Field Hockey Drops Opener -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Fall in Double OT at Maryland

Louisville headed up to College Park this weekend where they will play a pair of games. They'll take on American University tomorrow afternoon, but the weekend started with a top-10 matchup against the hosts, 4th-ranked Maryland. The Cards gave it a good run, scoring first and standing strong against a stout Maryland attack, but they ultimately gave up a game-winner with just over a minute remaining in the final overtime period. 

Louisville's goal came from Sophia Parker, which gives the redshirt sophomore her first collegiate goal. Although they don't officially get the credit for a penalty corner conversion, I'm going to say it counts. Chloe Plumb sent the corner to Mia Duchars, who forced a save by the Maryland goalie, Alyssa Klebasko. Klebasko wasn't able to block it very far out of play, and Parker was on hand to score the rebound attempt. 

The Cards' celebrations were short lived. After taking the lead at the 24:27 mark, they gave it up just under a minute later. Maryland earned a corner at 25:15, but they were not able to get a clean shot as a direct result. Louisville couldn't force the offense away, though, and the goal came at the 25:25 mark. That set the stage for a continued tense match, as the two teams would ultimately play just 58 seconds of the 78:42 match not tied. 

Louisville's offense stalled after the first half. Though they put three shots on target in the second quarter, those would be their only three threats of the game. The Cards were unable to find a shot in any of the other three quarters, managed just one off target in the first overtime, and were shut down again in the second OT. Defensively, Louisville was under immense pressure. Maryland had three shots in each of the first three quarters, two in the fourth, and one apiece in the OT periods. Eight of their thirteen shots were on goal, meaning grad transfer Brandelynn Heinbaugh was called on plenty in her first start for Louisville. Heinbaugh finished with six saves, a fantastic effort, but she needed more help from the offense to earn the victory. 

The starting lineup for Louisville was quite different than in their season-ending loss to Northwestern last year. Primarily driven by graduations, the Cards saw just four of their eleven starters from Northwestern game start this game against Maryland. Lauren Masters started in that game but came off the bench yesterday. Subs that moved into the starting line up were the Chloes, Plumb and Cuzzupe, and the only repeat substitute was Tyler Everslage.

While a season-opening loss is unfortunate, let's not forget that it was against a top-5 opponent on the road. Louisville will have many difficult games this season, and this is a good one to get them energized for those big games moving forward. We'll look for a bounce back against American tomorrow at 1PM.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

There will be just three of us today, as Daryl and Jared are both out for various reasons (not least because of a noon kickoff for football). With sports underway, though, we'll have plenty to talk about on the show. We'll talk a huge volleyball win, a fine road draw for women's soccer, and yesterday's tough field hockey loss. 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

Spotify: Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Duchars. Plumb Named to College Sports Commuicators Award -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 DUO MAKE ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN DISTRICT TEAM

In these days of NIL endorsements and lucrative packages for college athletes, the term "student-athlete" sometimes gets lost by the wayside when discussing those who toil on the athletic fields and courts on the UofL and other campuses. The importantce of academic excellence has not fallen by the wayside, mind you, one still has to maintain the grade-point average to be athletically eligible..but it is somthng that doesn't get mentioned as much as points per game, kills, goals, stops or which corporate sponsor in adorning the player's jersey. .  

So, let's take a look today at two who have exemplified academic success in their time at UofL. Two scholasr from the Cards Field Hockey program continue to "make the grade" and serve as a shining example of how good grades and excellent athletic performance can go hand and hand.

 

Aimee Plumb is a senior forward from Canterbury, Kent, England and has been named named CSC Academic All-District for the third straight year in a row. You can get any better than Amy, she had a 4.0 average and is majoring in Psychology, with minors in Art and Spanish.  A two time NFHCA Academci All-American, She also earned ACC and NFHCA Schola Athlete of the Year awards in 2022-23. 

On the field,  Aimee led the Cards with 18 points, she had a team high eight assists and five goals. We tease abut someone being "Plumb Perfect"  when they've had a good outing or performance, and the tales of the young woman from Cantebury could easlily equal the 24 told in the Tales of Canterbury book.

