WSoc Travels to Saint Louis -- Hailey Van Lith -- Jordan McNary -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

We are certainly back in the full swing of a normal(ish) season with fall sports having games left and right with the addition of news from other sports who are not in season.

It makes our job much easier as we don't have to scrounge for content to provide to you. Two things fell into my lap about the time I was leaving work yesterday, adding onto today's content.

Women's Soccer Travels to Saint Louis

We'll start with the in-season sport before heading to some other individual news for current and former players for other sports.

After three straight home games to start the year, women's soccer will have their first road test of the season tonight when they visit Saint Louis. The Cards and Billikens are slated for an 8:00p.m., ET, kickoff and will be shown on ESPN+.

Louisville enters the match with a perfect 3-0 record and is recently off a 3-0 victory over in-state foe Northern Kentucky. The 13 goals in the first three matches of the season matches a program best dating all the way back to the program's inaugural season in 1985.

Offensively, the scoring has been spread out across eight players with Emma Hiscock leading the charge with three. Six of the eight goal scorers are freshmen or sophomores. Seven Cardinals have registered an assist with Brooke Dardano in front with four. Five of the seven players with assists are first-year members for Louisville's team, either as a freshman or by transfer.

The defensive side of things has been a bit shaky with the veteran defense allowing five goals. In their most recent game, the Cards registered a clean sheet while goalkeeper Gabby Kuzelos broke 200 career saves. Three allowed goals against James Madison turned a blowout into a close game. The two goals allowed against Western Michigan weren't as big of a deal due to the offense pouring on goals, but were not great nonetheless.

Saint Louis has struggled early in their 2021 season, losing three straight before breaking the goose egg in the wins column with a 2-0 victory over Illinois State. The A-10 preseason favorites opened the year ranked #21 in the United Soccer Coaches poll before plummeting out of the rankings altogether.

The Billikens had an excellent 2020 season, going 15-1-1 with a perfect 8-0 record in conference play. Their A-10 title earned them a bid to the NCAA Tournament, where they fell to Washington in penalty kicks in the opening round.

The Billikens have two goals on the season, both in their most recent match. Their defense has looked better, allowing four goals on the year, but are fresh off a shutout over the weekend. Three of the four goals allowed have come in the first half.

Abbie Miller, reigning A-10 Mid-fielder of the Year, and Emily Gaebe have been the two goal scorers for the Billikens. A-10 Offensive Player of the Year Hannah Friedrich and Anna Walsh each have an assist. Emily Puricelli has four goals allowed while also recording 18 saves.

The Cards are 3-9 all-time against Saint Louis, but have won three straight dating back to 2010. Prior to the start of the season, before we knew the status of the Louisville offense and looking at the Billikens' 2020 season, this game looked anything but promising. Now, a few games in, Louisville has a strong chance to return home with a win. The offense has been ruthless with their nonstop attack all game against opponents and has provided a cushion to allow a goal or two here and there.

If Louisville can come out attacking early and get on the board before halftime, the aggressive front line should be able to keep Saint Louis on its heels in the second half to relive some pressure from Kouzelos and the back line on defense.

Hailey Van Lith at FIBA 3x3

Louisville women's basketball players love to stay busy and Hailey Van Lith is no exception. The rising sophomore will represent Team USA in the FIBA 3x3 Women's Series in Montreal on Friday and Saturday.

Van Lith will be joined by Jordan Reynolds (Tennessee), Breanna Richardson (Mississippi State), and Camille Zimmerman (Columbia).

Team USA is part of Group A and has Friday action against Germany at 1:50p.m., ET, Austria at 3:00p.m., and Netherland at 5:50p.m. The top team from each group receives a bye and advances to the semifinals on Saturday. The second and third place teams will play in the quarterfinals with the winners advancing to the semifinals.

Jordan McNary Joins Morehead State Staff

Morehead State softball announced yesterday that they would be adding Louisville alumna Jordan McNary to their staff. If you've read us over the years, you're probably aware that she's a favorite of the Cardinal Couple staff and we've enjoyed our interaction with her over the yeaars. 

