No. 9 Louisville Takes Down No. 2 Northwestern

Sunday, August 27

Evanston, IL

3:00 PM

University of Louisville

Northwestern

Louisville celebrates after a goal against Bellarmine

August 27, 2023 | Field Hockey

Box Score

Kaczmarczyk scores lone goal of the game, van der Vegt posts nine saves in the Cardinals’ 1-0 win at No. 2 Northwestern

EVANSTON, Ill. –Emilia Kaczmarczyk scored the lone goal of the game and Merlijn van der Vegt posted nine saves to help the ninth-ranked University of Louisville field hockey team upset No. 2 Northwestern 1-0 Sunday afternoon at Lakeside Field.

The Cardinals improve to 2-0 on the season as the Wildcats drop their season opener for the first time since 2018.

"Very proud of this group right now," said UofL head coach Justine Sowry. "This was a great win against a very good Northwestern team. We absorbed a tremendous amount of pressure and our defense held strong throughout the entire game. We have great potential this year and it will be key for everyone to buy in and play a role that is needed for the ultimate success of the team. This was a solid weekend given all of the challenges we faced and it already says a lot for the resiliency of the team early in the season."

In the game, Northwestern outshot Louisville 21-3 with a 10-1 edge in shots on goal and an 8-2 advantage in penalty corners, but the Cardinals' defense stymied the second-ranked Wildcats in the shutout behind Kaczmarczyk's first goal of the season.

The teams played through a scoreless first half with Louisville's defense withstanding Northwestern's attack which produced 13 shots and six corners with van der Vegt collecting five saves in the first 30 minutes of play.

The Cards regrouped during halftime and capitalized on their first penalty corner of the contest to break open the scoreless tie in the sixth minute of the third quarter. After Minna Tremonti earned the corner, Aimee Plumb got the play started and Mia Duchars provided the stop for Kaczmarczyk who powered a shot past Northwestern goalkeeper Annabel Skubisz.

The Wildcats continued their offensive, push, firing off five shots and drawing two more corners throughout the third quarter, but Louisville held them at bay with solid defensively play including a pair of stops by van der Vegt.

The fourth quarter was evenly played with the Wildcats outshooting the Cards 2-1 and the teams earning one corner apiece. Van der Vegt picked up two more saves and a green card saw Louisville playing short-handed for two minutes, while Northwestern lifted its goalkeeper for an extra field player, but the Cardinals held steady for the win.

Louisville will continue its three-game road swing next weekend when the Cardinals travel to Philadelphia to face No. 10 Princeton Friday and Penn Sunday.

The Cardinals will continue their three-game road stretch next weekend with a trip to Philadelphia to face No. 10 Princeton Friday and Penn Sunday.