Saturday Cardinal Couple -- The journey of Shoni and Jude

 

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Sisters prepare for one final dance together

- Worrell finishes second in 100 butterfly

- Softball starts AAC play against Rutgers today

- Radio this morning.

- This madness...its the most wonderful time of the year

- Complete NCAA WBB Tournament TV schedule

We open the Saturday edition of Cardinal Couple with this great read from the Portland Tribune. Enjoy!



Their journey began so long ago that neither Shoni nor Jude Schimmel can remember when it started.

They were little more than toddlers when they first stepped onto a basketball court together. Both played for Hermiston High and Franklin High. After their prep careers, they went to University of Louisville, where they helped the Cardinals reach the NCAA championship game last season.

It is now Shoni’s senior year and Jude’s junior year, and their journey is about to end. Before it does, though, the sisters will play in the NCAA Tournament, with one final shot at more greatness.

“I don’t like to think about never playing with my sister again,” Shoni says. “It’s sad, because we’ve played together for like 16 years. You never want it to end, because we’ve done it our whole lives.”

Shoni and Jude come from a family of eight children that is half-white, half-Native American. The sisters have had a feature length documentary made about them and are heroes in the Native American community. They’ve inspired others, including Sam McCloud, their childhood friend and former Franklin teammate who left the reservation and enrolled at Louisville.

“It’s awesome,” Jude says. “She’s been one of my best friends since I was in third grade, and she’s been in my life ever since then. Just to have her take that leap of leaving the reservation just to come to school with us, it’s a really good feeling.”

Coming out of high school, Shoni, a 5-9 guard, was renowned for her flashiness, ball-handling ability and long-range shooting. Over four years at Louisville, she has become a much more well-rounded player. This year, she is averaging 17 points, 3.6 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game.

“My game has matured from my freshman year,” Shoni says. “I’ve learned how to have better shot selection and read the defense better. I’ve learned a lot. But at the same time, I’m just playing basketball, so it comes naturally.”

Jude is two years younger than Shoni. She skipped a grade so she would have more time on the court with her sister. During her senior year at Franklin, without Shoni, Jude, a 5-7 point guard, was the Quakers’ go-to player. Since coming to Louisville, she has learned to accept more of a reserve role.

“I went from being the best player on my team in high school and having to do everything to college, where I had to accept that I’m not always going to have that big of a role,” Jude says. “That’s the biggest thing that’s changed about my game.”

Jude played well early in the 2013-14 season, sometimes starting as the Cardinals’ point guard. After winter break, though, she sprained her ankle and has since been trying to find her rhythm. She is averaging 5.2 points, 3.6 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game. She says she is much healthier heading into the NCAA tourney.

“I started the season off really well,” Jude says. “I was really happy with myself and the way I was playing. I’ve been in a rough spot for a while. I missed almost a whole month. My ankle still bothers me, but it has gotten a lot better. I’m probably at 98 percent.”

Led by Shoni and Jude and others, the Cardinals are 30-4 ranked No. 3 in the nation.

“Last year, we set the bar high, and our expectations haven’t gone down,” Jude says of the Cardinals. “Ever since I was little, I just wanted to win and be the best.”

 

Says Shoni: “We want to get back to the NCAA championship and win.”

The biggest thing in Louisville’s way is UConn. The No. 1-ranked Huskies, who beat Louisville in the title game last season, have continued to be kryptonite for the Cardinals. The undefeated Huskies have handed Louisville three of its losses, 81-64, 68-48 and 72-52.

However, the Cardinals are no strangers to playing against the odds. Last season, they ousted Baylor and superstar Brittney Griner from the tournament.
   
“Nobody had really beat Baylor,” Shoni says. “Nobody expects us to beat UConn, so why can’t we go out there and beat UConn?”

To do so would take the game of the Cardinals’ lives, especially on defense.

“We don’t have to play a perfect offensive game,” Jude says. “We have to play a perfect defensive game. They’re beatable. They’re human. But they’re a very good team. In order for us to have a chance, we have to find a way to play a really, really great game on defense.

“You always look forward to that game against UConn because that’s the team we have to beat in order to win the national championship.”

Shoni says the Cardinals have learned from their losses to the Huskies.

