goal of the game to stop the run, before Bergan Foley put the Cardinals back up by five, 6-1, with a pair of goals, with 10 minutes remaining in the half.
The Pioneers (1-5), however, went on a 4-0 run to tie the game at six apiece, with consecutive goals coming inside two minutes in the first period. Two of Kelsey Russo's team-high three goals came during that stretch.
Behind its senior leadership, Louisville regrouped and took the lead for the remainder of the game.
Following Bobal's goal at the 23:48 mark on a pass from Foley, four different Cardinals scored on a 12-2 run. Foley led the charge with four of her seven goals, while Lovejoy added three more and Emily Dashiell and Colleen O'Malley each netted two. Katie Oliverio earned five of her school-record setting six assists during that span.
Statistically, Louisville dominated the game in each category. The Cardinals outshot the Pioneers, 49-17, including a 31-9 clip in the second half, won the ground ball battle, 18-12, and held the advantage in draw controls, 20-9.
Dashiell, who entered the game as the nation's leader in draw controls per game at 7.25, recorded seven in the victory, while also registering four ground balls and a caused turnover. Meghan Ryan finished the contest with three ground balls and was among five Cardinals to finish the game with two draw controls.
Goalkeeper Ashley Herbst faced a season-low 17 shots, making four saves to earn her fifth collegiate victory.
Louisville will have a quick turnaround, as it heads to Riverdale, N.Y., to face Manhattan on Saturday, March 19. First draw is set for 1 p.m.
Notes
- The Cardinals won their fifth-straight game, opening the season at 5-0 for the first time in program history.
- The 49 shots by the Cardinals are a school best. Previously, the record stood at 47, which came against Sacred Heart on Feb. 19, 2010.
- Louisville dominated the draw control category, 20-9, which is tied for third-most in school history.
- Liz Lovejoy recorded the first three goals of the game en route to a career-best six scores.
- Katie Oliverio finished the game with a school-record six assists.
