No. 5 Louisville Shuts Out No. 7 Virginia

Friday, September 29

LOUISVILLE, KY

3:00 PM

University of Louisville

(9-1,1-1)

Virginia

(6-4, 1-2)

Virginia

Louisville

Photo by: Rachel Klotz | Louisville Athletics

September 29, 2023 | Field Hockey

Box Score Justine Sowry Postgame Interview Minna Tremonti and Izzy Bianco Postgame Interview Photo Gallery

Tremonti and Bianco score as Cards post their second straight and third shutout of the season

By: Lori Harmon

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The fifth-ranked University of Louisville field hockey team used goals from Minna Tremonti and Izzy Bianco and a solid defensive effort to register a 2-0 win over No. 7 Virginia in the Cardinals' Atlantic Coast Conference home opener Friday evening at Trager Stadium.

The Cardinals improve to 9-1 on the season and 1-1 in ACC play while the Cavaliers drop to 6-4 (1-2 ACC).

"Anytime that you win at home, it's great, but to get our first ACC win is tremendous against an incredibly talented Virginia lineup," said UofL head coach Justine Sowry. "Everyone knows that I'm a pretty tough coach and I find something that we can get better at, but that's probably one of the most complete games that we've played in a long time. We played four quarters, we were on it with the ball and without the ball, and we executed in those key moments. I am super proud, pretty pumped up. It was a wonderful effort over four quarters."

Tremonti notched her second goal of the season while Bianco tallied her first career goal while Merlijn van der Vegt posted a pair of saves en route to their second straight - and third overall - shutout of the season. Overall, Louisville outshot Virginia 7-5 with a 6-2 edge in shots on goal and held a 4-1 advantage in penalty corners. UVA's Tyler Kennedy posted four stops in the game.

The game featured a midfield battle with neither team able to generate many attack opportunities. Louisville got on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter when Tremonti connected on a penalty corner pass from Aimee Plumb. The Cards took the 1-0 lead into the break after outshooting the Cavaliers 3-2 and holding a 2-0 edge in corners.

The Cards added an insurance goal with under seven minutes left on the clock. After earning their second corner of the period, Lara Niebler got the play started and Mia Duchars provided the stop to set up Bianco who fired a shot into the cage for her first career goal to put Louisville up 2-0.

The Cavaliers continued to battle, with a shot on goal and a penalty corner in the remaining minutes of play, but the Cardinals' defense held strong.

Louisville will continue its three-game home stand next Friday when Wake Forest visits Trager Stadium for another ACC matchup.

NOTES:

Louisville improves to 5-0 at Trager Stadium this season.
This marks the third win over top 10 team for the Cardinals this season and fourth against a top-20 opponent.
With the win, the Cardinals narrow the margin in the series between the teams, which now stands at 11-9 in favor of Virginia.