Friday, March 31, 2023

Busy Start to the Weekend -- CC Carr Three-Point Contest -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Happy Friday, everyone! With Daryl and I trading off, I get to take over this Friday, and we have plenty to talk about with this upcoming weekend.


Softball Visits Syracuse


While Louisville softball ultimately fell on the road to Kentucky earlier this week, the fight and late-game rally showed that this team won't roll over and play dead. A loss is still a loss, but this team showing their fight gives me more excitement to look forward to this season.

At 22-10, Louisville spends a majority of the rest of this season facing ACC opponents. A trip to Syracuse is next on the schedule.

The Orange are 10-15-1 on the season and are fresh off a 1-1-1 series against Notre Dame in South Bend. The two teams tied 0-0 in Sunday's game before the drop dead time kicked in. Syracuse is 1-7-1 in conference play. Freshman Madelyn Lopez is the only player batting above .300 at .314. The Orange have been outscored 130-77 on the year.

Today's game is set to start at noon and will be aired on ACCNX.


Tennis Travels to Notre Dame


Down to the final few matches of the regular season, Louisville women's tennis continues to try and get its first ACC win of the season. The Cards are 8-10 on the season and have lost all eight conference matches so far. 

#22 Notre Dame holds a 12-7 record, but has had some trouble in conference play with a 3-5 record. The match is set for 3:30 p.m. but there is no video listed.


Volleyball


The busy spring schedule for Louisville volleyball continues tonight. After a 3-2 victory against Kentucky last week, the Cards now welcome Athletes Unlimited to L&N FCU Arena tonight at 6:00 p.m.

Athletes Unlimited is a partnership with USA Volleyball to create a professional indoor volleyball league. The group in town features plenty of faces with connections to either UofL or the City of Louisville. Cardinal alum Erin Fairs is a current member of the team. Deja McClendon is a Louisville native who played her college career at Penn State. McClendon was also a volunteer asst coach for UofL for a brief stint. Taylor Reid also spent some time as a volunteer asst for the Cards and is on the Athletes Unlimited roster.

Admission is free but seating and capacity limit is first-come, first-serve. Doors open at 5:00 p.m. ET.


Daytona Showcase


Our Louisville Cheer and Louisville Ladybirds squads are less than one week away from their NCA and NDA Championships in Daytona. They're doing a free preview showing at Christian Academy of Louisville (CAL) at 7:00 p.m. ET tonight. Their Daytona routines differ greatly from their show-based performances at basketball games. We wish them the best and hope they bring back more national championships as a representative of the University and Louisville Athletics.


CC Carr Three-Point Contest


We got another chance to see CC Carr showcase her abilities in the three-point contest last night on ESPN2. She had a strong showing and finished fifth overall.

Iona's Kate Mager took the women's competition and then defeated men's champ Antoine Davis (Detroit Mercy) for the overall title. 

We also got to see some creativity on the men's side with the dunk contest, but the lights out shooting from several of the women's athletes was impressive.


Cardinal Couple Pick Em Contest in NCAA Final Four




With three games to go,  Karen and Jared are tied atop the leaderboard with 46-14 records. And, for the record...Jared has South Carolina and Indiana winning tonight's games. Karen has South Carolina and Ohio State. Both have South Carolina winning it all....so, it could come down to a points thing. 

Did anyone have all four Final Four participants correctly chosen?  Nope, quite a few with three of the four, but nobody got South Carolina, Iowa, LSU and Virginia Tech. 

Should be some exciting hoops. Can South Carolina shut down Caitlan Clark? Can Kitley and Kenny get to the final game by beating the Fighting Mulkeys? Action stars at 7 p.m.


Cardinal Couple Podcast



We are good to go tomorrow for our weekly Cardinal Couple Podcast. We don't anticipate a full house, but this crew has plenty to talk about ranging from Louisville women's basketball, to softball, to lacrosse, to whatever tangents we might go on, so tune in!


Happy Friday and Go Cards!

Jared

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Cards SB fall to #16 UK 7-4 -- Chrislyn Carr invited to 3-Point Championship -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE


UK SOFTBALL TAKES ONE FROM CARDS 7-4


Hi readers, Daryl here..

It worked out for Jared and I to switch days this week as he covered the Cardinals in Lexington on Wednesday and I have something going on in the evening.  So I get to recap the rivalry on the softball diamond!  


Softball


Photos from Jared Anderson 


Louisville falls to #16 Kentucky  4-7 

Unfortunately, it's another loss to that blue team down the road, the second time this season and the 4th time in a row.  The last UofL win was in 2019... where the Cards walked it off when Taylor Roby's two-out single in the seventh plated junior Celene Funke for an 8-7 win over #23 Kentucky... 

The 2023 meeting in Lexington started off with the Cards showing life on offense scoring a run against Kentucky's second-in-line Alexia Lacatena in the circle.  But UK responded to that opening half inning of the game with three runs in the bottom of the first. UK plated a run in the third and three runs in the fourth, in addition. 

Louisville had 4 pitching changes  in the game and gave up 12 hits and committed two errors, including one huge one that allowed UK to score 3 runs in the 4th.  

It wasn't close after that until UK starter Lacatena, who had thrown over 100 pitches, started to get tired.  She gave up a fielding error and a hit and a homer from the top of the UofL lineup to give Louisville some life and pull it within 7-4 in the top of the 7th.  UK then decided it was time to put in a new pitcher and successfully sat the Cards down 1, 2, 3 after that.

Louisville showed some offensive ability to start and to finish but not the entire      way through, which Kentucky has found a way to dominate the Cardinals in recent meetings between the two programs.  UofL needs to lick their wounds from this one and come back stronger for the second half of the season.  



Top of 1st-  Cards draw a walk on the first at bat and then Sarah Gordon takes first pitch for a left center single and move Korbe Otis to third.  Taylor Roby walks to load the bases.  Daisy Hess takes an RBI- SAC fly to LF to put the Cards on the board.  

Bottom of 1st - Freshman RHP Alyssa Zabala starting in the circle for the Cards.  She gives up a single to the lead off hitter and the Cardinal defense commits an error to allow 2 runners on and nobody out.   The Cards put Coffel on to load the bases with no outs...  Cats Cleanup hitter hits it back up the middle for an RBI single where the Cards finally get an out. But UK able to connect for another RBI single before Zabala strikes out the 7th batter of the inning.

LOU Inning Summary: 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 2 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 3 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Errors, 1 LOB


Top of 2nd - Ally Alexander flies out to LF, Pickle Winkler drops it behind SS to get on base, Geraghty slaps it over the pitcher and everybody is safe.  A flyout to RF by Otis and foul out from Gordon ends the inning with 2 left on and this is where their offense went pretty cold after that.   

