No. 12 Field Hockey Travels to California for a Pair of Games

The No. 12 University of Louisville field hockey team will embark on its first road trip of the season this weekend as the Cards head to the West Coast to face California and UC Davis. Louisville (2-0) will play California Friday and UC Davis Sunday. Both matchups will be a 3 p.m. Eastern.

About Louisville: Louisville is ranked 12th in the National Field Hockey Association preseason poll. The Cardinals are coming off of a 2-0 performance in their opening weekend after defeating Appalachian State 8-1 and Indiana 3-0.

The Cards are led offensively by redshirt sophomore Stephanie Byrne's six points (3G). Junior Lotta Kahlert follows with five points (1G, 3A). Freshman Tess Hannah has two goals on the season. Freshman goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran has not allowed a goal and carries a 1.000 save percentage in 121:59 minutes of work.

Cards against the opponents
California
Sept. 4, 2015 – 3 p.m. (ET)
Series Record: Tied 3-3
Last Meeting: Oct. 18, 2014, UL won 4-0 at Trager Stadium
Scouting the Bears: Cal brings a 1-1 record into the weekend prior to a matchup against Saint Louis on Saturday. The Bears opened the 2015 campaign with a 5-1 loss to No. 5 Duke, but rebounded to beat Bryant 7-1. Janaye Sakkas and Nicole Henriksson are tied for the team lead with two goals apiece. Kori Griswold (1-1) carries a 2.54 goals against average in 137:44 minutes of work.

UC Davis
Sept. 6, 2015 – 3 p.m. (ET)
Series Record: UL leads 2-0
Last Meeting: Oct. 14, 2014, UL won 3-0 at Trager Stadium
Scouting the Aggies: UC Davis enters the weekend with a 1-1 record prior to a Friday matchup with Miami (Ohio). The Aggies opened the season with a 4-0 lost to fourth-ranked Syracuse, but came back to post a 3-2 overtime win against Bryant. Jamie Garcia, Danielle Koehne and Lauren Mewes have one goal apiece to lead UC Davis offensively. Erica Cohen (1-1) carries a 2.72 goals-against average in 154:41 minutes.

Up next: Louisville will return to the friendly confines of
Trager Stadium to face ninth-ranked Virginia in its ACC opener on Sept. 11. The Cardinals will continue their home stand on Sept. 13 when Liberty visits Trager Stadium.

Balanced offense
The Cardinals outscored opponents 11-1 in their opening weekend. Eight different players registered goals in the offensive output.

Louisville ranked No. 12 in NFHCA preseason poll
The University of Louisville field hockey team is ranked No. 12 in the NFHCA preseason poll released on Aug. 25, marking the 21st straight week the Cardinals have appeared in the top 20 rankings dating back to the 2013 season. The Cards finished the 2014 season ranked 10^th in the final poll released on Nov. 11. Last season, Louisville spent six weeks in the top 10.
• On Oct. 7, Louisville appeared at No. 5 in the coaches' poll marking the second top-five appearance in program history with Louisville achieving a program-best No. 4 ranking in the 2002 season.
• All seven ACC teams were included in the NFHCA Preseason Poll, which was announced Tuesday morning. It marks the 25th consecutive poll that the entire league has been ranked, a streak dating to October of 2012.

Garcia, Woods earn preseason All-ACC honors
• Elisa Garcia and Nicole Woods were selected to the Preseason All-ACC Field Hockey team and the Cardinals were picked to finish sixth in the league according to a vote of the league's seven head coaches.
• Garcia (Santiago, Chile), a senior midfielder and team co-captain, is a two-time All-National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) West Region selection. In 2014, the three-year starter led the Cardinals with 27 points and 13 assists.
• Woods (Beverly, Mass.) a sophomore midfielder/back was recently named to USA Field Hockey's Under 21 team after serving on the U19 team in 2014. As a freshman, Woods earned a starting role for the Cardinals and scored three goals with four assists for 10 points.

North Carolina, which has reached the semifinals of the NCAA Championship each of the past six years, garnered four votes for first place and edged out Syracuse for the top spot. The Orange, which advanced to the national championship game last year, collected two first place votes and 31 points. Duke was selected on one ballot to win the league and stands third in the preseason poll. Virginia, Wake Forest, Louisville, and Boston College round out the preseason poll.

Home sweet home
The Cardinals finished the 2014 season with an 8-1 record at Trager Stadium in 2014 and are now 20-1 at home since the beginning of the 2013 season. On Oct. 17, 2014 Louisville fell 2-1 in overtime to No. 17 Boston College, snapping a 16 -game home victory streak dating back to the 2012 season. In 2013, UofL posted a perfect 10-0 record at Trager Stadium, going undefeated at home for the first time in school history.
• Prior to the Boston College loss, the Cards' last home loss came on Nov. 2, 2012 when they fell 2-1 in overtime to then-No. 5 Connecticut in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship.

Woods and Stone selected to USA Field Hockey's Junior National Teams
Sophomore Nicole Woods was selected to the Under-21 squad while incoming freshman Taylor Stone was named to the Under-19 squad.
• Members of the junior national teams were selected from the Junior National Camp which was comprised of the top 110 athletes selected from Young Women's National Championship, National Futures Championship and Futures Elite Championship. Louisville head coach Justine Sowry served as a coach for the 2015 USA U21 camp.
• Woods, a forward/midfielder from Beverly, Mass., was selected to the 2014 USA U19 squad and recently traveled to Belgium with the team. As a freshman, Woods played in all 21 of Louisville's games and scored three goals while dishing out four assists.
• Stone, a back from Herndon, Va., was a member of the 2013-14 USA Field Hockey team. She also represented the United States in the 2013 Maccabiah Games.

McFerran, Irish National Team compete in World League Games
Ayeisha McFerran is not your typical freshman making the adjustment to Division I field hockey. The goalkeeper from Larne, Northern Ireland, is also the youngest member of Ireland's National Team and has earned 24 senior caps. She competed in the 2015 World League Round 3 Games in Valencia where the Irish posted an eighth place finish. While playing in the World League 2 tournament, McFerran came off the bench to help the Irish national team beat Canada in an overtime shootout and win the championship.

Netzler-Gray returns to Louisville – on the sidelines
Louisville field hockey fans will see a familiar face on the sidelines this season. Former Cardinal great Olivia Netzler-Gray has returned to her alma mater and is in her first season as an assistant coach. Netzler-Gray (2001-03) was a two-time NFHCA All-Region selection and still ranks among the program's top 10 leaders in career goals and points.

For the latest information on Louisville field hockey, log on to GoCards.com, or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/ulfieldhockey">www.twitter.com/ulfieldhockey or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ulfieldhockey">www.facebook.com/ulfieldhockey.

University of Louisville Athletics

No. 12 Field Hockey Travels to California for a Pair of Games

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Players Mentioned

Stephanie Byrne

Elisa Garcia

Tess Hannah

Lotta Kahlert

Ayeisha McFerran

Taylor Stone

Nicole Woods

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