CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDINAL COUPLE
We report on the joy and excitement of UofL women's sports here. Thanks for checking us out! Click the picture of Louie to hear the latest Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast!!

Friday, April 16, 2021

Volleyball to Sweet 16 -- Dana Evans to Dallas -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL 

Good morning!

Sometimes it feels like yesterday since I've checked in with you all, other times it feels like ages.  This time it feels like forever since I've checked in.  It could be that the softball Cards have been on the road for a while or had a game postponed.  Could be that I have started back at the Louisville Bats with button pushing duties.  I know I haven't been on radio for a while too and it could totally be why as well.  I am going to try my best to hop on from the studio Saturday morning.  

Into the news and notes and joys of Louisville women's athletics... 


Volleyball CARDS beat San Diego 3-1




The Cardinals opened the NCAA tournament Thursday afternoon against the San Diego Toreros in Omaha, NE.  After a very slow start for UofL and losing the first set 25-14, the Cards stormed back to win the following three sets and advance to the Sweet 16 for the second consecutive season. Coach Dani Busboom Kelly referenced the bubble being a reason the team came out flat-footed.  UofL hit a frigid -.077 and had scored the first six points for the Toreros on hitting errors.

"For sure we had some nerves in the first set. I think one of the things about being in the bubble is it is tough," said Busboom Kelly. "We had 30 minutes to practice on that court at 7 a.m. yesterday and that is the only 30 minutes we got. At 7 a.m. in general you wouldn't get much out of it and when you are in a whole new arena on a new court with weird backdrop, it is just a lot of different things going on that are out of the norm. I wasn't surprised we started out slowly but it went poorly in a hurry. I didn't think necessarily that we would be bad for the whole set but I knew we couldn't play much worse than that after game one. That is kind of to be expected. San Diego got to play before. (they played Wednesday to beat Texas A&M-Corpus Cristi 3-0) While it is great to be seeded and get a bye and it is an advantage in some ways but I think it was a disadvantage as a set up because you didn't get the experience in the environment because it is so unique."




Overall, UofL hit .227 with 15 blocks and five aces, surviving 12 service errors. ACC and AVCA East Region Freshman of the Year Anna DeBeer had 11 kills and five blocks. Amaya Tillman rejected USD nine times, adding four kills. Tori Dilfer ran the offense with 41 assists and an ace, helping out with four blocks. Chaussee filled up the stat box notching a career-high in kills as she threw down 21, adding two aces and a team-high 10 digs.

In the second set, San Diego maintained momentum early, using a 6-0 run to go up 14-10 early. Busboom Kelly inserted Chausee into the lineup and she responded with seven kills, hitting .875 and scored five of the final 10 points of the set. UofL did not regain the lead until 22-21 on a miss by Fayad. A kill by Chaussee gave the Cards set point at 24-23 and a ball-handling error charged to the Toreros gave the Cards the 25-23 win and evened the set score going into the break.

In the third set, a deflated San Diego squad let the Cardinals jump out to an 8-5 lead early but tied at ten on a UofL miscue. UofL responded immediately with a 5-0 run to go up 15-10 at the media timeout. The Cards commanded the lead down the stretch to a 25-17 win. Chaussee paced the Cards with five kills and two aces in the set. 




The fourth set was a thriller. Louisville went through eight ties and four lead changes and we got bonus Volleyball, before Louisville got a block by Amaya Tillman and Aiko Jones to win set and match 29-27.  

The Cards advance to play the Washington Huskies on Sunday.  Time is TBD.  The Huskies are 18-3 after beating Dayton Thursday afternoon 3-2.

Cardinal Couple writer Jeff McAdams is in Tulsa and we hope he'll chime in via the comments section with his observations on the win. He will join us for a recap on the Saturday Cardinal Couole Radio Hour Podcast. 

Dana Evans on WNBA Draft night




Dana Evans heard her name called Thursday night by the Dallas Wings. She was the first pick in the second round -- 13th overall in the WNBA draft.. Dana fell in the selection process from what many expected, going in the second round, on draft night, but she kept her head held high.. going 13th overall, Dallas had 3 of the first 5 picks. 

Evans is the 14th Louisville player selected in the history of the WNBA Draft. Of the 14 WNBA Draft picks, 12 have played under head coach Jeff Walz.

"It's a blessing, I'm just really excited to finally hear my name," said Evans to Holly Rowe during ESPN's coverage of the WNBA Draft. "But, I'll use it as motivation because I didn't expect to be this far (down...in the draft). I'm ready to take on whatever I have to do and I'm excited."

