Apr 2, 2013; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Louisville Cardinals forward Sara Hammond (00) attempts a shot against Tennessee Lady Volunteers forward Bashaara Graves (12) in the first half during the finals of the Oklahoma City regional of the 2013 NCAA womens basketball tournament at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
The Tennessee Volunteer’s ladies basketball team was denied a trip to the Final Four for the fifth straight season on Tuesday night.
The 2nd seeded Lady Vols (27-8) fell one game short of making the Final Four with a 86-78 loss to the 5th Louisville Cardinals.
Louisville led by as many as 20 points in the second half, but the Lady Vols would rally and close the lead to two points with under five minutes to play.
The Cardinals were able to hold off the Lady Vols behind a game high 24 points from Shoni Schimmel.
Taber Spani led the Lady Vols in scoring with 20 points.
The Lady Vols finished as the SEC regular season champions in Holly Warlick’s first season as head coach.
Louisville advanced to the Final Four by first upsetting top seeded Baylor in the sweet 16, before their victory over Tennessee on Tuesday night.
Louisville will face California on Sunday for a chance to play in the national championship against either Notre Dame or Connecticut a week from tonight.