By Catherine Laroche
The University of Louisville volleyball team’s perfect conference record was demolished Sunday, as the Cards fell to the University of Notre Dame on national television in South Bend, Ind.
Junior Jana Matisovska’s 16 kills, two aces and three blocks were not enough as the Cardinals lost 30-28, 30-16, 25-30, 30-28. The 3-1 loss broke the Cardinals’ 17-game win streak, as they finish the season with a 20-5 record, including 13-1 in the Big East. The Irish improve to 13-12 and 9-5 in the league. Both teams proceed to the Big East Championship that begins Friday at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisc.
“We knew coming in that this is a difficult place to play,” U of L head coach Leonid Yelin said. “They were fighting for their seniors and fighting to make sure no other team could bump them from the Big East Championships. They were inspired.”
The Cards were aced five times. Sophomore Lecia Brown finished the game with nine blocks, while senior Svetlana Dukule contributed 15 kills and three blocks for the Cardinals. Sophomore Justine Landi had 11 kills and a match-high 14 digs.
Although the Cardinals lost to Notre Dame, it doesn’t erase their phenomenal season that wasn’t expected of them.
“I’m pleased with the way we’re playing,” Yelin said. “They’re playing, this time of year, the way I expected. It’s nice because we never had this kind of goal. Our goal was to just go as far as we can.”
The Cardinals have gone from being unranked at the beginning of the season to ranked nationally as high as No. 17, securing the No. 1 spot in the Big East for five consecutive weeks.
“It’s a great feeling to know that we’re on a big winning streak and nationally ranked in the top 25, but we can’t use our ranking as an excuse to get where we want to be,” sophomore Samantha Dabbs said prior to the Notre Dame game. “We’re going in with a huge target on our back. Anybody can beat anybody on any given day.”
The Cards will put the loss to the Irish behind them and use it as a learning experience as they enter the Big East Championship. The team is well aware the conference tournament will not be an easy stroll to the NCAA tournament.
“Our goal is to win the conference tournament because it’s an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament,” Yelin said. “It’s the most important time of the season. I know we’re going to play hard and to our best ability.”