Bottom of 2nd - the Cardinal infield gets their rotation of outs to leave 1 Wildcat stranded. Cards #B Alexander scoops the bunt for the out at 1B.   Hess secures the following hit for out #2 of the inning.  Lead off for UK comes in to put the next pitch in play for the single.

LOU Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors, 2 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 1 LOB

Top of 3rd - Louisville goes 1, 2, 3 in fly-outs in the top of the third to keep it 3-1. 

Bottom of 3rd - A leadoff walk by Zabala followed by a slap to Lotus at 2B and the quick decision to go to first gets the out just in time.   A pop up to RF and throw to third would get the runner to stay on second but she would be more aggressive in the next opportunity as UK scores on the single through the SS and 3B gap.  

LOU Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors, 0 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 1 LOB

Top of 4th - Back to back 1,2 3 outs for the Cardinals on offense. 

Bottom of 4th - Gabby Holloway comes in for the Cards to relieve Zabala.   At the top of the lineup two Kentucky hits and strong base running to beat the throws put runners on the corners in the bottom of the 4th.   Hannah File had the opportunity to end the threat with a manageable foul hit out of bounds that bounced off the palm of her glove. Like it usually does when you make those kind of errors, it comes back to bite ya and one of the top Cats' offensive threats takes advantage and smacks a line drive up the middle for the RBI single and UK now scored 6 unanswered to make it 6-1.   The Cards make a pitching change to put Roby in but she gives up a line drive on the LF line to score another and make it 7-1 before Lotus secures the pop up to end the inning.

LOU Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors, 0 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 3 Runs, 5 Hits, 1 Errors, 2 LOB

Top of 5th- Geraghty gets on with a  left field line-drive single to start the fifth but the Cards fly out on the next 3 to come up scoreless again..  It's looking like another possible run rule for UK??

Bottom of 5th-   Roby handled the pitching duties in the 5th giving up a single before retiring the next 3 UK batters.  

LOU Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 1 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 1 LOB


Top of 6th - Cards in scoring position in the top of the 6th but Pickle cant get the slap through the UK defense and UK gets third out at 1B to end the possible threat by the Cards.  

Bottom of 6th - UK back towards the top of the lineup where the offensive leaders will lead off the bottom of the 6th and batters 2 and 3 both get on base with a single to 3B and a walk before Holly Aprile calls Cassie Grizzard's number for the 4th pitcher of the night for Louisville.   She picks up the Cards' second strikeout of the game and a tall bounce out to 1B when File climbed the ladder for the grab and beat the runner to end the inning.  


LOU Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 2 LOB
UK Inning Summary: 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors, 2 LOB




Top of 7th -
Geraghty again gives the Louisville offense a spark as she connects and moves to 2B on an error by UK.  Otis follows up with a line drive to right center to finally put another tally on the scorecard for UofL.  Sarah Gordon then steps up to homer one in the same direction as Otis' hit to pull the Cards within a 7-4 striking distance.  Cats call it a night for their starting pitcher at 119 pitches on the evening.  A UK error on 1B would give File the base followed by a pop up from Roby, Hess and Lotus go down to end the rally and game.

LOU Inning Summary: 3 Runs, 2 Hits, 2 Errors, 1 LOB


Cardinals Softball will continue their road trip to Syracuse, NY for an ACC tilt with the Orange on the ACCNX starting Friday-Sunday.  



WBB 



Photo from Jared Anderson


University of Louisville guard Chrislyn Carr has been selected to the Celsius Women's 3-Point Championship roster for the 34th annual State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships at the Bayou Music Center in downtown Houston on Thursday, March 30. Carr is one of eight players selected for the event that will air live on ESPN2 at 6:30 p.m. CT.

Good luck in the contest, C.C.!  We know you will represent the Cardinals well.


As Always, 
Go Cards!

~Daryl 




Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Lacrosse Falls to Buckeyes -- Softball at UK Today -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 BUCKEYES BEST LOUISVILLE LACROSSE 16-6




Tough afternoon in Columbus for the Louisville Lacrosse squad, as the Ohio State women's lacrosse squad took down the Cards 16-6.

Ohio State started hot and put the first five goals of the match on the board before UofL could counter. The Cards were able to make it a 5-2 first quarter, thanks to scores by Kylea Dobson and Allegra Catalano. 




The Buckeyes played the Cards to a 2-2 tie in the second quarter. 

Louisville benefitted from a Nicole Perroni score and a goal from Kokoro Nakazawa.  OSU went into the halftime with a 7-4 edge. The Buckeyes held a 18-14 shot advantage and Nicole Ferrara and Jamie Lasda both had two goals for the Buckeyes. 



The third quarter was when OSU slammed the door on the visiting Cards. Five straight goals pushed the home team's lead to 12-4. Hannah Morris finally got a goal for the Cards, but OSU closed the quarter with two more goals and had built a 14-5 lead after three quarters. 

The Buckeyes scored with about nine minutes to go in the game to establish the running clock and Louisville never got the lO.S.U. lead back below 10 goals the rest of the way, getting an Izzy Seikel score with about two minutes left in the contest. A 16-6 final. 

Sara Addeche saw the majority on the minutes in goal for the Cards with 45. J Pleck (9:41) and Aubrey Bagenstone (5:19) split net-tending duties in the fourth quarter.




Scott Teeter on the match: 

"Unfortunately, we didn't come out of the locker room ready to start the first half. We fell behind, and when you're playing from behind...it's an uphill battle." 

The loss drops Louisville to 4-7 on the season and the Cards are 1-4 in ACC play. They'll travel to South Carolina to take on ACC opponent Clemson next on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match. 


SOFTBALL VISITS UK TODAY




Cats and Cards tonight at 6:30 in softball and the match is scheduled to be seen on ESPNU. 

It'll be the second meeting of the year for the two squads, UK took an 8-0 five-inning win back on Feb. 10th in Clearwater, FL in the NFCA Leadoff Classic. 

Louisville has complied a 22-9 record so far this season and is currently on a seven-game win streak. The Cards swept the ACC series with NC State in Ulmer last out. 





The Cards are batting .323 as a team.  Korbe Otis (.417) and Sarah Gordon (.405) are leading the way at the plate with batting averages. Taylor Roby has 11 home runs for the Cards this season and Otis leads the squad with five triples. Gordon is atop the Cards batting stats with nine doubles. 

In the circle, freshman Alyssa Zabala is 10-3 on the season and Taylor Roby is 6-4. Sam Booe has a 3-0 record and Taja Felder, Cassie Grizzard and Gabby Holloway have one win each. 