McNary, who was with the Cards from 2013-2017, was a three-year starter in the outfield. Known for her speed, McNary carried a .318 career batting average while recording 140 hits and crossing home plate a whopping 93 times. We often saw "The Governor" beating out throws down the first base line or winding up on second before the catcher had a chance to throw the ball.

"I am very grateful for this wonderful opportunity, so I would like to thank Coach Jones and everyone here at Morehead State," said McNary. "Once I got on campus, it was beautiful and I immediately felt at home. To coach at this level has been a goal of mine for a very long time. I'm looking forward to working with the MSU student-athletes and staff. This upcoming softball season will be exciting, and I am glad to be a part of the program."

Louisville has played Morehead State in the past, but the 2022 regular season schedule has not been announced, so we are not sure if we will see McNary in town with the Eagles yet.

We wish Jordan a congratulations and the best of luck in her collegiate coaching career!

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Field Hockey Wins -- Women's Soccer Wins -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

It was a busy day on Floyd Street again with both field hockey and women's soccer in action. Also on Floyd Street, but not directly related to a UofL team was Bellarmine field hockey playing a match at Trager Stadium against Ball State. Bellarmine will be using Trager Stadium as their home location this season.

Paulie was out performing as a master chef at a birthday celebration most of the day and that, sadly, kept him and Sonya from campus. He also seemed to master his craft of grilling without catching anything on fire so hit him up for your burger and brats needs. With Paulie out for the day and myself practically living on Floyd Street for the next few weeks it was easier for me to go on and recap both games. He'll take my Tuesday article in exchange.

Field Hockey Shuts Out New Hampshire

There was a Wildcats team on campus yesterday but they weren't from down I-64 and they weren't from East High with their singing and dancing. It was the Wildcats of New Hampshire that visited Trager Stadium to take on Justine Sowry's squad.

The #5 ranked Cardinals cruised to a 3-0 victory to improve to 2-0 on the year. Each goal was scored by a different player in a different quarter.

Late in the second quarter, Alli Bitting inbounded the ball on a penalty corner. Aimee Plumb took a shot that was deflected the goalkeeper, but the ball bounced straight to eye level of Bitting who had an open goal to work with. Like in basketball, this is why you are taught to follow a shot.

After carrying a 1-0 lead into halftime, Louisville scored a second goal from a set piece. The inbounds pass went to Julie Kouijzer, whose shot was more of a pass to Katie Schneider standing at the foot of the goal. Schneider used her stick as a ramp to send the ball into the air and the back of the cage.

The final goal came late in the fourth quarter as an insurance goal more than anything. After a pressing Cardinals attack forward, the ball got knocked around and deflected until the freshman Filippa Niebuhr came face-to-face with the ball and cage for her first score of the year.

Louisville pulled off penalty corners like it was a rabbit in a magic hat, but the keeper for New Hampshire had herself one heck of a day and limited to the scores off the corners to just two. She tallied double-digit saves on the day and kept the Wildcats in the game for much longer than anticipated.

On the defensive end for the Cards, Louisville's Mila de Kuijer had little action in goal. She saw one shot on goal the entire day and easily saved it. Besides that, she was hanging out by the grill with Paulie.

We got a chance to speak with Coach Justine Sowry following the win. You can check out her interview here.

Following our interaction with Coach Sowry, we got a chance to speak with Alli Bitting and get her thoughts on the game. You can check that out here.

Louisville hits the road to Princeton next weekend to take on Penn and Princeton. They'll return home the weekend after.

Women's Soccer Improves to 3-0 with Win

After a short break at home to cool down for me, I went back to campus to Dr Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium. The weather cooperated a lot better this time than the last go-around.

Louisville was fresh off a somewhat surprising close match against James Madison on Friday and bounced back with a 3-0 victory over instate opponent Northern Kentucky.

Unlike Friday's match, the Cards found a way to maintain position a majority of the night and continued to press forward without ever pulling off the reins.

