DANA EVANS PRESEASON ALL AMERICAN -- JEFF WALZ PRESSER --- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 DANA EVANS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN

As we get closer and closer to the (hopeful) start of college women's basketball, the awards keep rolling in for University of Louisville Women's Basketball student- athletes. 

Yesterday, Dana Evans was named to the 2020-21 Associated Press Preseason All-American team. The 5'6" senior guard from Gary, IN joins four others on the first team -- Aliyah Boston (South Carolina), Aari McDonald (Arizona), Michaela Onyenware (UCLA) and Rhyne Howard (Kentucky). Evans is the firstt pre-season All-American selection for Louisville hoops since Asia Durr was selected for the honor in the 2018-19 season. 

They'll probably need to extend the UofL Women's basketball trophy display cabinets again,..Evans was also named WBCA First Team All-American, The ACC Preseason Player of the Year and to the Drysdale Award Watch List.   

Evans has already joined the Cardinals 1,000 pt. club (with 1113 -- which ranks her 22nd in program history) and Louisville was named the top preseason pick yesterday by ACc Coacnes to win the conference this season. 

To Dana, we extend our most heartfelt congratulations for this latest honor and best wishes for what we hope is a season that is memorable and injury and virus free.  

WALZ PRESSER 11/12/20

Jeff Walz held another pre-season presser yesterday and spoke of several things as the WBB Schedule draws nearer. He talked about Syd and Payton, the two newest Cards, practice and the current team, Dana, the virus, the practice players and quite a few other topics. Due to a glitch on the UofL end, I was unable to get a question in for Walz, so I just listened. 

Here is the link:  JEFF WALZ PRESSER -- AUDIO AND VIDEO 

As I usually do, I'll record the pressers on my Tascam DR-05 Linear PCM Recorder from start to finish. If you prefer that version, it is linked up below:  

JEFF WALZ PRESSER -- AUDIO ONLY

Have a safe Friday!

paulie

All Americans: Jordan and Funke -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

BREAKING NEWS. WE HAVE JUST LEARNED THAT HEAD SOFTBALL COACH SANDY PEARSALL IS RETIRING. EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY


SOFTBALL'S JENNA JORDAN AND CELINE FUNKE SELECTED TO ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN SQUAD

When one hears the term "All-American" associated with a particular players name, the thoughts tend to go to spectacular performances on their particular field or court of competition. Leading their team to victories, high national rankings and a bit of respect when you see that your next opponent has a few All-Americans on their roster.

There is another side to being an All-American, though, and that falls on the academic side of a student-athletes life. High performance levels in the classroom, a grade-point average that excels and a recognition that there is a considerable amount of time being spent in academic pursuits and the successful results produced in the field of study, testing and results. 

Louisville Softball is the latest sport on campus to get good news from the academic side of the college experience. Senior catcher Jenna Jordan (Fort Collins, Co) and sophomore outfielder Celene Funke (Carmel, IN) earned the accomplishments that were just awarded to 33 Division I softball players. They are part of the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-American Division I Academic All-American team.

The qualification standards for the honor are quite demanding. Potential student-athletes for the team must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.0 and have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings. 

It is stringent and not an easy journey...this quest to be on the Academic All-American list.  Only two Softball Cards have received the acknowledgment before. Catherine Bishop (2006) and Kristi Cunningham (2009).

Bishop, a Cardinal pitcher from Adelaide, Australia was the first for Cards Softball and was also the Big East Pitcher of the Year as a junior. She set a school record for wins with her 30-6 record and also carried a 3.43 G.P.A. in Biology.

Cunningham, a four-year starter in the outfield out of Gallatin, TN, was also the UofL Freshman of the Year and maintained a 3.83 G.P.A. while going through the pre-Nursing program at UofL. 

About this year's honorees:

-- Jordan, who made the second team, held a 4.0 G.P.A. in her three years at UofL in Exercise Science. She landed at Louisville after a freshman year at Northern Colorado. We interviewed her at the 2018 Louisville Softball Banquet and found her to be a delightful, intelligent and conversational woman with a nice sense of humor. Her journey to Louisville is one that everyone should watch and know. You can view it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVFhv6fZ-Uw

The story will have a profound effect upon you. I viewed it again this morning while preparing this article and tears were streaming down my face. My wife Sonya even came in to see what the matter was. I replayed it for her. Yep, we were sharing tissues. Her journey has been incredible. Her future so bright, her travels lined with heartbreak and hope. 

