No. 7 Field Hockey Concludes Home Season this Weekend

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The seventh-ranked University of Louisville field hockey team will play its final home games of the 2016 season this weekend when the Cardinals play host to No. 3 North Carolina in an ACC contest on Saturday at 1 p.m. and Kent State on Sunday at 12 p.m. at Trager Stadium.

Saturday's game against the Tar Heels will mark Louisville's fifth-straight top-20 opponent and feature a matchup between a pair of top 10 teams. The Cardinals will honor seniors Stephanie Byrne, Lotta Kahlert, Erin McCrudden, Hailey Netherton, Elina Pereira, Gianna Perrone and Shannon Sloss prior to Sunday's game. Both games will be shown on ACC Network Extra.

The Weekend Ahead
Saturday, October 15 - North Carolina at Louisville, 1 p.m.
• Student Appreciation Day
Sunday, October 16 - Kent State at Louisville, 12 p.m.
• Senior Day
Location: Louisville, Ky.
Venue: Trager Stadium
Television: ACC Network Extra
Live Scoring: GoCards.com
Twitter updates: @ULFieldHockey

Cardinal Quick Hits:
• Louisville enters the weekend with an 11-3 record and ranked No. 8 in the most recent Penn Monto/National Field Hockey Coaches Poll.
• The Cards are led offensively by freshman Minout Mink who is also tied for second in the ACC with 11 goals and 24 points.
• Senior co-captain Lotta Kahlert stands second on the team with six goals. Fellow senior co-captain Erin McCrudden leads the nation with 14 assists in 14 games - she is also tied for second on Louisville's single season record list.
• The Cardinals have outscored opponents 43-12 on the season while posting six shutouts.
• Sophomore goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran (10-3) leads the nation with a 0.86 goals against average and a .792 save percentage.
• Head coach Justine Sowry is in her sixth season at the helm for the Cardinals. She has compiled a 76-38 record at Louisville and has an overall 134-69 record while in her tenth season as a head coach.

Louisville vs. North Carolina
Series History: UNC leads 3-2
Last Meeting: Nov. 5, 2015 - North Carolina won 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the ACC Championship in Charlottesville, Va.
Scouting the Tar Heels: UNC brings an 11-2 overall record and a 3-1 mark in ACC play into the weekend. The third-ranked Tar Heels recently captured are coming off of a 3-2 overtime win against No. 10 Virginia to extend their win streak to six games.
• North Carolina is led offensively by lauren Moyer who has 11 goals and 24 points. Gab Major follows with eight goals and 19 points.
• Goalkeeper Shannon Johnson (7-0) carries a 1.00 goals against average.

Louisville vs. Kent State
Series History: Kent State leads 23-10
• The bulk of the series took place when the teams were members of the Mid-American Conference (1994-2004). Louisville has won the last five matchups.
Last Meeting: Nov. 3, 2013- Louisville won 6-0 at Trager Stadium.
Scouting the Golden Flashes: Kent State brings an 8-5 record into the weekend prior to a Friday matchup at Miami (Ohio). The Golden Flashes are coming off of a 7-0 win against Missouri State on Sunday. A week prior to that, they beat Central Michigan 5-0.
• Kent State is led by current Mid-American Conference Player of the Week who has 12 goals - including a hat trick against Missouri State.
• Andrea Rinehart carries a 1.82 goals against average and a .657 save percentage.
Up Next
Following this weekend's action, Louisville embark on a three-game road stretch. The Cardinals will wrap up ACC play at Virginia on Oct. 21 and will take on Jame Madison on Oct. 23. Louisville will close the was at Michigan on Oct. 29.

Up Last
No. 14 Boston College 3 - No. 8 Louisville 1
Eighth-ranked Louisville fell 3-1 to No. 14 Boston College in an ACC contest Friday evening at Trager Stadium.
• BC jumped to a 2-0 a behind goals from Frederique Haverhals and Eryn McCoy. Shannon Sloss put the Cardinals on the scoreboard in the first half, but a second half insurance goal by the Eagles' Lucy Lytle secured the win.
• Louisville sophomore Ayeisha McFerran had four saves. BC's three goals were the most by an opponent this season.