It was fairly early into the game when Abby Baldridge lined up to send a free kick into the box. The ball connected with the head of fellow freshman Hayley Howard, who knocked the shot in for her first career goal.

Roughly 12 minutes later, Delaney Snyder broke loose from a defender hot on her tail to send a shot across the box and into the left corner of the goal for her second score of the year.

Midway through the second half, Emma Hiscock worked her way around a couple defenders to get a shot past the NKU keeper into the upper part of the goal for her team-leading third of the season.

It was the offense the proved to be the best defense for the Cards as their 18 total shots and eight shots on goal kept the Norse on their heels much of the night. NKU did find a little wiggle room on a couple occasions for a pair of shots on goal, both which were handled cleanly by Gabby Kouzelos.

With her save in the first half, Kouzelos recorded 200 career saves. Another save in the second half put her at 201 and a spot in the top five all-time in program history. After a rough game on Friday, Kouzelos looked back to her normal self in goal and was noticeably more vocal as she corralled her team and back line of defenders into position all night.

Louisville still has some work to do as they were heavy on the fouls on the night and are still figuring out the kinks with working on scoring opportunities, but you run into those issues with a young team that played seven freshmen and five sophomores (18 players saw minutes).

I wasn't able to stick around for postgame on this one but Coach Karen Ferguson-Dayes seemed much more pleased with her team following the match.

The Cards improve to 3-0 on the year and head to Saint Louis on Thursday before returning home Sunday night to take on Western Kentucky.

Happy Monday and Go Cards!

Jared

Women's Soccer Hosts James Madison -- Softball Addition -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Women's Soccer Hosts James Madison

Whether you're a fan of soccer, or UofL sports, or dogs, there's plenty of reason to head out to Dr. Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium tonight as Louisville women's soccer welcomes James Madison. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m., and admission is free.

Louisville is doing a first for soccer by hosting their Paws on the Pitch promotion. Bring your doggies with you and hang out on the north berm, or come on out just to see plenty of pups. Despite the wording of the promotion, dogs will not be allowed on the playing field.

The Cards downed Western Michigan with ease last week, winning 6-2. It improved Louisville's season-opening record to 19-1-2 all time. Freshmen Julia Simon and Nina Nicosia each scored two goals while Brooke Dardano and Emma Hiscock each found the back of the net once.

Can you name these four soccer alums?

Defensively, Louisville was a bit of a surprise by allowing two goals. With plenty of veterans on the back line and in goal, we were hopeful for a shutout. On a normal night, giving up two goals may cost you the match. However, it was the season opener and there were nerves so I expect the defense to look more in sync tonight.

James Madison comes in with a 1-1 record. The Dukes fell in their season opener to VCU 1-0 before blowing out American 4-0. They were picked to finish fifth in the Colonial Athletic Conference.

All four goals on the year have come from different players. Lexi Vanderlinden is credited with two of the four assists. Overall, James Madison has taken 18 shots on goal, proving that their offense is aggressive and not afraid to attack the goal.

In goal, Alexanda Blom has gotten both starts and logged 171:27 minutes. She gave up the lone goal while also recording an impressive nine saves. This is the redshirt sophomore's first season as top keeper for the Dukes after playing a reserve role the past two years.

The Cards and Dukes have only played once before with James Madison taking a 1-0 victory back in 1990. Three of your regular writers on here weren't even born yet... sorry Paulie and Jeff.

Softball Adds Kendall Smith

Coach Holly Aprile seems to have found a trend that is quite popular in college basketball- chasing grad student transfers. For the second straight year, Louisville softball adds a fifth-year senior.

Kendall Smith joins the Cardinal squad from Western Kentucky. Smith, a native of Bowling Green, stayed local to play for the Hilltoppers. Smith helped WKU to a 2021 Conference USA title.

Smith will join the talented group of catchers in Cassady Greenwood and Rebecca Chung. Her bat has proven to be her strength. In her four year career, Smith accumulated 27 home runs, 113 RBIs, and 107 runs scored.

Louisville, who ran into some offensive issues at times last year by stranding base-runners, will rely on Smith's bat to help knock those runs in.

