Cards 2nd in BIG EAST Rowing, Tennis falls to Georgetown, Obama gets Osama

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MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE:

The Cards paddle to 2nd in BIG EAST

-Rowing wins Varsity Eight, 2nd overall

-Tennis falls in consolations

-Obama 1, Osama 0

Louisville rowing was just a concept several years ago. Coaches would scour the campus and directly approach students on campus, asking them if they'd like to try out for the team. The boathouse was directly behind a liquor store down on River Road and campus wide recognition was minimal. Those days have changed. With a new facility, student/athletes being recruited and signed expressly for the sport and a growing fan base, Rowing at Louisville has com a long way. That was evident yesterday...as the Louisville women's rowing team placed second in team events, won the BIG EAST Varsity Eight title and placed four rowers on the All-BIG EAST roster.

Notre Dame barely edged the Cards out for the title, scoring 114 points...to the Cards 109 up in West Windsor, NJ. The Cards Varsity Eight crew of Erin Bennett, Sam Kayser, Cara Littleton, Katya Monchenko, Kristin Falovo, Ali Woods, Lauren Mensch-Speelman, Morgan Dunham and Anastasia Prokopenko finished 1st in the highlight race of the meet...the Varsity Eight...recording a time of 6:40....two seconds better than Notre Dame.

Prokopenko, Bennett, Dunham and Mensch-Speelman were named to the All-BIG EAST squad. Louisville will compete in the BIG EAST/ACC Dual meet May 14-15 next in Oak Ridge, TN.

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Louisville women's tennis fell to Georgetown 4-2 in the loser bracket of the BIG EAST Tennis Championships. Julia Fellerhoff and Rebecca Shine did win in doubles competition and Sonia Bokhari won in singles. WE'VE never quite understood the scoring and point awarding in tennis matches. There were nine games total...3 singles and 6 doubles. Louisville won all three doubles event and two of the six singles events but come up with only 2 points? Seems like that would be like having nine Cardinals play in a basketball game but only counting six of their scoring stats. Then again, WE'VE never participated in competitive tennis...WE just wish the Louisville girls well in it.

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Obama bin Laden is dead. It was the reason that US forces went to and are still engaged in combat missions in several Middle East countries. He was the mastermind behind 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the recognized leader of terrorist group Al-Queda. There will probably never be peace for all mankind, but taking out the leader of a group sworn to the death of all Americans is a good start.

Reprisals by his survivors? Probably being planned as we type this today. WE can only hope that someday, someway and somehow...insurgents and terrorist will put down their weapons and stop their plans of death and terror. In some cultures and philosophies, dying for one's cause is the ultimate religious honor. Whatever happen to peace, love and understanding?

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