Cardinal field hockey team ranked 4th in nationBy Pk Bartley

For the first time ever the University of Louisville field hockey team is ranked 4th in the nation. However to keep that ranking, the Lady Cards will have to play well against Wake Forest Friday at home. Wake Forest is ranked 7th in the nation. “They are a very fast team,” says U of L head coach Pam Bustin when commenting on Wake Forest’s team. “They have a great forward line that can score points. Our deefense will have to play them tough.”

For some of the players, this is going to be a revenge game. “Wake Forest beat us 7-0 our freshman year,” says senior midfielder Susan Sattazahn. “We’ll be looking for a little payback.”

Even though this is a big game, Bustin and the rest of the team are approaching it like they would any other matchup. “All our games are big games,” Bustin says. “Our schedule is so tough that nearly every game we play is against a great opponent like Wake Forest.”

Junior back Casey Lehman believes that, “the key to us winning the game is for us to come out and play strong in the first half. So far this season we have not played well in the first half. We wait until towards the end of the second half to start playing well.”

Both Bustin and the players expect this to be a very close game. “If the game goes into overtime, we feel that we have an advantage,” Sattazahn says. “We’ve already played an overtime game. We’ve played in several overtime games since I’ve been here.”

Wake Forest is considered one the quickest teams in the nation. “Since they’re so fast,” senior back Danielle Barr says, “we will have to give them a little more space. But I think defensively we should be able to match up with them.” Louisville plays Wake Forest Friday at 3pm at Trager Stadium. Admission is free.