 

Mia Duchars is also a senior and is from St.Louis Missouri.  She plays defense for UofL and is a biology major. She is a three-time NFHCA National Academic squad selection. Mia is also a two time ACC Academic Team Member. 

She's a two ACC Field Hockey Defensive Player of the Week, and helped the Cards record six shutouts in 2023. Under her defensive guidance, Louisville made the semifinals of the ACC Tournament and quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. It's been said that if Duchars was in charge of defending the Golden Arch in St. Louis, nothing would get through it. 

We salute these two excellent "Stick Girls" at UofL .They've stuck to academic excellence, and the Cards keep sticking up winning scores.on the winning side of things.

Plumb and Duchars personify the meaning of a student-athlete. And Chloe Plumb, Aimee's little sister (at least academically-wise) ensures to continue the fine tradition of a "Plumb-er" at Louuisville for a few more seasons...she's a sophomore forward on the Cards roster...

paulie

ACC Awards -- Looking at Fall Sports Regular Seasons -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Happy Halloween! Today, we look at plenty of tricks and treats going on in the realm of Louisville women's sports.

ACC Awards

Field Hockey Places Three on All-ACC Teams

Louisville field hockey had three players named to the All-ACC Teams. Mia Duchars was named to the All-ACC First Team while Mia Emilia Kaczmarczyk and Julie Kouijzer were named to the All-ACC Second Team. You mean to tell me that players like Aimee Plumb and Merlijn van der Vegt didn't place? Get Out. That seems like a bunch of Hocus Pocus to me.

This is the first all-conference honor for Duchars, who was a crucial part of the defense while also playing a role with transitional offense. Duchars logged four assists and scored the game-winning goal in overtime at Boston College to close out the regular season.

Kaczmarczyk is having her best season of her five-year career with the Cards. The English native also earned her first all-conference honors while recording five goals and having two assists. Opposing defenses would get Goosebumps when Kazzy lined up for a shot.

Kouijzer has been the last line of defense for the Cards for several years, and has helped captain and direct the defense from her position. The defense allowed less than one goal per game this season. The Dutch native was also a force to be reckoned with on penalty corners, with three goals and three assists.

Louisville enters the ACC Tournament as the 3-seed and will face 6-seed Boston College today at 6:00 pm ET in Charlottesville. You can catch it on tv on ACC Network. Louisville has reached the ACC Finals before but has never won the title before. Will this year be The Shining moment for them?

Volleyball with Two Weekly Award Winners

Elle Glock was named ACC Setter of the Week. The redshirt sophomore tallied 64 assists over the weekend for an average of just over 10 assists per set. Her 34 assists and 10 digs against Florida State led to her first double-double of the season.

Elena Scott was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week. The junior libero 20 digs in the sweep over Florida State, her first 20+ dig match of the season. She had 13 more assists in the sweep over Miami. She added 10 assists and a pair of aces over the weekend. Scott is a Hellraiser for opposing offenses, who think they have an easy kill before she comes diving in at the last season with the dig.

The Cards have six regular season games left this season. They visit Georgia Tech this Friday. Ready or Not, the Cards are coming for you, Georgia Tech.

Louisville has advanced to two straight Final Fours and finished last season as National Runner-Up. Will this season be the season that UofL earns The Ring they have been chasing after?

Looking Back on Fall Sports Regular Seasons

Women's Soccer

For Louisville women's soccer, this season was certainly one to make you Scream. The Cards finished 4-9-5 this year with a 3-5-2 mark in conference play. It seemed like it was all a part of a Scary Movie. While it doesn't compare to Louisville men's basketball going 4-28 last season and starting the season on a nine-game losing a streak, a true Nightmare Before Christmas, this season's results don't bode well for a team full of talent.

UofL WSOC lost four games by one goal each. Turn those into draws or turn some of the five draws into wins and this season has a much better result. 9-4-5 looks world's better than 4-9-5. They did record a couple good wins over Pitt and Duke. Perhaps the Cards were in the hands of Malignant after battling several injuries.

We will be Conjuring up good vibes for next season. We do not know of any players that might be transferring out or in for the 2024 season.

After several years of failing to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, the Lynn Stadium offices probably feel like The Little Shop of Horrors as they figure out how to fix that for next year. 