UK is 20-7-1 on the season and Vanessa Nesby bats .470  for the Cats. Erin Coffel has 12 "touch 'em alls" for UK. Stephanie Schoonover is the work-horse of the circle and is 12-1 on the season. 

DID YOU KNOW? 



-- Holly Aprile and UK head coach Rachel Lawson were teammates at UMass and went to the college World Series in 1992. 

-- The Cards have only four players on the roster who are from Kentucky. UK has just three native Kentuckians. 

-- Korbe Otis was named Co-Player of the Week last week in ACC Softball. It's the second time this season she's received the award. Otis went 8-16 at the plate and stole four bases. 

Let's hope the skies stay dry for this one !  Our Jared Anderson is headed east on I-64 for this one and he'll have pictures for us. Daryl Foust will be watching the contest and have the report in the Thursday edition of Cardinal Couple...don't miss it !! 


paulie



Tuesday, March 28, 2023

Final Four is Set -- Lax Visits Ohio State -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Final Four is Set




With the remaining two Elite Eight games played last night, we officially have the Final Four set.

It seems strange not to see UConn, the Cards, the Cardinal or Wes Moore on the Dallas invite list. But, it's a very strong field with one incumbent that looks pretty unstoppable, the Fighting Mulkeys from Swamp Water U., Kenny and Kitley from the hills of Virginia and ESPN's media darling Caitlan and her cornfed crew from the mid-west  

Here's what happened last night:. 

1-seed South Carolina and 2-seed Maryland took to the court for the 7:00 p.m. game. The Gamecocks won 86-75. 1-seed Virginia Tech and 3-seed Ohio State battled it out in the late game for the last spot. The Hokies held on down the stretch to win 84-74.

So, how did these four teams arrive in Dallas?


3-seed LSU


The first team to punch their ticket is LSU. Kim Mulkey is in her second season as the head coach for the Tigers and has one of the best younger classmen in the country in Angel Reese.

LSU cruised past 14-seed Hawaii 73-50 in the opening round and wrapped up their time in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center by cruising past 6-seed Michigan 66-42. Their first game in Greenville was one for the ages as the Tigers held on by a hair to defeat 2-seed Utah 66-63. With Indiana having an early exit, LSU faced the lower-seeded 9-seed Miami and relied on a tight defense to win 54-42.

2-seed Iowa



Another non-one-seed earned their spot in the Final Four shortly after LSU. After getting upset in the second round last year, Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes were determined to make some noise this time.

Iowa overwhelmed 15-seed SE Louisiana 95-43 in the first round. Carver-Hawkeye Arena was filled one more time as the Iowa took down 10-seed Georgia 74-66 the next round. The Hawkeyes opened up play in Seattle against 6-seed Colorado and came out on top 87-77. Iowa then took on 5-seed Louisville on Sunday and came away with a 97-83 win.

1-seed South Carolina



For the third straight year, South Carolina is back in the Final Four and has its eyes on back-to-back titles. Dawn Staley continues to help South Carolina build its legacy.

The Gamecocks easily took down 16-seed Norfolk State 72-40 in the first round. Colonial Life Arena played home to South Carolina one more time on the year as the Gamecocks defeated 8-seed South Florida 86-45. A quick trip over to Greenville was easy for South Carolina, as they beat 4-seed UCLA 59-43. 2-seed Maryland tried to play upset mode but feel to them 86-75.

1-seed Virginia Tech





Kenny Brooks' squad guarantees the ACC will be represented in the Final Four by clinching their first ever Final Four berth. The ACC is also the only conference to have a team in the Final Four in both the women's and men's tournaments.

In the opening round, VT defeated 16-seed Chattanooga 58-33. They played at Cassell Coliseum one final time this season as the took down 9-seed South Dakota State 72-60. In their first game in Seattle, the Hokies beat 4-seed Tennessee 73-64. They then battled it out with 3-seed Ohio State and earned the win 84-74.


Lacrosse Travels to Ohio State






After a brutal stretch against several top five teams, Louisville lacrosse heads to Columbus to take on Ohio State at 4:00 p.m. ET today. Louisville is currently 4-6 on the year and have lost four straight.

Ohio State brings a 4-7 record into the season and remains winless at 0-3 in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes are on a five-game skid. 

Having been outscored 128-105 this season, Ohio State has struggled to score, averaging 9.5 goals per game. Defensively, the Buckeyes have been average, allowing 11.6 goals per game.

Nicole Ferrara paces Ohio State with 25 goals while Jamie Lasda has scored 16 times and Jamie Level adding 14 goals. Regan Alexander has been the primary goalkeeper and holds a .474 save percentage.

There is no tv listed for this game, but live stats are expected to be available.


Cardinal Couple Pick Em


(Give Walz her number and Twitter handle)

Things have finally started to take shape as we hit the final stretch. A few brackets are already complete, based on future incorrect picks. Below are the standings I have based on submissions in the comments. I know Paulie had a couple that were a win and loss different so I'll have him provide his numbers.

THE "DONE...THANKS FOR PLAYING...PLEASE EXIT TO YOUR RIGHT" CATEGORY

42-21: David Watson

35-28: Bea, Cindy

33-30: Nick O

THE "STILL BREATHING... BUT A FEW IN HERE WE NEED TO CALL A PRIEST FOR" CATEGORY

46-14: Karen J, Jared

45-15: Jeff, WahooCard, Joe Hill

44-16: Daryl, Sonja

43-17: Katy, Jason, K Stark Sr, Thomas I,

42-18: Kenny S, Paulie, Case, Arthur, David W.

41-19: Curtis, Farris P

40-20: Mike D, Vivian

39-21: Blue Lou

38-22: Becky N

35-25: CC Chimps,  Bea

Three games to go


HERE'S THE SITUATION::

(Oops, wrong situation.)

-Karen and Jared are tied for first and both can only get two more picks right, with both having South Carolina winning the championship. If South Carolina wins their next game then Karen and Jared are guaranteed the top two spots. The tiebreaker would have to be used.

-Jeff can only get two more picks right, also having South Carolina winning the championship, so he has been eliminated from the top two.

--WahooCard can only get one more pick right if LSU wins next round. If LSU wins AND South Carolina loses in the Final Four then WahooCard will tie Karen and Jared, and the tiebreaker would have to be used.

--Joe Hill can still finish the bracket 3-0. He has Virginia Tech defeating Iowa. Joe Hill can win the Pick Em outright if both Virginia Tech and Iowa win next round.

--Daryl can still finish the bracket 3-0. She has South Carolina defeating Virginia Tech. Based on similar picks with other brackets, she is eliminated from the top two.