It marks the third straight season that Louisville has had at least one player selected in the WNBA Draft.





Last season, Jazmine Jones and Kylee Shook went 12th and 13th overall to the New York Liberty. In 2019, three Cardinals were selected as Asia Durr went second overall to the New York Liberty, Arica Carter went 32nd to the Phoenix Mercury and Sam Fuehring went 34th to the Washington Mystics.

It was a shock to us all here at CC to see Dana on the board so long.  But we wish her nothing but the best as she embarks on the next step in her basketball journey.   I know Louisville fans will continue to follow the career of Dana Evans.   A heads up... The Dallas Wings visit the Indiana Fever on June 24th.  Mark your calendars. 





Louisville Softball opens series with #21 Duke


Friday at 7 p.m.  
Saturday (DH) at 12 p.m.
Sunday at 12 p.m.
Watch on ACCNX




The Cards are back at Ulmer for a four game series with the Blue Devils (27-9, 15-9 ACC).   Its the first trip to Louisville for Duke.  Friday's game will be the first of 9 games against top 25 ranked foes. 

Louisville leads the all time series 2-1.  This weekend's series will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2018 when Louisville claimed the series, 2-1. Duke picked up a 1-0 victory in game three to avoid the sweep. Duke is currently on a 3-game losing streak as well as a cancellation falling to league leader and #9 Florida State last weekend.





UofL is led by junior Camryn Greenwood with a .447 clip (2nd in ACC) on an ACC-leading 46 hits and a team-high eight stolen bases. Taylor Roby holds the team’s second highest batting average at .409 and leads the pitching staff with eight victories. At the plate, she’s registered 36 hits, including a team-high 11 home runs, and racked up 32 RBIs. In the circle, she’s put together a 2.79 ERA through 95.1 innings in 24 appearances. 

The Blue Devils are led by Deja Davis who averages a .400 batting percentage and tallies 23 runs, 42 hits, five homeruns, 21 RBIs and is 8-11 with stolen bases. Kristina Foreman adds 28 runs, 24 hits, five homeruns, 22 RBIs and is 10-for-11 in stolen bases.The Blue Devils lead the league with 56 doubles, Duke ranks ninth nationally and 40th with 1.56 doubles per game. 

In the circle, Peyton St. George posts a 2.01 ERA for the Blue Devils with four shutouts, 119 strikeouts and 11 win on the season. Shelby Walters carries a 1.08 ERA with two shutouts, 47 strikeouts and 11 wins.


 DID YOU KNOW? 




Fun fact: Blue Devils' Josh Bloomer joined the Duke softball staff as an assistant coach in July 2019. Bloomer comes to Durham from Louisville, Ky., where he served as the head coach at Louisville Male High School for seven seasons.  Bloomer joined after a successful campaign at Louisville Male High School, guiding his squad to NFCA and Kentucky state titles this past spring. 

His 2019 team put together a 39-0 ledger for only the second unbeaten season in program history and became the first team from the state of Kentucky to finish first in the country.  

As a Louisville Male HS Softball Alum ('09 & Pre-Bloomer) I am very excited to welcome Coach Bloomer back to town.  He has been spotted at Ulmer before supporting local players/teams and I had the opportunity to have him on my previous radio show.  He is a very talented coach! 



                                                *************

It's a very busy weekend, #15 Louisville Lacrosse is also in action, bringing in Syracuse for two games, the first today at 3:00 p.m. at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium.  ACC Network Extra will have this match for you if you can't make it out. 


                                                *************


Have a great start to your weekend Louisville fans! I made the trip over to Cardinal Stadium this week to get the first vaccine and you should too! Lets get back to big GAMEDAYS! Be sure to catch us on the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast Saturday Morning at 11 a.m. ! 


Go Cards! 

~Daryl 


8 comments:

  1. I am disappointed that Dana went in the second round like many of you, I suppose, but she is a fighter and will use the slight by the WNBA GM's as a determination factor and do great things!

    Height? Maybe the factor on why so many teams passed on her in the first round. That's a bad scout by the other franchises, we all know how big her heart is and what she can do.

    Go get them Dana! Look at what Crystal Dangerfield did, as a second round pick. She'll make a strong force with Arike Ogumbowale at Dallas and have a long career.

    Nick O.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello Friends!
    Arthur Here !

