After falling behind 6-1 to No. 6-ranked Georgetown, the University of Louisville lacrosse team mounted a furious second half that included a four-goal run but fell short as the Cardinals lost 15-11 Saturday afternoon at U of L Lacrosse Stadium. Bergan Foley had four goals to lead the Cardinals.

Despite the comeback attempt in the second half, the Hoyas pulled out the win to improve to 10-3 overall and a perfect 5-0 in the BIG EAST, U of L drops to 7-5 and 1-4 in the BIG EAST.

Down just three with two minutes left, the Cards were thwarted as the Hoyas used ball control to keep the Louisville offense out of the equation. The Hoyas never trailed and used 18 draw controls to U of L's nine to keep the pressure on the U of L defense. U of L outshot the Hoyas 22-16 in the second half but were outshot 37-33 overall. Louisville scooped up 22 ground balls to GU's 19. The Cardinals had just three turnovers in the entire second half.

"I was very pleased with our second half performance," said U of L head coach Kellie Young. "I am proud of our effort and our intensity. Now we need to learn how to do that for 60 minutes. The second half is how we play and we need to bring that to every half we play."

After GU's Jordy Kirr scored just over a minute into the game, U of L's Sammy Allen answered a minute lated on an unassisted goal at 27:27 to tie at 1-1. The Hoyas ran off five straight goals before Cardinal Tara Restly connected on a score from Emily Dashiell at 14:32. Foley posted her first score shortly after and then added a second goal after GU's Mary Beth Brophy snuck one in at 12:29 as GU scored three more times right before the half. GU led 10-4 at the half.

The Cardinals battled back with a score by Lianne Bobal and Bergan Foley shortly after to signal that U of L was still in the hunt. Molly Ford scored two consecutive goals for the Hoyas to take them up 11-6. Not to be outdone, U of L's Liz Lovejoy scored at 14:16 and 12:19 with Dashiell getting in on the act with a goal of her own at 10:47 to force a Georgetown timeout at 12:18 as the Cardinals pulled within three at 12-9. Up 14-9, with seven minutes remaining, Georgetown effectively began the stall . However, Louisville still managed to create chances on offense by adding a goal by Lianne Bobal on a free position shot at 7:18 and then another unassisted score from sophomore Bergen Foley.

In the closing minute, the Hoyas gained possession and kept it as Kirr scored with seven seconds remaining to make the final, 15-11.

Jen Heup, U of L's lone senior for the fledgling Cardinal program's first Senior Day had 10 saves but took the loss. Kelsey McDowell scooped up a pair of ground balls and Dashiell added three caused turnovers. Bobal and Lovejoy each posted a pair of goals for the Cardinals.

U of L will travel to Cincinnati April 15 at 7:00 p.m. and then on to Loyola April 18 at noon to wrap up BIG EAST play.

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Louisville, Ky. – The No. 7/6 Georgetown University women's lacrosse squad continued to roll in the BIG EAST Saturday afternoon with a, 15-11, victory over the University of Louisville Cardinals (7-5, 1-4 BIG EAST) at U of L Stadium. Despite some tense moments in the second half, the Hoyas pulled out the win to improve to 10-3 overall and a perfect 5-0 in the BIG EAST.

Jordy Kirr (Baltimore, Md./Bryn Mawr School) started it off for the Hoyas with a goal less than two minutes in, however, Louisville matched it immediately. Erin Lovett (Wantagh, N.Y./Kellenberg Memorial) and Kirr added scores off of free position shots, while Ashby Kaestner (Trappe, Md./Saints Peter and Paul) and Megan Bloomer (Paoli, Pa./Conestoga) managed to find the back of the cage by cutting through the middle giving the Hoyas a four-goal advantage and forcing a Cardinal timeout at 16:15.

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2009-04-11