Cardinal Couple

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- An article about the Schimmel's

- Volleyball travels to Rutgers

- Soccer looks to score at Cincy

- NCAA WBB with a Friday/Sunday Final Four?

Schimmel Family Extends its Gratitude to Supporters

 

Thanks to Brent Cahwee, NDNSPORTS.COM for sharing this GREAT article!

Cici and Rick Schimmel at the 2013 NABI Championships in Phoenix, AZ

(Oregon) – As the basketball season approaches all across the country for the many colleges and high schools the parents of Shoni and Jude Schimmel, Rick and Cici, released a statement today expressing gratitude to all of the supporters of their family.

The family noted, “As we are so busy just getting through the day sometimes we forget to think about and to thank our friends for what they mean to us. You are always in our hearts and prayers.”

Shoni and Jude Schimmel are of course the two famed Native American basketball players at the University of Louisville who exploded on to the national scene with the Cardinals Women’s basketball team as they marched through the NCAA tournament last season on their way to a national runner-up finish and inspiring many Native Americans from all across the country.

Since that time the family has been on a whirlwind tour across Indian Country and befriending countless tribes and fans along the way.

“We definitely had a busy but productive summer visiting 17 reservations and speaking to over 20,000 Natives. We hope the time we have taken to visit so many places has been a rewarding and inspiring moment in the lives of the people we have had the pleasure to meet.” said the family.

One of those highlights of the summer was a trip to the annual Native American Basketball
Invitational (NABI) where Shoni and Jude were awarded the Phil Homeratha Leadership Award. At the time Jude was the only one of the dynamic duo on site to accept the award(s) as Shoni was competing with the USA Women’s University basketball squad at the World University Games in Russia. The Schimmel family was able to catch a lot of the basketball games and visit with the fans of the family.



Shoni, now a senior at Louisville and Jude a junior, will be starting the season in the next few weeks and will look to make another run for the National Championship.

The family said, “No promises of another Cinderella run through the NCAA tournament this year, but we certainly plan for an exciting season. "
The family is also asking those that are able to this season, to show up and show your support for Shoni’s final game in March.

“I want to highlight the March 3rd game which will be Senior Night. We are encouraging as many of our friends and family to try to attend this game if possible. This will be Shoni’s last regular season game at Louisville and we play UConn so we want to show her lots of support.” said Rick Schimmel.

Whether they make it back to the National Championship game or not, you can bet that the outpouring of support and love for the Schimmels will continue and you can bet there should be more than a handful of Native supporters at Shoni’s final game for the Cardinals. See you there!


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VOLLEYBALL LOOKS TO EXTEND AAC WIN STREAK

THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE VOLLEYBALL TEAM SITS ATOP THE AMERICAN WITH A PERFECT 7-0 RECORD AND WILL LOOK TO KEEP THAT WINNING STREAK INTACT WHEN THEY GO TO PISCATAWAY, NJ TO FACE THE RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS FRIDAY NIGHT AT 7 P.M.

LOUISVILLE HAS WON 10 OUT OF THEIR LAST 11 AND FACES A RUTGERS SQUAD THAT IS 0-7 IN AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE PLAY AND 4-17 OVERALL.

LOUISVILLE HAD BEEN ABLE TO COMBINE A MIX OF THE NEW ( MAYA MCCLENDON AND JANELLE JENKINS) WITH THE OLD (EMILY JUHL, CAITLIN WELCH, BROOKE MATTINGLY) TO SOAR ABOVE THE COMPETITION IN THEIR ONLY SEASON IN THE AAC.


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SOCCER ENDS REGULAR SEASON AGAINST THE BEARCATS


KAREN FERGUSON DAYES WOMEN'S SOCCER TEAM ALSO SITS ATOP THE AAC WITH A 7-1-0 RECORD AND 11-4-1 OVERALL. THEY FACE A BEARCATS TEAM IN CINCINNATI TONIGHT THAT TOOK THEM TO DOUBLE OVERTIME LAST YEAR IN CARDINAL PARK BEFORE THE CARDS  2-1 IN SEASON FINALE FOR BOTH SQUADS.

THIS VERSION OF THE BEARCATS IS 8-9-1 AND TIED FOR THIRD IN THE AAC WITH A 4-3-1 RECORD.

CHARLYN CORRAL LEADS THE CARDS WITH 13 GOALS ON THE SEASON AND IS FOLLOWED BY CHRISTINE EXETER...WHO HAS PRODUCED EIGHT. FROSH GOALKEEPER PAIGE BROWN HAD FOUR SHUTOUTS AND 57 SAVES ON THE YEAR.

THE AAC TOURNAMENT GETS UNDERWAY 10-31-13 AT "VARIOUS CAMPUS SITES".


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FRIDAYS AND SUNDAYS?

           

( Thanks to Greg Johnson, NCAA.com for this report)

       

The Women’s Final Four would move to Friday-Sunday competition dates by as early as the 2015 tournament, according to a change approved by the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee.

All changes recommended by the committee must be approved by the Division I Championships/Sports Management Cabinet.

The Women’s Final Four will continue to be held on the same weekend as the Men’s Final Four. But instead of the semifinals taking place on a Sunday, with the championship game on a Tuesday –– a formula that has been used since 2003 — it will move to a Friday-Sunday schedule.

Additionally, the committee, which met this week in Indianapolis, decided that the top-16 seeds in the 2015 bracket will host the first- and second-round games, while regionals will be played at neutral sites.

The committee also decided that all games played on the first two weekends of the 2015 championship be conducted on Friday-Sunday, Saturday-Monday.

The move to games on Friday-Sunday for the Women’s Final Four is intended to be more fan friendly because the championship will conclude on a weekend, committee members said. In surveys that committee members reviewed, fans noted that the Sunday-Tuesday playing dates required taking three days away from work.

The committee also discussed moving the Women’s Final Four to the weekend after the Men’s Final Four. But after a thorough debate, the committee decided the current weekend is the best fit for the women’s game.

“It was a difficult decision for us,” Carolayne Henry said, the committee chair and senior associate commissioner/senior woman administrator for the Mountain West Conference.

“The atmosphere on the Final Four weekend is something we can continue to capitalize on. As we grow, we can look to see if we want to be a stand-alone entity. For now, we want to take advantage of the excitement around basketball that takes place on that weekend.”

The committee also decided that allowing the top-16 seeds to host on the first weekend will enhance the student-athlete experience by potentially drawing more fans to the arenas.

The changes will hopefully draw larger crowds because host teams will have spent a whole season building fan support for a successful team.

“We feel this will give teams incentive to get better so they can host,” Henry said. “It was a
challenging and difficult discussion for the committee. We know there are teams that would like to host, but they may not necessarily be in the top 16. We love having fans of teams, and the next step is attracting people who are fans of the game that will come to the arena because they want to see a good game.”

A system that rewards good teams with hosting rights could also save money. Sixteen of 64 teams will not travel on the first weekend of play.

The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association expressed concern that playing on home courts during the regional rounds created unfair competitive advantages as teams compete for Women’s Final Four berths. The committee agreed that games in the second weekend of the tournament should take place at neutral sites.

-Paulie

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