Carlton has gone down by 13 points to Adelaide in a high-scoring affair at Ikon Park.

Coming off a disappointing loss to the Kangaroos last week, there were multiple positive signs for the Blues this time around in the eventual 7.2 (44) to 9.3 (57) loss.

On a perfect day for footy, the first quarter witnessed a free-flowing and see-sawing affair, with Adelaide dominating the first five minutes and kicking the first goal of the day through Eloise Jones.

But Carlton instantly responded through 2018 joint best-and-fairest winners Katie Loynes and Breann Moody, who kicked the Blues’ first two goals of the day.

After trailing by two points at quarter-time, the Blues quickly got the jump on the Crows in the second quarter through Nat Plane, who put the Blues in front by four points.

Brianna Davey – switched from defence to attack – set the tone for the quarter, winning the footy, beating two tacklers and handballing to Plane for the finishing touch.

The match evened out into a bone-crunching contest in the lead-up to the main change, with young gun Maddy Prespakis in everything as the game heated up while Kerryn Harrington led the way down back.

The Blues took all the momentum from the second quarter into the third, when Chloe Dalton – the Olympic Gold Medallist in her second AFLW match – kicked her first goal to put Carlton ahead by 10 points.

The Blues kept the pressure on the Crows and owned the game in the first five minutes. Plane kicked her second goal of the game and Darcy Vescio produced a trademark finish to give the Blues a 17-point lead.

But from then on, Adelaide forced its way back in the match. Stevie-Lee Thompson kicked two goals in the quarter, with Phillips and Perkins chiming in for one apiece. At the final change, the Crows led by a single point.

With all the momentum, the Crows pulled away in the final term. Jones kicked her second for the match early in the quarter, and the Blues weren’t able to recover from then on.

Prespakis kicked her first goal of her career, capping off a stellar performance in her second match. She ended the day with 20 disposals and backed up her impressive debut a week ago. 

The Blues head to the Blacktown International Sportspark next Saturday to take on GWS from 4:45pm. 

CARLTON        2.0       3.0       6.1       7.2 (44)
ADELAIDE       2.2       2.2       6.2       9.3 (57)

GOALS
Carlton: Plane 2, Dalton, Loynes, Moody, Prespakis, Vescio

BESTS
Carlton: Prespakis, Harrington, Van Dyk, Pound, Plane