Saturday, February 22
Berkeley, Calif.
3:00 PM
University of Louisville
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9
Cal
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OT
OT 1
F
Louisville
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California
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Photo by: Taris Smith | Louisville Athletics
Seikel’s Double OT Goal Lifts Louisville Past Cal in ACC Opener
February 22, 2025 | Women's Lacrosse
Reese Whiteman scores a career-high five goals, Seikel notches two goals including the game-winner in double OT in the 10-9 win at Cal
BERKELEY, Calif. – Izzy Seikel's goal in double overtime lifted the University of Louisville lacrosse team to 10-9 win over California in both teams' Atlantic Coast Conference opener Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium.
With the win, the Cardinals improve to 3-2 (1-0 ACC) while the Golden Bears drop to 1-2 (0-1 ACC).The victory also marks the Cardinals' first ACC opener win since 2022, when they defeated Virginia Tech 14-11.
A strong offensive performance guided the Cardinals to the win, with Reese Whiteman leading the charge with a career-high five goals. Seikel finished with two goals, including the game-winner, while Negai Nakazawa, Rian Adkins, and Lauren Figas each added one.
The game got off to a slow start with Cal taking the lead in the fourth minute of play before Whiteman put the Cards on the scoreboard two minutes later. The scored stayed knotted at 1-1 until Whiteman struck again with 27 seconds remaining in the first quarter to give Louisville a 2-1 lead.
The Cardinals continued their offense in the quarter with goals by Figas and Nakazawa before Cal's Emily Moes made the score 4-2. Adkins extended Louisville's lead to 5-2 entering halftime.
The third quarter saw both teams match each other goal-for-goal, with Whiteman adding two more and Seikel notching her first score of the game as Louisville maintained its three-goal advantage, leading 8-5 at the end of the frame.
Whiteman opened the fourth quarter with her fifth goal of the game, as Louisville pushed its lead to 9-5, but Cal mounted a late comeback, scoring three straight goals to tie the game at 9-9 in the closing minutes of regulation.
As both teams entered their first overtime of the season, neither team found the back of the net through the first six-minute period. In the second overtime, Figas won a crucial draw control, leading to Seikel's game-winning goal with 5:25 left on the clock. The Cardinals' defense held strong in the final moments to close out the hard-fought road win.
Both teams finished with 11 draw controls, while Louisville put 19 shots on goal compared to Cal's 16. J Pleck recorded seven saves in goal, while California's C Rand finished with nine stops.
"It's great to open ACC play with a win, especially on the road," said UofL head coach Scott Teeter. "Credit Cal, they really battled. We also fought through some adversity and made big plays at big moments and that was the difference in the game. Reese Whiteman had an outstanding performance, followed her scout and helped us tremendously. J Pleck also came up with some big-time saves and had another solid game."
Louisville will return home to host North Carolina on Friday, February 28, at 12 p.m. ET at UofL Lacrosse Stadium.
NOTES:
• Louisville picked up its first ACC opening win since 2022 when the Cards beat Virginia Tech 14-11.
• This was the first series meeting between Louisville and Cal
• The last time Louisville played an overtime game since April 12, 2023 when they lost 13-12 to Cincinnati.
• The last the Cardinals went to double-OT was March 10, 2019 – a 11-10 loss to No. 15 Duke.
• The last time the Cards won an overtime game was April 1, 2017 – a 13-12 win over No. 12 Virginia Tech.
• The last time Louisville won a double OT game was May 9, 2014, an 11-10 win against Ohio State in the NCAA tournament.
PLAYER NOTES
• Reese Whiteman's five-goal performance was the first for the Cardinals since April 12, 2024 when Nokoro Nakazawa scored five against Duke
• Whiteman and Negai Nakazawa have each scored at least one goal in each of Louisville's five games this season.
• Negai Nakazawa has now registered a point in 19 straight games dating back to April 23, 2023.