Field Hockey

For the most part, Louisville field hockey had a strong season, going 13-5 on the year. However, a loss to Duke on Friday the 13th sparked a four-game losing streak towards the end of the season that turned a definite NCAA Tournament appearance into one that is a little bit more questionable. I still think their overall record and rpi should be enough to get in regardless of the results from the conference tournament.

So, who did the Cards call during their losing streak? Well, it wasn't the Ghostbusters. Justine Sowry got her team back to focusing on the basics and trying to loosen back up. It definitely felt like there was something Sinister afoot but Louisville bounced back with a win at Boston College to close out the regular season.

They now prepare for the ACC Tournament and hopefully the NCAA Tournament. IT is time to get the postseason started at 6:00 pm today. UofL is coming off a visit to Boston College where they snatched a win from the Jaws of defeat and now will Duel it out again tonight.

Volleyball

The volleyball regular season isn't over quite yet. With six games remaining, the Cards are 20-2 on the year and hold an 11-1 mark in conference play. You can't help but Smile at the 14 sweeps this year for Louisville, including those over rivals Kentucky and Pitt.

Even though Louisville's home arena isn't much bigger than The Cabin in the Woods or The Last House on the Left...the arena is regularly pushing capacity. They did break 12,000 at the KFC Yum! Center earlier this season and have had great numbers in all three appearances downtown. A rocking KFC Yum! Center crowd is enough to Haunt any opposing team's dreams. It is definitely the opposite of A Quiet Place.

Don't Look Now, but the Cards moved up to #3 in the latest AVCA rankings, sitting just behind Nebraska and Wisconsin. Pitt and Georgia Tech also sit in the top 10. The ACC has been Conjuring up strong volleyball programs for the last several years, with much of that credit going to when Louisville and Pitt joined the conference.

This year's Final Four is a bit of a distance for the Cards. No it's not all the way to Halloweentown, but Tampa still takes some time to get to. There is a good chance we see UofL there again this year.

We hope today's Halloween themed Cardinal Couple post wasn't so Sinister that you turned as pale as Casper like you Saw a Poltergeist. You Better Watch Out, as Trick 'r Treat-ers will be battling the cold and knocking on your door looking for the Candyman tonight.

Happy Halloween and Go Cards!

Jared

FH Downs Indiana -- Mia Duchars ACC Honors -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Takes Battle of the Border

Playing in their third game in five games, Louisville field hockey took down Indiana 1-0 in the Battle of the Border. Julie Kouijzer's goal midway through the fourth quarter was all the Cards needed to come away with the win.

After struggling with penalty corners in their last few games, Louisville was able to capitalize on their fifth of the game. Emilia Kaczmarcyzk's shot was rejected, but Kouijzer followed with a rebound shot into an open goal for her second goal this season. UofL finished 1-for-5 on the day.

Merlijn van der Vegt saw her first true action in regulation for the first time in this three-game stretch. The Cards limited Wake Forest and Central Michigan to no corners and no shots on goal. The Hoosiers had one corner, arguably their best scoring opportunity of the game. IU got a clean look from the top of the circle on the corner, but a diving van der Vegt sent the ball away. She recorded three goals on the game.

Louisville outshot Indiana 10-5 with a 7-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Cards also cleaned up their touch fouls, getting called for no fouls and no green cards.

The win moves Louisville to 11-1 on the season, extending their best start in program history. #5 Louisville returns to action later this week when they visit #2 Duke on Friday.

Mia Duchars Earns ACC Honors

For the second straight week, Mia Duchars was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week. The recognition did not include Louisville's game against Indiana yesterday.

Duchars played a major role in Louisville allowing no corners and no shots on goal over the weekend against Wake Forest and Central Michigan. The Cards registered back-to-back shutouts and have shut out five straight opponents.

Happy Wednesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards Pick Up Top-Ten Win -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Knocks Off No. 7 UVA

Louisville field hockey faces a tough schedule every year by virtue of being in the ACC, a league not far removed from having all 7 teams make the NCAA tournament. This is nothing new, and the Cards have been one of the teams making conference play a nightmare for others. Something that comes along with that tough conference schedule, though, is benefit of the doubt that may run out if you aren't consistently winning some of those conference games. Last year the Cards went 1-5 in conference on their way to finishing 12-8 overall. They were still well regarded for the most part, but it's important to show that was a fluke and not a new normal.

