Sportsmen's Supper Club Hosts UofL Coaches -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

SPORTSMEN'S SUPPER CLUB 


I was invited to join Paulie at the Sportsmen’s Supper Club last night.  When I heard that we would have the pleasure of having a couple UofL coaches as the guest speakers I couldn’t resist.

After work I headed down to campus and found a nice parking spot convenient to the front door of the University Club.  If parking was this easy at all UofL events I would be one happy camper.  It was easy to navigate my way through the hallways and corridors of the U-Club, despite not having been inside it since my days as a Cardinal Ambassador when I was still a student.  Paulie offered me a beverage so I thought “why not”.

Scott Teeter

 Not long after my arrival Coach Scott Teeter of Louisville Lacrosse and one of his senior captains Casey Madura appeared.  I had known about Coach Teeter before the event, but Casey’s presence was a surprise.  We got to have quite a conversation with the pair as we waited for dinner.  Paulie told us about his ACC women’s basketball tournament adventures.  Teeter and Casey enlightened us with how they found their way to the University of Louisville.

Dinner began, and I must say that it was much better than my cheap, fast food lunch earlier that day.  The U-Club is known for delicious food and they did not disappoint.  I would recommend them for a meal sometime if you are ever looking for a nice meal.

Coach Dani Busboom Kelly strolled in after dinner began.  Her late arrival was due to having an important recruit on campus.  DBK elected not to have dinner after recently having a meal with the recruit, but she did join us in some conversation.  This was the first time that Teeter and DBK had met in person.  Teeter came in at the beginning of January and went straight to work with the start of the season around the corner while DBK was getting some traveling done to visit recruits before spring practices began.

Dani Busboom Kelly

One thing we got to talk about was the departure and addition of players.  Four seniors (Gabbie Wiley, Tess Clark, Maggie DeJong, and Coline Coessens) graduated and have begun their careers.  Kali Eaken transferred out to complete her senior season at Wichita State.  Recently it was announced that Alexia Byrnes would transfer to Youngstown State, where she will have four years of eligibility remaining.  This upcoming season will see the addition of seven players.  There is a transfer that has joined the squad for spring practices.  Six freshmen will make their first appearance in the fall.

As dinner concluded we got to hear from DBK first.  She gave an opening speech recapping this past volleyball season.  Louisville hired Dani Busboom Kelly after Anne Kordes retired following the 2016 season.  The Cards had a rough 2016 year and were voted to finish eighth in the conference during the preseason polls.  The Cards wound up taking the ACC title and receiving the automatic qualification to the NCAA Tournament.

Casey Madura

She then took questions from the members of the club and was happy to answer any and every question.  As a member of the sports media realm I often forget that some of what is just expected of me to know is not always common knowledge for the average fan.  Here are a few answers to questions we heard from Dani Busboom Kelly:


-Volleyball has 12 full scholarships each year that can be renewed or revoked the next season.  They do not do partial scholarships.

-A libero is a defensive specialist that only plays back line and can sub in and out at will.

-Some of the potentials leaders for the 2018 team include Molly Sauer, Melanie McHenry, and Wilma Rivera.

-Recruiting for collegiate level of volleyball can start as early as eighth grade.  There is a new rule that will be voted on later this year that would prevent coaches from recruiting players before their junior year of high school.

After DBK finished her Q&A and went back to continue a visit with a recruit,  Scott Teeter took the podium.  Teeter gave us insight into his background and what it was like coming to Louisville.  Teeter spent many years at his alma mater, Canisius College, making the mid-level school become a respected program.  Besides being the head coach at the collegiate level Teeter is also the Canadian National Team coach, where he has earned gold and silver medals.  This is also how he was able to connect with Cardinal Forever Kay Morrissette.

Teeter brought Casey Madura to the posium with him and she had nothing but high praises for her new coach.  She talked about how well the team got along with the new coach immediately.  Casey told us how the torn ACL set her back this season and how she will come to a tough decision next year if she will choose to play a red-shirt senior season or if she will accept a job up in the Big Apple. 

We then learned of some news that caused the room to fall silent.  Casey recently found out that she had thyroid cancer.  Thankfully, she was able to have emergency surgery to remove the thyroid and is now cancer free, a statement that brought the largest applause of the evening.

The floor was then opened for Q&A.  Here are some answers we heard from Teeter and Casey:

-Despite having 12 players on the field for each team most of the time 7v7 because of the lines and dividers on the field.

-The ACC is the toughest of all lacrosse conferences with nearly every team currently being ranked.  They also own the most NCAA Championships.

-Most big recruits come from the east coast, where lacrosse has been popular for a while.

-Lacrosse is one of the fastrst growing sports around the world.  In the US there are now almost 120 schools in the NCAA with a lacrosse program.

-You cannot recruit for college lacrosse until September 1 of a player’s junior year of high school.

Following the conclusion of the speakers everyone departed while Paulie and I stayed behind to socialize with Teeter and Casey a little longer.  Besides the official athletics representatives, Cardinal Couple is the only media to cover Louisville Lacrosse, and they have been extremely grateful for that.

If I haven’t lost you yet there’s a few things this weekend going on. 

-Softball begins their second weekend of home games in the Cardinal Classic.  They host Bradley and UMass today.

- Track and Field starts the first day of the indoor championships.

For more about these sports and the other women’s sports at UofL make sure to tune into the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour tomorrow morning.  I will be back at the bank, but you’ll get to hear the voices of Paulie, Worldwide, and Case.

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

Jared