--Everyone else has been eliminated from the top two.

EDITOR NOTE:


THANKS, ALL, FOR PARTICIPATING IN OUR PICK 'EMS THIS SEASON! WHERE ELSE CAN YOU HAVE SO MUCH FUN FOR NO MONETARY INVESTMENT? WE HAD TO DO A LITTLE PRIZE AWARDING JUGGLING AT THE LAST MOMENT WHEN A "SANDWICH MAKER' DECIDED HE COULDNT SPONSOR THIS YEAR, BUT... I WAS ABLE TO FIND A "COFFEE SELLER" WHO AGREED TO DO SO AND ACTUALLY PROVIDE A LARGER GIFT CARD THAN THE SANDWICH MAKER. THANK YOU, STARBUCKS FOR STEPPING UP !! AND THANKS TO CRACKER BARREL FOR THEIR LONG TIME, CONTINUED SUPPORT ! 

IN THE "THANKS BUT NO THANKS" CATEGORY, I DID HAVE A "NIGHTCLUB FEATURING SCANTILY CLAD WOMEN" OFFER FREE ADMISSION AND A LAP DANCE "ON THE HOUSE" AS A PRIZE. I PASSED ON THE OFFER , AFTER A BIT OF DELIBERATION. 

BACK TO YOU, JARED...

paulie


Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Monday, March 27, 2023

WBB Falls to Iowa 97-83 -- Softball gets sweep over NC State -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

ROAD ENDS IN SEATTLE FOR WBB...IOWA 97-CARDS 83




Louisville women's basketball ran into the buzz-saw also known as Caitlan Clark last night in the Great Eight of the NCAA Tournament and Clark went for the first 40-10-10 in NCAA WBB Tournament history. That's points, rebounds and assists, if you didn't know. So, Iowa moves on to the Final Four and the Cards see their season end in a 14 point loss. 

Actually, it wasn't that close. Iowa pushed the lead to over 20 points at times in the fourth quarter, before a last-chance,, 13-1 run by Louisville cut the Hawkeye lead to 10. The run fell short, though,  and Iowa waits to see whether it is South Carolina or Maryland they'll face in the Final Four in Dallas




I don't write a great deal or volumes about losses, and I won't in today's column. I was proud of the way the Cards did break from the gate and jump out to a 8-0 lead. The Hawkeyes composed themselves, though, and they actually came back to win the first quarter, thanks to their 9-0 run, 25-21

Louisville came out hot in the second quarter, hitting four of their first five shots, but Iowa was also hot and went on another 9-0 run. Hailey and the Cards were trying to stay in it and Van Lith scored the final six UofL points in the half, cutting Iowa's lead to 48-43.





The Cards struck early in the third with the first four points to cut the Iowa lead to one, but the Hawkeyes retaliated with the next nine points. Louisville then went cold from the floor, shootings just  28% for the quarter, Iowa led by as many as 21 and the quarter ended with the Hawkeyes comfortably ahead 78-59.

The Cards won the fourth quarter 24-19 but were only able to slice into the Iowa lead, not vanquish it. Iowa held their largest lead of 22 points a minute and half into that final quarter and ended up shooting 53% for the game to get their 30th win of the season. 




Still...we're all very proud of the Cards WBB squad here at Cardinal Couple and what they did this season. Sometimes, you just run into someone who is having that hot night and beats you. A lot of great memories built this season and a lot of good times had. 


THE FRED REPORT


"Clark just scored again, Fred. In the bus on the way back to 
their hotel"

FREE THROWS --
Louisville went 15-18 from the line for a sparkling 83%. Some of us think the Cards deserved a few more chances at the line, but...that wasn't how the game was called. We'll award a CAPITAL "F" here for cashing in on the free ones, Hailey was 8-10 and "O" hit all six of hers. 

REBOUNDS -- Iowa squeaked out a 33-32 edge on the boards. Cochran led all with 14 of the grabs. Louisville missed a lot of shots at the end of the game trying to catch up and that's why Iowa took the rebounding category. My rule is, if you don't come out best in the boards battle, you don't get a letter. 

EFFORT/EXECUTION -- Iowa had plenty in the tank and ran y the Cards somewhat tentative defense most of the game. The Cards were trying and they tried five different people but no one could stop Clark. No letter here....I award letters for wins, not losses

DEFENSE -- Louisville allowed almost 100 points. By far, the highest point total allowed in the season .Louisville never quit, but they got beat on fast break points 18-9  and that made a pretty big difference in the final score. No letter here

FINAL FRED TALLY:  F-_-_-_




So, a season ends for the Cards, and it was quite the enjoyable season. Think of how many teams would have relished the opportunity to have played for a Final Four bid this season. Think of how many would have been so happy to have a Van Lith of Cochran on the court for them. Or had the coaching genius of Jeff Walz

Hold your head high, Cards fans. Your team gave it their all. They just got beat by someone better. 

POST GAME WALZ AND PLAYERS PRESSER

POST GAME IOWA (IN ENTIRETY) )


SOFTBALL RALLIES IN EXTRA INNINGS TO DEFEAT NCST 3-2




Louisville Softball prevailed earlier in the day to defeat North Carolina State 3-2 to get a sweep of the Wolfpack in the series. 

This one a nine-inning affair, as NCST was able to push a run across in the top of the seventh to tie the game up at 2-2  After. UofL couldn't produce in the home half of the inning, extra innings were mandated. 



The Cards had their chance to take the lead and win the game tn the bottom of the eighth, but some daring baserunning results in outs instead of runs or runners in scoring position. With one out, Daisy Hess drew a walk and went to second on a Easton Lotus single. She also attempted to get to third. ...but, the throw easily beat her to the bag and she was tagged out. Ally Alexander singles next, and Lotus attempted to score from second. It didn't happen again, the throw from the outfield beat Lotus to the plate and the catcher tagged ger out to end the inning. 



So, the Cards...after retiring NCST behind Taylor Roby's arm in the top of the ninth, went to work again in the bottom of the ninth. Pickle Winkler began the Cards batting with a single to right. Paige Geraghty laid down a bunt and was thrown out at first, advancing "the Pickle" to second. Korbe Otis hit what proved to be the game winner -- a single to left field that Winkler was able to reach home safely on and the Cards had won.  