“You learn something every time you play against them,” she says. “We have to put all the pieces together. Each game, we’re learning more and more how to do that. They’re a really good team. We have to be on our ‘A’ game and be smart the whole game. We have to play a collectively good 40 minutes of basketball as a team. We can’t let them take advantage of our mistakes, because they can easily go on a 10-0 run. We have to be smart and in the game.”

Jude will graduate this summer with a degree in sociology. She will continue playing at Louisville next year while she starts a masters program. “Maybe in business,” she says, “but I’m not sure.”

Shoni will graduate this spring with a degree in communications. This summer, she is expected to begin her career in the WNBA. She is projected by many to be a first-round draft pick. While it is Shoni’s dream to play in the WNBA, she has not thought much about where she might go in the draft.
“I haven’t really looked into it yet,” she says. “I’m not trying to focus on that now while I’m still in college. But playing the WNBA is something I’ve always wanted to do. For it to come to life and be real, it’s pretty exciting.”

Before that happens, the two sisters should have a few more games left to play together.

“She’s going to continue to play basketball,” Jude says, “and I don’t really know what I want to do after next year. It’s going to be sad. But I might as well cherish the time we have left.”

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University of Louisville sophomore Kelsi Worrell made school history when she finished second in the 100 butterfly at the 2014 NCAA’s Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships Friday evening in Minneapolis on the campus of the University of Minnesota. 

“What a day for UofL Swimming,” said UofL head coach Arthur Albiero.  “We opened the day with a school record in the 200-medley relay and closed with an NCAA Runnerup finish by Kelsi. As a staff, we are proud of the way our team is representing UofL.” 

The Cardinal sophomore went 51.09, touching second in a hotly contested final lap, just behind Stanford’s Felicia Lee’s winning time of 50.89.  Worrell was second to Santa Barbara’s Andrea Ward at the halfway point, but had to battle SMU’s Marne Erasmus, who touched third in 51.10 as well as Lee down the stretch.

Ward was into the wall fourth (51.47)

Worrell’s prelim time of 50.95 ranks her the eighth fastest NCAA time in history
and she became just the 7th swimmer ever to break 51 seconds in the 100-yard
fly.  Her NCAA Runner-up is the highest finish ever for a Cardinal in school

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Louisville softball is back at Ulmer for two games today and one Sunday against AAC foe Rutgers.

The Cards get it started at noon today

Louisville will look to get offense from the hot bats of Katie Keller and Kelsi Jones. "K Squared" has been pounding it well for the Cards..Killer Keller is batting .416 and has crossed home plate 25 times. She's also driven in 15 runs. Kelsi has sent seven orbs over the fence this season and has a team high 20 RBI's. They are not alone when it comes to getting on base. Four of their teammates are batting over .300 and the team has a collective .309 average.

Freshman Maryssa Becker continues to impress in the circle. She's 5-1 and carries a 1.66 earned run average. Teams are batting just .189 against her and she's recorded 57 strike outs in 54 innings. Becker tossed a no hitter Wednesday vs. WKU.  Senior Rachel LeCoq (5-5)  and Caralisa Connell (6-4) are showing signs of shaking the rough starts that both of them have had at times this season and should do well against AAC batters.


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Be sure to catch Cardinal Couple Radio today at 11 AM on Crescent Hill Radio. We'll talk a lot of hoops and other UofL women's sports!

Click the link below and off you go!

http://www.crescenthillradio.com


Also, don't forget those bracket picks for the NCAA Women's Tournament! You have until 11 AM this morning. Leave them in the comments section or e-mail them to cardinalcouple@twc.com



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My favorite time of the year is here and it's just beginning. MARCH MADNESS is an event that transcends anything that the World Series, Super Bowl, Derby Week or College Football Bowl season can offer. It's been a wonderful 48 hours of following teams, players and scores so far and now the women's tournament joins the fray.

If heaven is like this, sign me up.