    I found this article this morning about Dana and wanted to share it with y'all:

    -- Perhaps the biggest shock was Dallas being able to snatch Louisville guard Dana Evans with the 13th overall pick. Evans was projected to be a lottery pick after entering the draft as a junior, but tumbled out of the first round and was available for the Wings to pick her up with the first pick in the second round. Her quickness and speed make her incredibly dangerous in transition, and her 3-point shooting makes her a serious threat on the outside. Second and third-round picks have a more difficult time making WNBA rosters given the limited number of spots, however, Evans should be incredibly competitive to earn one of those spots on the Wings' roster.

    The Evans pick capped off a tremendous night for Dallas, who had the best draft of the night.--

    Yes, I was wondering when she'd get her named called, and I was thoroughly disgusted with the way Holly Rowe handled the interview and ESPN's flubbing it but, take it from your ol' buddy Arthur -- I've watched her punish my Clemson girls and the ACC for four years and she'll be a GREAT WNBA player. She has the drive, determination and now, the motivation, to make 11 other WNBA squad regret the day they passed on her. Shoot, her and Arike in the back court? Bang, zoom, to the moon !!

    Your Friend
    #1 Clemson Fan (and big Dana devotee!)
    Arthur
    Greer, SC

    ReplyDelete
  3. (Dana has a presser today to discuss her pick. I'll monitor it and post it her on the site later this morning. It's at 11:30 a.m.

    paulie
    xxxxx

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dana will rise above this.

    --The Real Joe Hill --

    ReplyDelete
  5. And these stats below aren't enough for the first round?

    The last two seasons Evans was named WBCA Coaches All-American and ACC Player of the Year. She is the only player in Louisville program history to win a regular season conference championship in each of her four seasons and she finishes with the fewest losses and best winning percentage in program history.

    Evans led the ACC in scoring during her senior season with 20.1 points per game. She scored 20-plus points in 19 games this year and reached double figures in 40 straight games over the past two seasons, which is the longest streak by a UofL player in the last 20 years.

    Her 1,715 career points rank ninth all-time in Louisville program history and her 521 assists rank sixth. Her 85.8 career free throw percentage is the best in program history.

    If you ask me, Dallas got a steal and a bargain. And, Holly Rowe is a moron who typifies the morons that ESPN uses for WNBA coverage.

    Blue Lou

    ReplyDelete
  6. Checking in from a not-very-bubbly Omaha...I was surprised to find teams staying in the hotel I chose as I figured they would have all of the teams off in specific hotels. Instead, I about physically ran into a couple of, I think Wisconsin, players as I rounded a corner coming off the pedway from the parking garage. If this is a bubble, it's riddled with holes. :/

    This was a career match for Claire Chaussee with 21 kills. Just about the only double-digit stats on our stats sheet came from Sun Prairie. Anna DeBeer with 11 kills and Tori Dilfer's 41 assists being the only others...and Chaussee had a double-double to boot. She hasn't been getting as much attention as some other players of late, so she may feel a bit justifiably vindicated in that outcome.

    Credit, also, to San Diego. That's a good team (I didn't realize until yesterday that they were a top 25 team! Coming in at 21 in the last AVCA poll) They are also tall. Oh yeah, and that 6'5" opposite, number 11, Grace Frohling that gave us so many fits? She's just a sophomore!

    So, while a great match for Claire, next up for the Cards is 6 seed Washington. They had a long and very competitive 5 set match against a seemingly constantly underrated Dayton team, so maybe they'll be a bit more worn out. With 2 days off before the next match, I doubt it, but we can hope. We will need to have more team play against Washington than we did against SD. That starts with passing well...our passing was very hit and miss yesterday (Claire led with 10), so if we can get that going and solid, then we can generate some more of a spread offensive attack (get those middles going!) If we can't, I fear it will be a short match, but feel very long on Sunday afternoon.

    And as an amusing tangent, after leading the C-A-R-D-S cheer for the first time this season, being told, "You're awesome, man!" by a Super Bowl winning quarterback does hit a little different. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Could hear the CARDS cheer on the broadcast and seeing where you were sitting, I suspected that you were leading.

      Delete
  7. Great recap! Bring the Cards another win, JMcA !


    Curtis "be kind" Franklin

    ReplyDelete

Please leave your comments here. We ask you be respectful of other posts, no matter how ridiculous they may seem to you. After all, it is CARDINAL COUPLE.

Any attempts to advertise a product or other website here in the comments section without the prior consent of CARDINAL COUPLE will result in a bill rendered for advertising services and possible legal action. We're serious. No more bots.

Now, have your take...