She was also a power on the field, with a .272 batting average and an arm that made potential base-stealers think twice and usually regret their decisions to try and "test the cannon". 

-- Funke also has a 4.0 G.P.A. and her pursuits are in the finance field. Maybe she can help our Jared Anderson at Cardinal Couple turn those quarters into nickles and dimes if she has any spare time . Like Jordan, she's been on the Honor Roll every semester here at UofL. A flamboyant and talented outfielder, she became "the darling" of the ACC Network Extra and Fox Sports Southeast announcers during the ACC Tournament for her spectacular catches.  You can get the "Funke" file and spotlight at this following link: https://gocards.com/news/2018/1/26/celene-funke-up-next-on-louisville-softballs-player-spotlight.aspx


These two exemplary women are just a couple of the many success stories and uplifting, inspirational student-athletes who spend their collegiate pursuits on the Belknap Campus.
College is an experience that not all get the opportunity to participate in. It's a time of decisions, life-lessons, bonding and growth. 

In Funke and Jordan, it has been and will continue to be an event-filled trip on their life's journey. A journey that will take them to fantastic places, intriguing situations and the entire spectrum of the term "experience".  

We're glad, here at Cardinal Couple, to have the chance to be interested and impressed bystanders...to have the opportunity to help share their stories and re-tell their journeys. There are "Jordan and Funke" type stories on all of the athletic squads at UofL and learning them and being able to spread them is one of the reasons we do what we do and why we enjoy it so. 

(Portions of today's article were gathered from gocards.com and Softball SID Lori Korte. We gratefully acknowledge their fine work) 



paulie    

Louisville women's basketball -- All Americans -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

DURR FIRST TEAM, HINES-ALLEN THIRD TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

Add a couple more recognitions and awards to the list that UofL women's basketball players have achieved in the 2017-18 season. ASIA DURR has been named to the USA TODAY SPORTS All-American first team and MYISHA HINES-ALLEN to the third team.

Durr "That Girl" gets the top team honors with A'Ja Wilson (South Carolina), Katie Lou Samuelson (UConn), Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon) and Victoria Vivians (Miss. St.) She was the ACC Player of the Year a week ago and leads the conference in 3-point field goals made and percentage...as well as finishing third in the scoring at 19.5 ppg. 

A great and deserving honor for "Nite-nite", who, as a junior, will be back to add on these already lofty and deserving awards. Double digit points in 27 games for the Douglasville, GA native. 

Hines-Allen makes the third team All-American list along with Brittany McPhee (Stanford), Brooke McCarty (Texas), Napheesa Collier (UConn) and Jordin Canada (UCLA). "Dooo-blay" was named the ACC Tournament MVP, made the First Team All-ACC last week and is just one of two players to accumulate 1,000 points and rebounds in her career at Louisville.
From Montclair, NJ...Myisha is hot right now and playing some of her best basketball ever. 

Did Hines-Allen deserve to be on the second team? One could certainly make the argument for it. That squad was Gabby Williams (UConn), Kalani Brown (Baylor), Arike Ogunbowale (Notre Dame), Kelsey Mitchell (Ohio State) and Megan Gustafson (Iowa). Some might even argue for Myisha's inclusion on the First Team. I would put Myisha's game up against Gustafson's any day of the week and time in big games and I'd be a winner with MHA. It was a USA Today Poll, though. 

You know, those folks who can't give you Saturday results until Monday.  

This was the original "That Girl" Can you name
her? First correct gets the final entry in our $25
Panera Card drawing. 

And, everyone's favorite coach (especially Jeff Walz's) Muffet McGraw was named Coach of the Year.... a further indication of how the USA TODAY Awards had some hits and misses in the results. A'ja Wilson was Player of the Year. I guess I can kinda see that, especially after the way she destroyed Mississippi St. in the SEC finals, and Ms. Durr slightly backed off her game for Louisville in the final five of the season. 

These are still very nice and rewarding honors for the  dynamic duo from the "Ville". They constantly remind all, however, that they are part of a unit. A team. A group that waits to see just where the NCAA (No Current Athletic Acumen) and the selection committee decides Louisville's regional fate. 


SPEAKING OF THE BIG DANCE...


I'd venture very, very short odds that UConn gets Albany. The fact that the site isn't being moved to Bridgeport or Hartford to make it easier for Geno to drive the dogsled of Huskies is the only factor of doubt here. The next question is, though, what do you do with Mississippi State? The Associated Press poll has them #4 in the nation. Just to show you how out of whack the USA Today folks are, Mississippi St. is second and Notre Dame is fourth...with Louisville fifth.