POST GAME AUDIO WITH HOLLY APRILE AND PICKLE WINKLER BELOW

Holly

Pickle


paulie

Sunday, March 26, 2023

Elite Eight vs Iowa, Lax Falls to the Cuse, SB Leads the Pack - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Elite Eight vs Iowa


( EDITOR NOTE -- WOULD LIKE TO APOLOGIZE FOR THE FORMATTING AND LATE TIME FRAME APPEARANCE OF TODAY'S ARTICLE. --PAULIE)

(Photos by Jared Anderson, Cardinal Couple Photographer extraordinaire)

With UConn's loss yesterday to Ohio State, Louisville now holds the longest streak of consecutive Elite Eight appearances in the league at five.




That appearance will be tonight at 9pm against Iowa.  These teams have only met twice, in a home and home series in the 2013-14, and 2014-25 seasons.  The Cards won both games, with the most recent being at the KFC Yum! Center in December of 2014.  Both games had similar totals, 86-52, 83-53.  We can only hope today's results are much the same.

Iowa holds a 29-6 record to this point, with those losses to Kansas St., UConn, NC State, Illinois, IU, and Maryland.

We all know about Caitlin Clark, and with good reason as she is an excellent player, a 47% shooter, 38% from three point range, and 84% from the free throw line, averaging almost 27 points per game - just gaudy numbers.  Backing her up, is Monika Czinano, a 6'3" big that hits 68%, but don't expect any of those from range.  She does average almost 17 and a half points per game, though.  The only other player in double digits is McKenna Warnock at just shy of 11 per game, at 49% from the field, and 39% from three range.




The Louisville game plan for this one is pretty clear.  Stop, or at least slow down, Caitlin Clark.  That, of course, is easier said than done.  The National storylines will probably be pitting Hailey Van Lith against Clark, at least notionally, if not expecting HVL to be guarding Clark.  I posit that Mykasa Robinson would be the better player to guard Clark.  Either player gives up about five inches to Clark, but Kasa has never shied away from matchups like that, and her intense defensive play will be what's needed to counter Clark.  Perhaps we see the re-emergent Morgan Jones covering Clark some as well, as Jones' quickness could certainly be useful there.

Both tournament games tonight are on ESPN, with Miami vs LSU tipping off at 7pm, and our game vs Iowa starting at 9pm for another late-night game watch.

Softball Tames the Wolfpack


Another weekend of softball with it's schedule altered by weather.  After Friday's monsoons prevented play, Louisville and NC State played a double-header yesterday.  The Cards won both, 7-4 in the first game, and a five inning run-rule win in the second 13-0.
Ally Alexander at the hot corner.

Alyssa Zabala got the start in the first inning and pitches 4.1 before Taylor Roby took over the duties for the last 2.2.

NC State got started early with a run in the first inning, but UofL would answer just as quickly.  With Korbe Otis and Hannah File both reaching safely, Taylor Roby added to her already impressive home run tally put a three up on the scoreboard.

Korbe Otis sliding into third
NC State would tie it in the top of the 3rd with a solo shot on the first pitch of the inning, followed up by another run with some smaller ball play.  Louisville would re-take the lead in the bottom half of the frame when Hannah File took the ball for a ride to the right center field berm.  This would be the first of two home runs for File on the day.

In the bottom of the fifth, Louisville would finally get some separation that would stay.  Korbe Otis and Sarah Gordon would both reach with singles, and Otis would get back home on a Roby single.  A Daisy Hess single loaded up the bases, and Ally Alexander would get a single to score Mia Forsythe, pinch running for Roby, and Gordon to tack on another three in the inning.

Roby would walk a pair in the top of the 6th, and allow a run on a single, but then pitched three straight strikeouts to end NC State's scoring for the day.

Sam Booe got the start in the second game of the double-header and every inning of the game would see an out on NC State from a fielding play such as a fly out or a ground out, and two strikeouts.  Booe pitched four of those innings, and Cassie Grizzard pitched the 5th.  On the other side of the plate, Louisville would score at least two in all four of the innings that they batted in the run-rule decision.

(Hannah File finishes a trip around the diamond)
Korbe Otis started it all off with a triple and would score on a Sarah Gordon single.  Hannah File joined the basepaths with a walk, and she and Gordon would end up both in scoring position on a wild pitch.  Gordon would get home on a Daisy Hess sacrifice play.

The second inning started out at the very bottom of the lineup for the Cards, where Paige Geraghty put a nice single up the middle. 
Daisy Hess lays down a bunt.


At the top of the order, Otis drew a walk.  Gordon hit a hard hit shot right back at the pitcher that was caught, Otis had started running and needed to tag back at first but was most of the way to second already.  The NC State first baseman missed the catch however, letting Otis not only get back to tag first, but then advance to third.  Meanwhile, Geraghty scored.  Otis then scored on a wild pitch.  Next up, Hannah File got that second homerun of the day.

In the third inning, Geraghty and Otis both reached successfully and were brought home with Sarah Gordon's shot out to center field.

Paige Geraghty slides into home.
The fourth inning started with a walk for Easton Lotus, and a pair of singles by Ally Alexander and Pickle Winkler.  Lotus would be out at home with the force, but leaving the bases loaded.  An Otis single scored Winkler and Alexander.  Gordon reached on an NC State error, scoring Geraghty, then File would sacrifice to get Otis home and Roby would finish off the RBIs, with a double that brought Gordon home.

Softball will be back in action today with a 12:30 start against the Wolfpack.  Come out and enjoy beautiful Ulmer Stadium, or catch the action on the ACC Network Extra.

Lacrosse


Lacrosse welcomed the number one team in the country, Syracuse, in to the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium, and the result unfortunately highlighted the quality of the opponent.

The Cuse's Emma Tyrrell had a hat trick in just over five minutes of play, and the Orange would lead 6-0 by about halfway through the first quarter before Louisville could break through for a goal.  Chalk that one up to Hannah Morris.

It would be almost two thirds of the way through the second quarter before the Cards would score again, with Nicole Perroni extending her now 30 game strong scoring streak. Syracuse would go to halftime with a 12-2 lead, however.


Hannah Morris would score a second goal in the last few minutes of the 3rd quarter. And some signs of life in the waning few minutes of the game, but far too little, and far too late, but Izzy Seikel would score a pair to bring the Louisville total to five, but Syracuse had scored five of their own for the final score of 17-5.  Small consolation, perhaps, that Louisville tied Syracuse in the second half of play.

Louisville will look to get back on the horse with a Tuesday visit to Ohio State in Columbus.  That game starts at 4pm and there is currently no listing for video for it.

Friday Volleyball


(Knee injury?  What knee injury?)
Some quick notes here with Volleyball starting their spring exhibition schedule on Friday.  They welcome in the Kentucky Wildcats and, of course, had to go to five sets to get the win, because it wouldn't be UofL vs UK in volleyball without a five set match.  A funny moment after the fourth set, with the set scores tied 2-2, the coaches asked the teams if they wanted to play the fifth as it's not uncommon in spring play to only play four sets, even if they end tied.  All of the players, pretty much in unison, responded in the affirmative, with a tone that suggests they thought the coaches were crazy for even asking - of course they wanted to see this one to the end.