Louisville got on their way to proving the doubters wrong yesterday with a 2-0 victory over seventh-ranked Virginia. It was a home match, sure, but it was still a ranked win and a shutout, Louisville's second straight. The Cards used a goal in the second to take momentum into the locker room and scored another in the fourth to ice the game. Defensively, Louisville had Virginia locked down, as the Hoos only managed a pair of shots on goal, both in the fourth quarter. On the whole, Louisville outshot UVA 7-5 and put six of their seven shots on target.

As they did last week, Louisville came out firing, earning a penalty corner in the first five minutes of the game. The ensuing shot was blocked, and neither team would do much for the remainder of the first period, aside from a pair of shots that missed the cage by UVA. The second started as slowly as the first ended, but a substitution bringing Aimee Plumb on halfway through the quarter paid off immediately. Fifteen seconds after the substitution, Louisville earned a penalty corner. Chloe Plumb played the ball in to her older sister, who laid it off for Minna Tremonti to put the Cards up 1-0. Before the end of the half, Aimee Plumb nearly doubled Louisville's advantage, forcing a save by UVA on a shot from open play.

The third quarter was passive once more, with neither team making many inroads into the opposing defense. Louisville finished the quarter with only substitutions on the stat sheet, while UVA had one shot blocked. The Hoos also picked up their first of three yellow cards in that third quarter. In the fourth, things got a bit more frantic. Virginia opened the quarter with possession, pushing hard for the equalizer and forcing Merlijn van der Vegt into action two minutes in. Another yellow card followed shortly after the shot, and Louisville went to work with their advantage. The Cards earned a corner in the 51st minute and saw three consecutive shots saved.

A couple of minutes after that heroic effort, Louisville earned another penalty corner and made sure to put the first shot home. Lara Niebler put the ball in play to Mia Duchars, who sent it to Izzy Bianco. Bianco fired it home to put the Cards up 2-0 and make the remainder of the match much more comfortable. Less than a minute later, UVA tried to cut the deficit back to one, earning a penalty corner and forcing van der Vegt's second save. Despite their 2-0 mountain to climb, Virginia never pulled their goalie, trying to play traditionally to get back into the game. It didn't work, and Louisville moved to 1-1 in conference play.

The Cards needed a win like yesterday's. Before the Miami match, Louisville's only shutout had been in the 1-0 win against Northwestern. After yesterday's game, Louisville has two straight shutouts and have won three straight by multiple goals since losing the conference opener at UNC. Those three multiple goal wins are Louisville's only of that type since the season opening 3-1 win against Northeastern. The Cards now get another weekend at home before a strong late season stretch. Louisville faces Wake Forest next Friday with a chance to beat their ACC record from last season before taking on CMU on the following Sunday. After that, Louisville goes on the road to face IU and Duke before returning home to host Iowa and Syracuse. That's an extremely difficult four-game stretch and another pair of wins ahead of it will do wonders for the team's confidence.

You can hear all about what Coach Justine Sowry had to say after the game and hear from the goal scorers at the links below.

Minna Tremonti and Izzy Bianco Postgame

Justine Sowry Postgame

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll have four in play for today's show, with Daryl riding the wave of the Ohio River Valley fall allergy season. Dr. Paulie has prescribed a handful of Hot Toddies with double bourbon to clear the sinuses so we'll hope to get her back in the game for next week. (Although it might be fun to talk with her today after a few of the "remedies") There's plenty to discuss this week, with Louisville seeing wins from field hockey and volleyball and a top-ten matchup for women's soccer this evening. 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

All photos by Jared Anderson

FH Extends Streak Over IU; Volleyball Atop ACC -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Defeats IU 2-0

Louisville brought in the Hoosiers of Indiana University yesterday for the Battle of the Border and came out victorious in the affair for the 9th straight time. The Cards and Hoosiers have played 24 times total, with Louisville holding a 17-7 advantage, and this was the 11th annual matchup. For anyone keeping track at home, that means that Indiana started the series with two straight wins to pull the all-time record to 8-7 before Louisville broke it wide open.

