University of Louisville
DUKE
No. 12 Field Hockey Upsets No. 4 Duke 2-1
October 03, 2014 | Field Hockey
Justine Sowry on the 2-1 win over No. 4 Duke
"We were nervous in the beginning, I think both teams were a little bit jittery," said UofL head coach Justine Sowry. "As we started to get into rhythm we started to play to our strength and our identity. It was a very impressive first half. In the second half, Duke came out really strong. They're a very good team, so we knew they would come out strong. It was a gritty win. We had to be disciplined and we're happy with the result."
UofL broke through a scoreless tie at the 12:08 mark when sophomore Erin McCrudden connected on a rebound off of senior Alyssa Voelmle's penalty corner shot for her first career goal.
The Cardinals quickly added to the lead less than three minutes later on their third penalty corner of the half. Junior Elisa Garcia notched her fourth goal of the season with assists from seniors Paige Monsen and Mallory Mason to make the score 2-0.
Duke increased its offensive pressure and drew two penalty corners in the final five minutes of the half. The Blue Devils' third corner of the half saw Jessica Buttinger send a shot past UofL goalkeeper junior Sydney King, but a defensive save from Monsen held Duke at bay.
The Blue Devils were awarded another corner as time expired in the first half and fired off two shots. King posted two saves to send the Cardinals into the locker room with a 2-0 lead.
In the first half, Louisville outshot Duke 9-4 while each team had four corners.
Duke regrouped at half time and opened the second half with two shots and a corner in the first 10 minutes. The Blue Devils broke through when Martine Chichizola dribbled to the top of the circle and fired a shot into the cage to make the score 2-1 at the 48:15 mark.
The game featured four green cards - two for each team - and a yellow card issued to Louisville's Voelmle which had Louisville down a player for five minutes starting at the 62:23 mark in the game.
Still trailing 2-1, Duke pulled goalkeeper Lauren Blazing in favor of another field player to try to even the score with 5:07 remaining in the game. The Blue Devils were awarded a corner in the final three minutes of play, but King registered a save and the Cardinal defense stood strong for the 2-1 win.
Overall, Louisville outshot Duke 11-10 while the Blue Devils held an 8-6 edge in corners. King (9-2) collected six stops. Blazing (8-2) had three saves.
UofL will play host to No. 15 Michigan Sunday at 1 p.m.