UofL does have plans of a fall schedule, which is normal, but it has not yet been released. These scrimmages are typically against teams in the area to allow the coaches to access the strengths and weaknesses of their team before the season.

Remember that picture of some UofL soccer alums earlier in the article? Here are the four former Cards from left to right: Allison Whitfield, Brooklyn Rivers, Kennadi Carbin, Emina Ekic. How'd you do?

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!
Jared

Season Review: Soccer -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Season Review: Soccer

We find ourselves back to reviewing UofL sports seasons. Today, we will take a look at women's soccer, another team that split their season between the fall and spring.

A solid start to the season quickly turned sour and the spring ended about as disappointing as possible with the final two matches of the season cancelled.

The fall season consisted of eight regular season matches against ACC opponents and then the ACC tournament. The spring season was set to be a non-conference schedule.

Louisville opened the season with a 3-0 win at Miami with Emina Ekic and Delaney Snyder doing all the scoring against the Hurricanes. The Cards remained in the Sunshine State where they fell to eventual National Runner-Up Florida State.

The Cards game home for a two-game homestand. UofL defeated Syracuse 3-0 as the Ekic-Snyder duo contributed to a majority of the scoring once again with Jessica De Filippo scoring the other goal. Boston College visited Dr Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium next with the Cards taking the win 2-0. Ekic scored her fifth goal on the year and Taylor Kerwin recorded her first with the assist credited to both Ekic and Snyder.

Another road trip was next for Karen Ferguson Dayes' squad. It started with a 2-0 loss to Final Four contender Virginia, who did all their damage in the first half. They then went across the state to down Virginia Tech 1-0 with Morgan Bentley getting her first goal on the season.

Louisville came home to wrap up the regular season with a pair of matches. Notre Dame would take the first match 1-0. The regular season finale saw Louisville host Final Four contender North Carolina. It was Ekic who would put the Cards up early in the second half in the pouring down rain before the Tar Heels with three goals over the next 30 minutes to get the win.

At 4-4, Louisville earned the #6-seed in the ACC Tournament and saw a rematch with the Wahoos. Diana Ordonez would post a hat trick as Virginia would cruise to a 4-1 win. You can take a guess on who scored the Cards' goal- her seventh and final of the season.

We saw the spring season begin in early March with the Cards hosting Dayton and winning 1-0 on a Maisie Whitsett goal. Auburn came to town next and would go on to take a 1-0 in sudden death double overtime.

What would eventually be the final match of the season, Louisville traveled to Bowling Green. WKU relied on a goal 93 seconds into the match to get the win.

Matches scheduled against Tennessee and Wake Forest would get cancelled due to various reasons.

Louisville would end the year with a 5-7 record and a 4-4 mark in the ACC. One year after an impressive 13-5-2 mark, Louisville showed signs of struggling and a frustrating ending.

The Cards would end up getting outscored by just one, 13-12 on the year. Ekic led the way with seven goals and three assists. Snyder would be one of five Cards to score one goal this season but led the team with four assists.

Only three of the six scorers are set to return next season. Taylor Kerwin graduated after the spring semester. Jessica De Filippo transferred out after the fall season. Emina Ekic entered the NWSL Draft after the fall season and was drafted in the first round by Racing Louisville FC, where she has put on a show. Louisville is bleeding profusely on offense for next year. You cannot replace Ekic with any single player. Snyder looks to take the lead but needs a second and third scorer. Corinne Dente was a hopeful candidate but is still in recovery mode from a torn ACL. We may see Whitsett convert back to a forward or possibly Emma Hiscock steps up after a promising freshman outing.

Defensively, Sarah Hernandez is set to return as a centerback and power the back line. Gabby Kouzelos is expected to return for another season in goal. Kouzelos recorded 53 saves on 66 attempts for an incredible .803 save percentage. Louisville is set on defense for the fall 2021 season.

We quickly approach a holiday weekend with Memorial Day on Monday. Daryl returns back to her Friday column tomorrow and we should be back on our Cardinal Couple Radio Hour this Saturday.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared