Future Cards Face Off, Updates From Yesterday, and More -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Seygan Robins and Molly Lockhart Meet in LIT

While the Boys' version of the Louisville Invitational Tournament wrapped up (after being postponed) a couple of weeks ago, the Girls' LIT is coming to a close this weekend. In a quarterfinal matchup that may have been better served as a semifinal or final game, Mercer County and Butler squared off for a chance to make it to the final day. This is interesting for Cardinal fans, as two Louisville signees that you probably know about, are the stars for these two teams.

Seygan Robins' Mercer County Lady Titans came into the game ranked second in the state. They've won 26 straight games against in-state competition. Molly Lockhart's Butler Bearettes were ranked eleventh. They were seeking their fifth straight appearance in an LIT title game. The game was a rematch from last season, when the two teams met as the top two in the state. In that game, number two Butler dominated number one Mercer County to the tune of a 25 point victory. It was an event that Mercer County would clearly seek revenge for, and they got that revenge yesterday.

Butler put up a fight early, scoring the first five points of the game, but Seygan Robins came to play. Robins reached double figures in the first six minutes of the game, showing that Butler would not once again stretch out a large opening lead. The game was tight throughout, with the Bearettes hanging close through the third quarter. Butler took a 39-36 lead late in the third quarter, but Mercer County regained the lead with two and a half minutes left in the third and would not relinquish it for the remainder of the game.

Seygan Robins scored 11 points in the final six minutes of the game to put Butler away for good, and scored 24 overall, though she was not the leading scorer in the game. That honor belonged to Jasmine Elder of Butler, who scored 26. Butler also finished with the game high rebounder and shot blocker; Lockhart with 11 and 3. However, it was more consistent team scoring that did the Bearettes in, as Mercer County had 4 players with at least nine points while Butler had only 3 players score at least 8. That scoring discrepancy made the difference, and Mercer County won 61-51.

Paulie was at last night's game, almost specifically to watch the two future Cardinals face off. You've heard him gush before about Seygan Robins, and it was no different. "Seygan [is the] best player in the state [in] high school," Paulie wrote last night. It is good to see her performing at a high level in high level competition. He also spoke specifically about Molly Lockhart, saying "[She is] a rebounding machine but still needs work at finishing around the basket." Fortunately for the Cards, Louisville has a current player that fits the bill of rebounding machine, and that same player has developed into a post scorer quite well. You know her as a 1,000 point, 1,000 rebound player. We know her as DOOBLAY. I'm not saying definitively that Molly Lockhart can develop into quite the player that Myisha Hines-Allen as become, but if she can, look out college basketball. 

The two players are both members of the upcoming class, so they'll join a talented young team with experienced and talented veterans. That's a pretty great combination, and we'll see how Jeff Walz can work some crazy magic on such a team.

Swimming and Tennis Yesterday

Louisville women's tennis enjoys those double header days, as they hosted another one yesterday. UTEP and Northern Kentucky came into town yesterday, only to both be sent packing with only 0-7 losses to show for their trip. Louisville has started their season with four straight sweeping victories, and they'll look to continue their hot start when they take on Western Kentucky tomorrow.

The Louisville Swimming and Diving team hosted their Senior Day yesterday when Indiana came to town. It was the Cards' final home two-way match, hence the early Senior Day festivities. The Cards honored seven seniors, including Paige Ezell, Rachel Grooms, Lauren James, and Hannah Magnuson from the women's side. Unfortunately, they came up against a strong Indiana team ranked 7th and 3rd. Louisville posted good swimming times overall, but they were defeated on both sides by the Hoosiers. They'll take a break until hosting the Louisville Invitational in mid-February.

A Personal Note and Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

As you may have noticed (or maybe you didn't, who knows), I did not write up Monday's article as normal, and I never had a day during the week to replace it. I've decided I needed to take a small step back from Cardinal Couple due to some changes in my daily life. I've changed positions at work, leading to increased responsibility (and therefore increased time and stress), and I've recently begun studying for my engineering licensure exams. I still intend to write an article a week (on Saturdays most likely) and appear on the radio show as often as time allows. I just wanted to give you all an update. My love for the Cards has not waned and I still very much enjoy my contributions to the site, I just needed it to take a little less of my time. 

While we're talking about the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour, that's a thing that is happening today. We'll be on live, as nearly every Saturday, from 11AM-12PM, despite what Paulie writes in his Facebook or Twitter posts. WCHQ is the station handle, and you can find the show at 100.9FM, wchqfm.com, or the WCHQ App. Join us as we talk basketball and bring you exclusive audio from the Louisville Spring Sports Media Day.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Portions of this article were inspired by information gathered from Courier Journal.