LOUISVILLE, Ky.—The Bellarmine field hockey team opened its season—unofficially—on Saturday with a 2-0 loss to Centre College in an exhibition match at Owsley B. Frazier Stadium. 
 
The Colonels, who have already played three games in a trip to Ireland this summer, controlled the tempo of the game and owned a whopping 26-2 advantage in shots with a 10-2 edge in penalty corners. Bellarmine goalies Heather Gregory and Breanna McWhorter posted solid games with each getting 30 minutes of action in the cage. Gregory was credited with five saves while McWhorter recorded nine in the second half.
 
The game was played under the new timing rules which call for play in four 15-minute quarters and clock stoppage during penalty corner setup.  Centre scored in the first and last quarters with Kate Pilcher and Savannah Elpers each getting goals.
 
"Today was definitely a learning day for our squad," said Bellarmine Coach Devanny Boisvert, adding she was appreciative of the opportunity to play full-field and adjust to the new quarter format.
 
"Centre is always a strong opponent for us, and the game is always very competitive," Boisvert added.   "Centre cuts hard back to balls; they play low on defense and are constantly trying to get their sticks on the ball."
 
Among the positives Boisvert took away from the exhibition were seeing players in different roles and assessing what combination of players will make the best lineup during the regular season. However, the first- year head coach saw a lot of room for improvement. "Our play was very individualistic today," she said, "and I wish we would've seen more of the possession style of play that we've been working on the past week. Thankfully this was practice for us, and we can now focus on improvement for tomorrow's exhibition against DePauw.
 
Tomorrow's exhibition against the Tigers is slated for a 1 p.m. start.

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