No. 8 Louisville 2 - No. 6 Northwestern 0
Louisville defeated No. 6 Northwestern 2-0 Sunday afternoon at Trager Stadium. Junior Nicole Woods and sophomore Taylor Stone registered a goal apiece and sophomore Ayeisha McFerran had two saves as the Cardinals posted their sixth shutout of the season.

Louisville Ranked No. 7 in NFHCA poll
UofL is ranked No. 7 in the National Field Hockey Coaches' Association poll released on Oct. 11. The Cardinals moved up one spot after going 1-1 last weekend with a 3-1 loss to then-No. 14 Boston College and a 2-0 win over No. 6 Northwestern.
• Louisville opened the season at No. 12 in the preseason poll and has since spent the last six weeks in the top 10.
• This marks the 38th straight week the Cardinals have appeared in the top 20 rankings dating back to the 2013 season. Last season, Louisville spent six weeks in the top 10.
• On Oct. 7, 2014, 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's top 20. It marks the 41st consecutive poll that the entire league has been ranked, a streak dating back to October 2012.

Mink Shines in Early Season
Freshman Minout Mink is in the midst of an impressive rookie campaign. The forward from Haaksbergen, Netherlands, leads the team and is tied for second in ACC standings with 11 goals and 24 points.
• Mink delivered a pair of goals in her collegiate debut and a hat trick versus Central Michigan. She registered at least one goal in Louisville's first five games, snapping the streak in the 1-0 win at Michigan State on Sept. 11.

Cards Among Nation's Leaders
The Cardinals stand among the NCAA Division I leaders in several categories as a team and individually. The following is a breakdown of Louisville's national leaders.
Ayeisha McFerran
• Goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran leads the nation with a .792 save percentage and stands second with a 0.86 goals against average. The sophomore also leads the ACC with five shutouts.
Erin McCrudden
• Senior Erin McCrudden leads the nation in assists per game with 14 assists in 14 games
Marigrace Ragsdale
• Junior Marigrace Ragsdale is 16th in the same category with nine assists in 14 games.
Team
• Louisville is second in the nation with a 0.85 team goals against average and an .800 save percentage. The Cards stand among the top 20 in nearly every other category. The Cards rank third in shutouts per game (0.43) and fourth in assists per game. Louisville is eighth with a 2.20 scoring margin and a .786 winning percentage. The Cards are 13th with 7.79 penalty corners per game and 9.50 points per game while standing 18th with a scoring average of 3.05. Louisville rounds out the top 20 with 3.07 goals per game.

Senior Salute
Louisville will honor the senior class of 2016 prior to the Oct. 16 game against Kent State. Entering this weekend this group has won 54 games while compiling an impressive 30-6 record at Trager Stadium including a perfect 10-0 mark in 2013.
• This class has helped the program reach several milestones while leading the transition into the ACC. Their teams have been a mainstay in the national top 20 rankings, while spending 18 weeks among the top 10, reaching as high as No. 5 in 2014.
• As sophomores, they played a part in Louisville's victory over top-ranked North Carolina, notching the program's first ACC win and first victory over a No. 1 team. As sophomores, they played an integral part in winning a share of the 2013 BIG EAST regular season championship.
• The 2016 senior class has also excelled academically, earning the National Field Hockey Coaches' Association Academic team award in each of their seasons here.

McCrudden and Woods dishing it out at a record pace
• Senior Erin McCrudden registered three assists in the 4-1 win at Appalachian State on Sept. 25. The feat matches a school record for assists in a single game.
• Earlier in the season, junior Nicole Woods also dished out three assist in the 7-1 win over Brown on Sept. 3.

Cards Among ACC Leaders
Louisville leads the ACC in several statistical categories including: assists (47), assists per game (3.36), goals against average (0.85) and shutouts (6).
• Additionally, freshman Minout Mink is tied for second in the league in points (24) and goals (11) while senior Erin McCrudden is atop the conference standings with 14 assists. Sophomore Ayeisha McFerran carries an ACC-best 0.85 goals against average,.792 save percentage and five shutouts.

