March Madness 2022: Van Lith, Engstler lead Louisville past Lady Vols, 76-64

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Hailey Van Lith and Emily Engstler knew Louisville had allowed far too many leads to slip away in the fourth quarter this season, including the disheartening loss to Miami in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.

Van Lith and Engstler refused to let it happen again in the NCAA Tournament.

Van Lith poured in 23 points with six assists and was solid at the foul stripe down the stretch, while Emily Engstler had 20 points and 10 rebounds to help the top-seeded Cardinals withstand Tennessee's frantic comeback for a 76-64 victory on Saturday that sent coach Jeff Walz's bunch back to the Elite Eight for the fourth straight time.

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Louisville's Hailey Van Lith heads to the basket as Tennessee's Jordan Walker defends in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA women's tournament Saturday, March 26, 2022, in Wichita, Kansas. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Kianna Smith also had 12 points for the Cardinals (28-4), whose 15-point lead was whittled to two in the fourth quarter before they pulled away to set up a date with third-seeded Michigan on Monday.

"We just kept reminding each other that as long as we get stops and rebounds, we’ll be up no matter what," Van Lith said afterward, "no matter if we score or not. We were able to execute that. All of our players stepped up and got rebounds and made good plays on defense and we were able to pull away."

The Cardinals have become one of the nation's dominant women's programs under Walz – much like the Lady Vols were for so many years under Pat Summitt – but they are still chasing their first national championship.

"It's been a really long journey," said Engstler, a