Not going to do a real recap of this, but will throw out a few observations.


(Hannah Sherman (11), Charitie Luper (23) and
Elle Glock (5) celebrate together.)
First, Anna DeBeer's knee recovery is going great.  She has no complaints about any pain or motion limitation at this point.  She is still wearing the knee brace, but has apparently been instructed to keep wearing that for two year after the injury.  So the brace will be with her for a while, but at this point, it's merely preventative for any re-injury.

Charitie Luper is a sophomore transfer joining us from UCLA, and you're going to like her play.  At 5'9" she's rather undersized for an outside hitter, but if you weren't paying attention to that, you wouldn't have noticed.  She has a great bit powerful serve, plays all six rotations, blocks well, and of course, hits well.  Coming in effectively as a replacement for Claire Chaussee, she gives up three inches of height, but nothing else.

(Aiko Jones and Hannah Sherman say, "Nope.")
Elle Glock got the lion's share of the setting duties, but we did see Alexis Finnvold in control some, as well as much of the third set where they were running a 6-2 offense.  So who was the other right side in the 6-2 as a counterpart to Aiko Jones?  Nina Moorer.  In addition to playing some time on the left side, she slid over to the right to provide the extra hitting option in the 6-2 and did a fine job.

We got pretty much even playing time in the middle between Cara Crese, PK, and Hannah Sherman.  All looked great.  Sherman had a few missed assignments on blocks, still learning the blocking schemes, I guess, but she did have several very impressive roofs.

Otherwise, it's mostly rinse and repeat.  We still have a transfer setter set to join the team probably in June, but we're in good shape for another good season of Volleyball in the fall.

The spring schedule continues this Friday at 6pm with a team from the Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball league continuing their spring exhibition schedule against various college teams who have players playing in the AU roster of players.  Erin Fairs is expected to be in the AU starting lineup for this matchup.  I got the chance to speak with Fairs in Omaha at the Volleyball Final Four and she was very excited about getting to return at play back in Louisville.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast


(no...Kim did not join us for our podcast but she sent
her outfit with plumes over. We couldn't get it to talk...)
...

We had four of us on the call yesterday, with Jared heading out to try to get pictures and avoid getting blown away by the winds at Lacrosse.  We talked a lot of basketball, softball, lacrosse, and touched just a bit on volleyball.

Always a good time, check it out at any decent podcast directory or at it's home link, now at Spotify, at:

-- JMcA

Saturday, March 25, 2023

Cards Advance to Elite Eight -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Win Over Ole Miss is Louisville's 5th Straight in Sweet Sixteen


In a season in which Louisville's offense has looked suspect at times, the Cards faced an immense challenge in the defensive-minded Ole Miss Rebels. Mississippi was likely underseeded, with five of their nine losses coming against ranked opponents. To prove it, they had shut down Gonzaga, one of the top three point shooting teams in the country, in the first round. Still not quite convincing people, Ole Miss then took down the Stanford Cardinal at home, holding the number one seed to just 49 points. That mark was Stanford's second fewest points scored this season and only the third time they had been held to fewer than 60 points. The other two were against USC, games which the Cardinal and Trojans split. In the first two games of the tournament, Mississippi held their opponents to just 3-24 shooting from beyond the arc.

Knowing all of this, Louisville came out determined to play their own game. There were hiccups, of course, but Louisville largely did what they wanted to do offensively, weathering multiple hot and cold streaks from both teams and putting four Cards in double figures. Despite stretches in which the Cards went without scoring for far more minutes than were comfortable, Louisville last lost the lead with 3:41 remaining in the first half. Myah Taylor hit a second straight three to cap a 14-3 run and give Ole Miss a 29-27 lead.

After scoring seven points in the first quarter (originally scored eight but a three-pointer was overturned), Hailey Van Lith had gone cold in the second. It would be a trend that would repeat itself a bit later, but, for a critical moment, Van Lith found her shot. Her second (third) three of the game put Louisville back in front by one. Myah Taylor missed a three on the third time of asking and Louisville was fouled on the rebound. Taking advantage, the Cards scored on the ensuing possession to move their lead back to a full basket. Both teams struggled a bit in the final two minutes, but Louisville came out ahead, scoring the only points of the stretch with an Olivia Cochran jumper to put the Cards up five. After holding a 20-15 lead at the end of the first quarter, the Cards kept a five point advantage at the end of the second: 34-29. There certainly wasn't any weirdness like Louisville stretching their lead to nine points before going on a 4+ minute scoring drought.

HVL was interviewed on her way off the floor at halftime and said it felt great to play in front of her family but that they still had work to do and they were going to come out better in the second half. The third quarter started very evenly. Both teams were able to find the bottom of the net, with Louisville's five-point advantage remaining steady for the first six minutes of the quarter. Over that time, Louisville never stretched that lead beyond five and Ole Miss never reduced it to fewer than three. Two-point shots and free throws ruled the day. When the media timeout finally came at 3:40, Louisville seemed to flip a switch. Unable to widen the gap for so long, the Cards suddenly found a way, closing down on defense and making the offense work. Louisville pushed their advantage to nine in the final minute of the quarter before Ole Miss scored for just the second time over the stretch to bring the lead back down to seven. Right on cue, Merissah Russell hit one of the critical threes she's been wont to do recently to give Louisville a double-digit lead, prompting me to message our Cardinal Couple group, "Don't look back."

Holding a 52-42 lead opening the fourth, Louisville, at first, looked like they would heed my advice. Both teams went fairly cold to open the quarter, meaning Louisville wasn't able to ride the momentum they had to close the third and put the game out of reach. They moved the lead to 12 twice, but never got any farther ahead. After scoring seven points in that first quarter, Van Lith's shot continued to evade her, as she had scored just four points in the next two periods. The basket seemed to be mocking her at times, with mid range jumpers rattling inside the rim before coming back out. When Ole Miss cut the lead to eight with 4:06 remaining, Van Lith finally found the bottom of the basket again, moving the lead back to ten. After an offensive rebound, one of eleven pulled down by the Rebels, they found Angel Baker at the top of the key. The defense was slow to step out, and Baker (whose shot is not at all pretty, by the way) nailed a three to bring the lead down to seven. 