ACC Strong
• The Atlantic Coast Conference has continued its showing among the nation's best with all seven league teams appearing in the top 20 including: No. 2 Syracuse – the defending national champion, No. 4 Duke, No. 3 North Carolina, No. 7 Louisville, No. 10 Virginia and No. 17 Wake Forest.
• ACC teams have won 18 of the 35 NCAA field hockey titles, including 11 of the last 14, and at least one ACC squad has advanced to the national championship for 17 straight years. All seven ACC programs earned bids to the 2015 NCAA Championship and all seven finished the 2015 season ranked nationally.

Calling Card - Stingy defense
Louisville has six shutouts on the season while limiting opponents to 12 goals in 14 games.
• The 2015 Louisville defense produced nine shutouts, the most since the 2001 team also recorded nine. The school record is 10 - set in the 1980 season.

Balanced Attack
The Cardinals have 43 goals on the season with 13 players contributing at least one goal and 10 players adding multiple scores. Freshman Minout Mink leads the way with 11 goals while senior Lotta Kahlert follows with six.

Home Sweet Home
The Cards have posted a 5-2 record at Trager Stadium this season to bring their home tally to 30-6 since the 2013 season.
• The Cards were 8-1 at Trager in 2014. 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.
• Prior to the Boston College loss in 2014, 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.
• In 2013, UofL posted a perfect 10-0 record at Trager Stadium, going undefeated at home for the first time in school history.
• Louisville has not lost to a non-conference opponent at home since Aug. 24, 2012 when the Cards fell to Northeastern in their season opener. - Louisville also lost a 2-1 decision to UConn on Oct. 6, 2012, but both teams were members of the BIG EAST Conference. Since then, the Cardinals are 23-0 against non-conference opponents at Trager Stadium.

Tough Road Ahead
The Cardinals face a challenging schedule in 2016. Nine of their 19 opponents are currently ranked in the NFHCA's top 20 with six of those teams ranked inside the top 10.

Kahlert Named ACC Offensive Player of the Week
Lotta Kahlert was named ACC Field Hockey Offensive Player of the Week as announced by the league office on Sept. 6.
• Kahlert led the Cardinals offensively with three goals as Louisville opened its home season with wins over Brown and Richmond. The team co-captain had a goal in the 7-1 win over Brown and scored twice in the 5-1 victory over Richmond.

Kahlert and McCrudden Tabbed Team Captains
The 2016 Cardinals will be look to senior captains Lotta Kahlert and Erin McCrudden to lead them on the field. Kahlert has played in every game as a Cardinal and started all 20 her junior season. McCrudden worked her way into the starting lineup in 2015 and went on to earn NFHCA All-West Region honors.

Woods Named to 2016 Junior World Cup Roster
Nicole Woods has been named to the Under-21 United States Women's National Team Junior World Cup roster. The 2016 Junior World Cup will take place November 23 – December 4 in Santiago, Chile.
• The junior forward/midfielder was selected to the 2016 Junior World Cup Roster after training with the U-21 USWNT throughout the summer which included a first place finish at the 2016 Young Women's National Championship. In March 2016, she scored five goals in the 2016 Junior Pan American Championship to help Team USA to a silver medal and an automatic berth to the Junior Women's World Cup.
• Woods was initially named to the U21 team in the summer of 2015, she competed with the team in a test series against Great Britain in January 2016. She was previously a member of the USA Field Hockey U19 squad and traveled to Belgium for a series of games.

Cards on ACC Network Extra
Every Louisville field hockey home game will be aired digitally on ACC Network Extra as part of the initial phase of the full ACC Network announced July 21 by ESPN and the Atlantic Coast Conference. Live streaming of Olympic sports conference-wide will increase annually, culminating with 1,300 total ACC events when the linear network launches in 2019.
• The events covered by ACC Network Extra will be immediately available to users who have access to WatchESPN and the ESPN app. More than 600 total Olympic sporting events – encompassing the fall, winter, and spring seasons – will be carried exclusively by ACC Network Extra during the 2016-17 academic year.

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Players Mentioned

Stephanie Byrne

Lotta Kahlert

Erin McCrudden

Ayeisha McFerran

Minout Mink

Hailey Netherton

Elina Pereira

Gianna Perrone

Marigrace Ragsdale

Shannon Sloss

Taylor Stone

Nicole Woods

University of Louisville Athletics