That group needs a strong cup of coffee and a ride in the Professor's DeLorean DMC-12 back to reality. And, the date of the poll is today (March 8th.)  Musta been a wild weekend in Neverland for those folks. 

The Top 16 Committee Ranking has Mississippi State second with Louisville third. NCAA RPI has Mississippi State fifth and UofL 3rd. 

What we all want to know is who gets the chance to go to Lexington if they win their first two games at home in the NCAA Tournament.  One would hope the NCAA might be worried about attendance numbers and pick Louisville to be in the Lexington region. Let's look at this: It is 630 miles from Starkville to Kansas City. 480 miles from Starkville to Lexington. A 7-8 or more hour trip wither place. And Spokane? Yeah, that's a bit further. 

Baylor says..."Whoa, Whoa! What about us?"  The Bears are at least over 600 miles away from ANY site...the closest being Kansas City. They are considered a Midwestern school, though and that would be the MidWest Region, in geographical terms. 

I say (drum roll, please) send Mulkey and her Bears to Kansas City, Mississippi State to Spokane (and be careful of the falls, you rebs!) and Louisville to Lexington. I can hear the anguished cries of the rest of the NCAA from my den chair already, though. 

"Unfair advantage for Louisville. Why punish Mississippi State and send them to Spokane?  Make Baylor....or Louisville, even better, go there! They were fourth most of the year in the rankings! Grab your pitchfolks, light your torches and storm the NCAA in Indianapolis and demand fairness and justice!" 

"WHO'S THAT GIRL !?!"

Baylor won the Big 12 Conference Tournament. They should get the Kansas City region. Louisville won the ACC Conference Tournament. Award them with the Lexington region. And Mississippi State lost to South Carolina in the SEC Tournament. No automatic bid. No preferential treatment. Pack your bags for Washington, gals. 

Of course, this is the NCAA. They don't consider logic, common sense or rational thought into anything they consider or try to accomplish. They just might decide to put Oregon as the #1 seed in Spokane, Notre Dame the #1 seed in Lexington and send Louisville to Kansas City as the #1 seed. And still try to explain it as if the was the only decision that made sense.

I hope the Cards get to go to Lexington if they win their first two games of the NCAA Tournament. It is close for the team and the fans, although I still get a little nauseous and gaseous when I have to walk through those garage doors that lead to the underbelly of UK's arena. 

Time will tell. While we wait, let's wish the Louisville men's team a little luck today against Virginia. Third time's charm, right?  Keep those men's NCAA Tournament hopes alive!   


Paulie
xxxxx 




  

Mariya Moore -- Intense Competitor

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Salesian's Mariya Moore:  Future Cardinal brings fire


If you read Cardinal Couple on a regular basis, you've probably seen and know the Bay area superstar Mariya Moore will be a freshman on the UofL women's basketball squad this fall. 

You may also be aware that she was one of twelve players picked to play for the USA in the U 18 FIBA Tournaments that begin in late July out in Colorado Springs.

There is also a close resemblance in her name to the name of the UConn/Minnesota Lynx superstar Maya Moore. We're pleased to announce that Mariya Moore brings the same fire and intensity to the court that Maya does. 

You see...it's very simple. Mariya Moore hates to lose. Whether it's left-handed layup competition, playing for the California Girls Basketball State Championships or qualifying for an elite team like the U 18 USA team, Mariya wants to win. 

Moore knows a few things about championship games. The senior helped Salesian reach the Division IV state title game the last three years. She made her commitment to Louisville a day after helping her club team, Cal Stars, reach the finals at Nike Nationals, one of the premier club tournaments of the summer. She is an All-American. 

According to her coach, if you want to bring out the fire in

Moore competed against GabbyGreen
throughout high school

Mariya...tell her she's good but not great at something. You'll see her dedicate and devote her self to achieving a great status.


This bodes well for the concept of teamwork. Teamwork is high on the charts when you look at what Jeff Walz demands out of his players. Coach Walz has also been known to suggest to players things they can do to become great, not good. 

Moore will have a busy summer...learning more about her UofL teammates, competing on a worldwide stage and making the transition from high school to college. 

What will she bring to the Cards? Here's one analysis:

Strong, athletic perimeter performer with emerging perimeter game; slashes, drives and finishes vs. contact; workhorse on glass, handles and distributes in transition; versatile

The 6'0" wing is one of five freshmen who will join a strong returning cast that will try and replace Shoni, Asia, Tia and Nita. 

How will she do?

We'll go out on a limb and say...

Great. 

paulie