Here's the complete Women's Tournament Schedule:

Saturday, March 22
11:00 a.m.: E8. Arizona State vs. E9. Vanderbilt at Toledo, Ohio (ESPN2/Beth Mowins and Stephanie White)
11:00 a.m.: MW2. Duke vs. MW15. Winthrop at Durham, N.C. (ESPN2/Mark Jones and LaChina Robinson)
11:00 a.m.: E3. Kentucky vs. E14. Wright State at Lexington, Ky. (ESPN2/Mark Kestecher and Brooke Weisbrod)
11:00 a.m.: E5. Oklahoma State vs. E12. Florida Gulf Coast at West Lafayette, Ind. (Melissa Lee and Jimmy Dykes)
1:30 p.m.: E1. Notre Dame vs. E16. Robert Morris at Toledo, Ohio (ESPN/Beth Mowins and Stephanie White)
1:30 p.m.: MW7. DePaul vs. MW10. Oklahoma at Durham, N.C. (ESPN2/Mark Jones and LaChina Robinson)
1:30 p.m.: E6. Syracuse vs. E11. Tennessee-Chattanooga at Lexington, Ky. (ESPN2/Mark Kestecher and Brooke Weisbrod)
1:30 p.m.: E4. Purdue vs. E13. Akron at West Lafayette, Ind. (Melissa Lee and Jimmy Dykes)
4:00 p.m.: S1. Tennessee vs. S16. Northwestern State at Knoxville, Tenn. (ESPN2/Joe Davis and Maria Taylor)
4:00 p.m.: W7. Iowa State vs. W10. Florida State at Ames, Iowa (ESPN2/Clay Matvick and Fran Fraschilla)
4:00 p.m.: MW4. Nebraska vs. MW13. Fresno State at Los Angeles, Calif. (ESPN2/Dave Pasch and Doris Burke)
4:00 p.m.: E7. California vs. E10. Fordham at Waco, Texas (ESPN2/Pam Ward and Carolyn Peck)
6:30 p.m.: S8. St. John's vs. S9. Southern California at Knoxville, Tenn. (ESPN2/Joe Davis and Maria Taylor)
6:30 p.m.: W2. Stanford vs. W15. South Dakota at Ames, Iowa (ESPN2/Clay Matvick and Fran Fraschilla)
6:30 p.m.: MW5. North Carolina State vs. MW12. Brigham Young at Los Angeles, Calif. (ESPN2/Dave Pasch and Doris Burke)
6:30 p.m.: E2. Baylor vs. E15. Western Kentucky at Waco, Texas (ESPN2/Pam Ward and Carolyn Peck)
Sunday, March 23
12:30 p.m.: W3. Penn State vs. W14. Wichita State at University Park, Pa. (ESPN2/Bob Picozzi and Krista Blunk)
12:30 p.m.: S7. Louisiana State vs. S10. Georgia Tech at Baton Rouge, La. (ESPN2/Cara Capuano and Nell Fortner)
12:30 p.m.: W5. Michigan State vs. W12. Hampton at Chapel Hill, N.C. (ESPN2/Tom Hart and Mary Murphy)
12:30 p.m.: S4. Maryland vs. S13. Army at College Park, Md. (ESPN2/Bob Wischusen and Christy Winters-Scott)
3:00 p.m.: W6. Dayton vs. W11. Florida at University Park, Pa. (ESPN/Bob Picozzi and Krista Blunk)
3:00 p.m.: S2. West Virginia vs. S15. Albany at Baton Rouge, La. (ESPN/Cara Capuano and Nell Fortner)
3:00 p.m.: W4. North Carolina vs. W13. Tennessee-Martin at Chapel Hill, N.C. (ESPN2/Tom Hart and Mary Murphy)
3:00 p.m.: S5. Texas vs. S12. Penn at College Park, Md. (ESPN/Bob Wischusen and Christy Winters-Scott)
5:30 p.m.: MW8. Georgia vs. MW9. Saint Joseph's at Storrs, Conn. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien and Debbie Antonelli)
5:30 p.m.: S3. Louisville vs. S14. Idaho at Iowa City, Iowa (ESPN/Holly Rowe and Brenda VanLengen)
5:30 p.m.: MW6. Gonzaga vs. MW11. James Madison at College Station, Texas (ESPN/Carter Blackburn and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude)
5:30 p.m.: W1. South Carolina vs. W16. Cal State-Northridge at Seattle. Wash. (ESPN/Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham)
8:00 p.m.: MW1. Connecticut vs. MW16. Prairie View A&M at Storrs, Conn. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien and Debbie Antonelli)
8:00 p.m.: S6. Iowa vs. S11. Marist at Iowa City, Iowa (ESPN2/Holly Rowe and Brenda VanLengen)
8:00 p.m.: MW3. Texas A&M vs. MW14. North Dakota at College Station, Texas (ESPN2/Carter Blackburn and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude)
8:00 p.m.: W8. Middle Tennessee State vs. W9. Oregon State at Seattle. Wash. (ESPN2/Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham)
Second Round
Monday, March 24
6:30 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Durham, N.C. (ESPN2/Mark Jones and LaChina Robinson)
6:30 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at Lexington, Ky. (ESPN2/Mark Kestecher and Brooke Weisbrod)
6:30 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at Toledo, Ohio (ESPN2/Beth Mowins and Stephanie White)
