Louisville Plays Mercer in Home Opener on Saturday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – After beginning the season with three tough road games, University of Louisville women's lacrosse (0-3) opens its home schedule against Mercer (0-2) on Saturday at noon.

The Cardinals' road trip to open the year was no easy task as they faced two top 20 teams, falling at No. 7 Northwestern and at No. 19 Denver.

"It was two tough trips for us and we took some lumps," said head coach Scott Teeter. "We're searching for our team identity and we need to refocus. We're excited to get home to play Mercer."

Last season at Mercer, the Cardinals fell behind 7-1 with just over 18 minutes left in the first half. The Cards then went on a 13-0 scoring run that lasted until the 26:35 mark in the second half. Tessa Chad and Caroline Blalock each recorded hat tricks, igniting the Cards' to a 21-14 win over the Bears.

The 21-goal performance tied for the third most ever scored by a Cardinals team.

Like the Mercer game a year ago, Louisville has had issues with slow starts this season. They fell behind 15-4 at Northwestern and 7-2 at Marquette before mounting rallies late.

ABOUT THE BEARS

Mercer opened their season with a 13-6 loss to Oregon on the road before falling to UC Davis 16-13 in Jacksonville, Fla. just over one week later.

Two Bears have recorded hat tricks so far this season, including Kelly Hagerty with three goals against Oregon and Hailey Rhatigan with four against UC Davis. The pair leads Mercer with five goals apiece through two games.

In goal, Iseabal Cryne has tallied 23 saves for a save percentage of .442.

Last season, the Bears earned their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth by winning the inaugural Southern Conference Championship. Returners Audrey Robertson and Michaela Lucas were named to the preseason all-conference team after earning All-SoCon First and Second Team honors a year ago.

Series History - UofL is 1-0 all-time against Mercer and has yet to play the Bears at UofL Lacrosse Stadium. The last meeting was a 21-14 win for Louisville in Macon, Ga. on March 14, 2018.

Date: Saturday, Feb. 23
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Site: Louisville, Ky.
Video: ACC Digital Network
Last Meeting: Louisville 21, Mercer 14 (3/14/18 at Mercer)
Series History: Louisville leads 1-0 (1-0 on road)
UofL National Ranking: --

For the latest information on Louisville lacrosse, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Twitter account at @LouisvilleLax or on Facebook at facebook.com/UofLLacrosse.

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Players Mentioned

Caroline Blalock

Tessa Chad

University of Louisville Athletics