More important than the basket itself was that it allowed Ole Miss to set up their full court pressure. Louisville had managed it okay to this point, but as the Cards became passive, trying to run clock in a game that was much too close for that, the pressure started to creep in. Louisville continually inbounded the ball directly into the pressure and dribbled right into trap situations. It was a bit like they hadn't seen a full-court press before, and it got concerning rather quickly. It didn't really help that "Coach Yo" was allowed to be on the court, in many cases contributing to two- and three-man traps in the corner, but Louisville put themselves in the positions. Holding onto their seven point lead, it wasn't really the full-court press that broke through, rather the passivity yielding to Ole Miss's urgency. As soon as she got the ball across mid-court, HVL raised it above her head expecting to run clock. Taylor promptly swatted the ball up, out jumped Van Lith for the secondary tip, and sprinted down court for the fast break jumper. To her credit, Van Lith worked very hard to influence the shot, even providing a body bump to try to put Taylor off-balance. It would be easy to criticize that she didn't do more or get her hands up, but she was playing with three fouls and the two points would be more recoverable than losing HVL completely.

Hailey showed just how recoverable those two points were when she charged down the court and hit a jumper in the paint (very similar to the few that she had missed; shooters shoot) to push Louisville's lead back to 60-53. A foul sent Taylor to the line, where she missed the second. Liz Dixon secured the rebound, and, on the other end, Olivia Cochran powered through two defenders to make a layup and draw a foul on Tyia Singleton, ending her night. The free throw put Louisville up nine, which didn't last long. Ole Miss hit a jumper to move the lead back down to seven, but, just as Van Lith had before, Mykasa Robinson quickly got the points back. Growing tired of getting pinned down in half court traps and Louisville being out of rhythm, Kasa calmly worked the offense and navigated the defense deftly to get Louisville an open look. I'm just kidding. Kasa put her head down like a raging bull and sprinted through the pressing defenders on a bee-line for the basket. Her path was suddenly impeded by Angel Baker, so she stopped and put up the floater while crashing into the defender. The whistle blew and the ball fell through the hoop, while everyone watched the refs convene. Ultimately, they ruled a block and set Kasa to the line to try to convert Louisville's second straight three-point play. While it was a very close call that could have gone either way, replay proved the call correct. Baker was not in the circle, which seemed to be the point of issue for many on the floor, but an overhead view showed she was never set and slid/leaned into the contact as Kasa arrived.

As it stood, the free throw gave Louisville a 66-56 lead with 1:40 remaining in the game, and it began to feel a bit more like you could breathe. A pair of Rebel free throws were answered by another Robinson layup and a missed three set Ole Miss back to the line after a foul on the rebound. The free throws cut the lead to eight again, but time was heavily in favor of the Cards. Louisville was able to tick 17 seconds off before Ole Miss fouled to send Van Lith to the line. Having missed a free throw earlier in the game, HVL was determined to close this one out in front of her home fans. She calmly sunk the pair. Taylor scored quickly for Ole Miss and they wisely fouled immediately after the basket, but Van Lith, again, was clutch at the free throw line, moving Louisville's lead back to 72-62 with 33 seconds remaining. 

Ole Miss called their last timeout to discuss their options and to advance the ball, they worked a quick layup to Maddie Scott under the basket, but Morgan Jones was on hand for a block. In the shuffle for the ball, Ole Miss came out with it, but it took another nine seconds to get a shot off. When the three-pointer was off the mark and Merissah Russell came down with the rebound with just 19 seconds remaining, Ole Miss tipped their caps and let the clock run out. Louisville held on to win their fifth straight Sweet Sixteen game, advancing to face Iowa in the Elite Eight on Sunday.

As I mentioned earlier, and as they mentioned repeatedly on the broadcast, Hailey Van Lith was playing in front of what was effectively a home crowd. Dozens of family members had turned out for the game and HVL delivered. The hot 3-4 start from the floor cooled significantly, as she finished with just 7-18 shooting, but she kept her head in the game to finish with 21 points, five rebounds, four assists, and a steal compared to just three turnovers. One of those turnovers was an offensive foul and another was when she had her pocket picked clean, so it was a very strong outing for Louisville's star. She was 5-6 from the line, making all four of her free throws down the stretch, and she did it all without a break, playing all 40 minutes. 

Mykasa Robinson was Van Lith's running mate for all but two minutes on the floor. She shot 5-8 from the floor and, after missing a pair of free throws early, hit a big one to finish a three-point play late in the game. Kasa finished with 11 points, seven rebounds, five assists and just two turnovers and one foul. Her defensive impact doesn't stand out on the stat sheet, but at one point in the fourth quarter, Louisville had contested 74% of Ole Miss's field goal attempts in the half. Kasa's presence makes a difference there. Her other critical contribution came as the primary ball handler against a stifling full-court press. To play 38 minutes against that pressure and finish with just two turnovers was masterclass. 

Joining those two in double figures Olivia Cochran and Morgan Jones. Cochran finished with ten points and six rebounds, adding a block, a steal, and an assist. She made 4-5 free throw attempts and turned the ball over just twice. Like Van Lith, one of those came on an offensive foul. Cochran kept her head in this one, playing through frustrations and keeping herself in the game both mentally and physically. She committed just three fouls, with one of those coming very late. 

Morgan Jones had her best game since Louisville made the starting lineup change. Jones was a starter through January, scoring 13 in the loss to NC State and 15 in the loss at Wake Forest. Her average was buoyed by back-to-back 19 and 25 point performances against Virginia Tech and FSU. Unfortunately, the team was losing during that time. Since the lineup change, Jones has seen her minutes drop significantly, and her offense has suffered as a result. After breaking double-digits off the bench for the first time last week against Texas, she did it again with 11 last night. Jones was 4-8 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, and added seven rebounds, an assist, two blocks and two steals. She made a significant case for her role as a key player, and it will be interesting to see what Jeff Walz does moving forward.

In this game, Louisville played a short bench, with only three players subbing in for Louisville. With Nyla Harris playing just five minutes in her start, that position may be up for grabs. Jones had 25 minutes and Merissah Russell played 23. Russell and Dixon didn't score double digits, but both were danger-close with eight each. The three bench players totaled 27 points, outscoring Ole Miss's bench by 21. Though she struggled, Chrislyn Carr stayed engaged throughout the game. She finished with just one made basket for three points, but had an assist and just one turnover in her 21 minutes. CC was a threat on the floor and forced Ole Miss to account for her, even if the shot wasn't falling. Her presence forces the defense to open things up for Louisville's other offensive threats to punish. Plus, when she's hitting her shots, she's a force all on her own.