6:30 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at West Lafayette, Ind. (ESPN2/Melissa Lee and Jimmy Dykes)
9:00 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Ames, Iowa (ESPN2/Clay Matvick and Fran Fraschilla)
9:00 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Knoxville, Tenn. (ESPN2/Joe Davis and Maria Taylor)
9:00 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Los Angeles, Calif. (ESPN2/Dave Pasch and Doris Burke)
9:00 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at Waco, Texas (ESPN2/Pam Ward and Carolyn Peck)
Tuesday, March 25
7:00 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at University Park, Pa. (ESPN2/Bob Picozzi and Krista Blunk)
7:00 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Storrs, Conn. (ESPN2/Dave O'Brien and Debbie Antonelli)
7:00 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at College Park, Md. (ESPN2/Bob Wischusen and Christy Winters-Scott)
7:00 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Chapel Hill, N.C. (ESPN2/Tom Hart and Mary Murphy)
9:30 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Baton Rouge, La. (ESPN2/Cara Capuano and Nell Fortner)
9:30 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at College Station, Texas (ESPN2/Carter Blackburn and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude)
9:30 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Iowa City, Iowa (ESPN2/Holly Rowe and Brenda VanLengen)
9:30 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Seattle. Wash. (ESPN2/Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham)
Regional Semifinals
Saturday, March 29
12:00 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at South Bend, Ind. (ESPN/Beth Mowins, Stephanie White and Maria Taylor)
2:30 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at South Bend, Ind. (ESPN/Beth Mowins, Stephanie White and Maria Taylor)
4:30 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Lincoln, Neb. (ESPN/Pam Ward, Carolyn Peck and LaChina Robinson)
7:00 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Lincoln, Neb. (ESPN/Pam Ward, Carolyn Peck and LaChina Robinson)
Sunday, March 30
12:00 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Louisville, Ky. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)
2:30 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Louisville, Ky. (ESPN2/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)
4:30 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Stanford, Calif. (ESPN2/Dave Pasch, Debbie Antonelli and Brooke Weisbrod)
7:30 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Stanford, Calif. (ESPN2/Dave Pasch, Debbie Antonelli and Brooke Weisbrod)
Regional Finals
Monday, March 31
7:30 p.m.: E. TBA vs. E. TBA at South Bend, Ind. (ESPN/Beth Mowins, Stephanie White and Maria Taylor)
9:30 p.m.: MW. TBA vs. MW. TBA at Lincoln, Neb. (ESPN/Pam Ward, Carolyn Peck and LaChina Robinson)
Tuesday, April 1
7:00 p.m.: S. TBA vs. S. TBA at Louisville, Ky. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)
9:00 p.m.: W. TBA vs. W. TBA at Stanford, Calif. (ESPN/Dave Pasch, Debbie Antonelli and Brooke Weisbrod)
National Semifinals
Sunday, April 6
Pregame coverage starts on ESPN at 6:00 p.m. Famed Temple alumnus Kevin Neghandi hosts on site with analysts Kara Lawson and Rebecca Lobo.
The East winner will face the South winner and the Midwest winner will face the West winner, but the order of games won't be determined until the matchups are set.
6:30 p.m.: TBA vs. TBA at Nashville, Tenn. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)
9:00 p.m.: TBA vs. TBA at Nashville, Tenn. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)
National Finals
Tuesday, April 8
Pregame coverage starts with studio shows on ESPNU from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Coverage moves to ESPN after that, with Neghandi, Lawson and Lobo on site.
8:30 p.m.: TBA vs. TBA at Nashville, Tenn. (ESPN/Dave O'Brien, Doris Burke and Holly Rowe)