• This was Izzy Seikel's first multi-goal game of the season and the first since March 30, 2024.
• Seikel now has four game-winning goals in her career, moving her into a tie for eight on Louisville's all-time list in that category.
With the win, the Cardinals improve to 3-2 (1-0 ACC) while the Golden Bears drop to 1-2 (0-1 ACC).The victory also marks the Cardinals' first ACC opener win since 2022, when they defeated Virginia Tech 14-11.
A strong offensive performance guided the Cardinals to the win, with Reese Whiteman leading the charge with a career-high five goals. Seikel finished with two goals, including the game-winner, while Negai Nakazawa, Rian Adkins, and Lauren Figas each added one.
The game got off to a slow start with Cal taking the lead in the fourth minute of play before Whiteman put the Cards on the scoreboard two minutes later. The scored stayed knotted at 1-1 until Whiteman struck again with 27 seconds remaining in the first quarter to give Louisville a 2-1 lead.
The Cardinals continued their offense in the quarter with goals by Figas and Nakazawa before Cal's Emily Moes made the score 4-2. Adkins extended Louisville's lead to 5-2 entering halftime.
The third quarter saw both teams match each other goal-for-goal, with Whiteman adding two more and Seikel notching her first score of the game as Louisville maintained its three-goal advantage, leading 8-5 at the end of the frame.
Whiteman opened the fourth quarter with her fifth goal of the game, as Louisville pushed its lead to 9-5, but Cal mounted a late comeback, scoring three straight goals to tie the game at 9-9 in the closing minutes of regulation.
As both teams entered their first overtime of the season, neither team found the back of the net through the first six-minute period. In the second overtime, Figas won a crucial draw control, leading to Seikel's game-winning goal with 5:25 left on the clock. The Cardinals' defense held strong in the final moments to close out the hard-fought road win.
Both teams finished with 11 draw controls, while Louisville put 19 shots on goal compared to Cal's 16. J Pleck recorded seven saves in goal, while California's C Rand finished with nine stops.
"It's great to open ACC play with a win, especially on the road," said UofL head coach Scott Teeter. "Credit Cal, they really battled. We also fought through some adversity and made big plays at big moments and that was the difference in the game. Reese Whiteman had an outstanding performance, followed her scout and helped us tremendously. J Pleck also came up with some big-time saves and had another solid game."
Louisville will return home to host North Carolina on Friday, February 28, at 12 p.m. ET at UofL Lacrosse Stadium.
NOTES:
• Louisville picked up its first ACC opening win since 2022 when the Cards beat Virginia Tech 14-11.
• This was the first series meeting between Louisville and Cal
• The last time Louisville played an overtime game since April 12, 2023 when they lost 13-12 to Cincinnati.
• The last the Cardinals went to double-OT was March 10, 2019 – a 11-10 loss to No. 15 Duke.
• The last time the Cards won an overtime game was April 1, 2017 – a 13-12 win over No. 12 Virginia Tech.
• The last time Louisville won a double OT game was May 9, 2014, an 11-10 win against Ohio State in the NCAA tournament.
PLAYER NOTES
• Reese Whiteman's five-goal performance was the first for the Cardinals since April 12, 2024 when Nokoro Nakazawa scored five against Duke
• Whiteman and Negai Nakazawa have each scored at least one goal in each of Louisville's five games this season.
• Negai Nakazawa has now registered a point in 19 straight games dating back to April 23, 2023.
• This was Izzy Seikel's first multi-goal game of the season and the first since March 30, 2024.
• Seikel now has four game-winning goals in her career, moving her into a tie for eight on Louisville's all-time list in that category.
Team Stats
LOU
CAL
Shots
30
31
Turnovers
14
18
Caused Turnovers
12
5
Draw Controls
11
11
Free-Position Shots
4
9
Ground Balls
18
14
Game Leaders
Players
G
5
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
0
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
2
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
1
Players Mentioned
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
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