Ole Miss got 49 of their 62 points from three players, with Myah Taylor and Marquesha Davis dropping 19 apiece. Angel Baker added 11. Louisville did a good job forcing Maddie Scott to the bench early with foul trouble. Scott finished with just four points and five rebounds in 24 minutes and had to play passively to avoid fouling out. All six of Mississippi's bench points came from Snudda Collins. As was pointed out in the halftime show, Ole Miss was not a three-point shooting team. They shot below 30% from beyond the arc during the season, but they were content to attempt them against Louisville. Despite making a few in big spots, those big spot threes were the only ones they made. Keeping about on their average, the Rebels shot 4-15 from range, good for just 26.7%.

Louisville, on the other hand, took what the defense gave them. Making just one more three-pointer than Ole Miss, their advantage came in shooting three fewer. After allowing just 3-24 in the first two games, Ole Miss gave up 5-12 shooting from three to Louisville, part of what made the Cards outscore the Rebels' tournament defensive average by 22 points. 

The FRED and CASE Reports

Things are getting tight, as every game is win or go home. The little things matter even more, so let's see how the Cards handled our major categories. 

F-Free Throws: Robinson's 1-3 was really the low point of Louisville's effort from the line, as the Cards shot 13-17 overall. One miss each from HVL and Cochran and Jones 3-3 mark lifted the misses by Kasa. 76.5% is good for a lowercase 'f'.

R-Rebounding: This one is tough. Louisville won the rebounding battle 38-35. However, they had only nine offensive rebounds, giving up 11 to Ole Miss. Along with that, the Cards scored just one second chance point, a mark that they also lost to Ole Miss, who had 11. Both teams cleared about 72% of their rebounding opportunities on the defensive end, so it was very evenly matched. With Louisville having a size disadvantage at the guard spot and an advantage in the front-court, I am ultimately going to go with the big number winning out. Louisville gets a lowercase 'r', but just barely.

E-Effort/Execution: Louisville deserves heaping credit for their offensive performance against a very strong defensive team. The Cards committed just 12 turnovers, scattered throughout, and they scored 72 points on a team giving up 49.5 through two tournament games. They also kept their heads in the game, responding to scoring droughts and Ole Miss runs with poise. Louisville was outscored 9-5 in points off turnovers, 11-1 in second chance points, and 14-6 in fast break points. That said, they won the points in the paint battle and got far more bench production. Plus, they didn't lose any quarter scores, held the lead at the end of each period, and, most importantly, won the game. I grant a capital 'E' because I'm the one writing and I can do what I want.

D-Defense: Ole Miss scored 68.6 points per game this season, impressive for shooting just 29% from three and 67% from the free throw line. In addition to outscoring Ole Miss's defensive average by 16, the Cards held the Rebels below their season scoring average and below the scoring average of Louisville's opponents. The teams matched in turnovers, but Louisville had fewer fouls, more blocks, and more steals. They also forced Ole Miss to play outside of their system, with the 4-15 three-point shooting contributing to an overall 37% field goal percentage. Capital 'D'.

C-Care: Louisville turned the ball over 12 times. That's not great, but it's the same number as Ole Miss, and it's less than 75% of Ole Miss's season average of 16.4%. I can't give half a letter for tying in turnovers, so it must be a lowercase 'c'.

A-Assists: While their assist-to-turnover ratio was positive, it wasn't quite 1.5. Louisville finished with 13 assists on 27 made shots. It seems overly harsh to not get any letter here as the defense definitely played a part in Louisville's offense, resulting in a number of dribble drives. I'm going to be generous (I'm tired and happy Louisville won, ok? It's my metric) and award a lowercase 'a'.

S-Steals: Much more cut and dry with this stat. Louisville had more than Ole Miss, which is good, but fewer than our expected 7.5, which is less good. Lowercase 'e'.

E-Efficiency: Ah yes, an unexpected capital letter here. Louisville just managed to sneak 45.8% shooting, which is above our 45% expectation for field goal percentage. When they went cold a few times, it looked suspect, but the Cards actually shot consistently throughout the game. They were 7-15 in the first and third quarters, 6-13 in the second, and 7-16 in the fourth. As I mentioned earlier, HVL had a few shots in the fourth that were all the way down before coming back out. Louisville also shot over 75% from the free throw line, so that's a capital 'E'.

Overall, that's scores of f-r-E-D and c-a-s-E. No missing letters is representative of a strong showing from the Cards. At this stage of the tournament, strong showings will be needed to keep playing. Louisville already has their assignment for the next game. While it's easier said than done, the defensive scout is to shut down Caitlin Clark. If the Cards are going to make it to the Final Four, they can't let Clark go for 30. She might go for 20, and there might be nothing you can do about that, but a well-rounded offensive performance can see Louisville advance as long as they make someone else try to beat them instead of Clark. Make sure you get your nap in: Louisville's Elite 8 matchup is set for 9PM Sunday night.

Cardinal Couple Pick 'Em Challenge Update


We've got a couple of discrepancies, but they should be sorted out once the sweet sixteen has been played in full. I'm hoping for myself to be out of contention, as I have Iowa knocking off Stanford Sunday on their way to the championship. I'll gladly be wrong with the Hawkeyes facing multiple Cardinals instead of just one. I also lost a final four team when LSU beat Utah. My Greenville 2 bracket was one to forget, with Utah being my only correctly selected regional team there. 

As it stands the current order is below. Disputed scores are marked with an asterisk, and should be clarified later this weekend as I mentioned.

40-12: Jason, Karen J, Jared
39-13: Kenny S*, Katy, KStark Sr, Jeff, WahooCard, Daryl, Farris*
38-14: Arthur, Paulie, Joe Hill, Sonja*
37-15: David Watson, Thomas
36-16: Case, Vivian*
35-17: Blue Lou, Cindy, Curtis, Mike D
34-18: Becky
32-20: Bea, Chimps
30-22: Nick O*

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast


We should have a full house this week with plenty to discuss. Softball was postponed yesterday, but they played earlier in the week. Lacrosse is in action again today, and volleyball kicked off spring ball last night. More on both of those from Jeff tomorrow. Basketball will surely be the primary focus this morning, though, so be sure to tune in to this week's episode.  As always, you can check out the live stream of the show by going to the Cardinal Couple YouTube page and clicking on the live video. Jeff usually creates that about an hour before the show, which officially starts at 11 AM Eastern. If the live time doesn't work for you, there are plenty of playback options, so be sure to check out whichever is best for you!

Cardinal Couple YouTube: Link
Anchor (podcast host): Link
Apple Podcasts: Link
Google Podcasts: Link
Overcast (free account required): Link
Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link
RadioPublic: Link
Spotify: Link





Until next time, Go Cards!

Case