Friday's match wasn't quite as lopsided as the overall series, as neither team was able to score in the first half. The opening of the first quarter was very even, with neither team making an impression until Louisville earned a penalty corner with about six minutes to play in the quarter. The first shot attempt by Julie Kouijzer was saved by the IU goalie but went for another penalty corner. This one resulted in a Katie Schneider shot that had to be saved by a defender. IU escaped pressure for a few minutes before Louisville's offense worked back into position. Kelsey McCrudden forced a save and Mattie Tabor was there for the rebound, but her shot went wide. Louisville's best chance of the quarter came with under a minute and a half to go when they were awarded a penalty stroke. It was a golden opportunity to take a lead into the first break, but Aimee Plumb's shot was saved. 0-0 after one.

The second quarter saw Indiana finally get in the action. They opened with a green card and would earn another later in the quarter but they also put together their first real offensive threat. After an Aimee Plumb corner was dealt with before a shot, IU put on a counter attack and earned their own corner just 40 seconds later. The ensuing shot was saved by Sasha Elliott to keep the clean sheet intact and to keep the game tied. Louisville again got the last chance to score before the end of the quarter with a penalty corner, but Kouijzer's shot was saved once more.

The repeated denials didn't deter the Cards, as they showed when they came out of the locker room after halftime. Louisville's offense was back on display within the first minute of the second half. In the first five minutes, Louisville would see two corners and put together four shots but would remain unable to score. They finally broke the tie 38 minutes into the match when Jane Ramsay scored her first career goal in open play. The goal came on a centered ball from Aimee Plumb, who had drawn attention after bringing the ball near the cage. Three minutes later, it was Ramsay again, following her career first goal with a career second goal in the same corner. This time, Louisville finally converted a corner on their seventh attempt of the match. Ramsay was the one that played the corner in, and Mia Duchars took the shot. Duchars was ultimately credited with the assist, as Ramsay deftly tipped the shot for a deflected goal. 

Heading into the fourth quarter with all of the momentum, Louisville looked poised to break the game wide open. They had, after all, made the first offensive move in every quarter prior. Such was not the case in the fourth. Though the sequence lasted just two minutes, IU put together five straight corners which resulted in six shots, but Louisville's defense and Elliott were up to the task. Of the six shots, Elliott needed to make only two saves, as the other four attempts were blocked. Granted, those blocks led to additional corners, but the point stands. Indiana had five good chances to cut into the Louisville lead and the Cards said, "No." Emilia Kaczmarczyk and Izzy Bianco would get shots from open play and a corner, respectively, but the flurry of corners was all IU could do. Louisville held on to win 2-0.

Louisville's 1/8 effort on corners looks a little better next to IU's 0/6, but goodness it's still rough. The Cards have struggled with corner conversion for years, but it is at least encouraging that they have been forcing saves rather than missing or not getting shot attempts. Of the eight corners in yesterday's match, only one resulted in no shot and only one shot was off frame. Though you'd like to score on more than one of the other six attempts, rebounds can often come down to a bit of chance, so giving yourself opportunities by taking good shots is nice.

Louisville's offense has started to pick up after a sluggish start. The Cards have now had eight different players score on their way to 20 goals. Jane Ramsay became the fifth player of the season to record multiple goals. Defensively, Louisville has held up as well. The Cards are outscoring opponents 20-8 and have three shutouts in nine matches. Sasha Elliott has a 0.89 goals against average, which is tough to complain about. Her 0.852 save percentage leads the ACC.

Jared was able to to get Coach Justine Sowry and the player of the match Jane Ramsay to brave the rain after the match to give their thoughts. Louisville is back in action next Friday against Virginia as they open a four game road stretch.

JUSTINE SOWRY POSTGAME

JANE RAMSAY POSTGAME

Cards Sweep Canes in Coral Gables

So it's just the first match of conference play, but still: Louisville is atop the ACC standings. We hope to be saying that for the rest of this season, but you can't do that without winning the first match. Louisville didn't expect to have much trouble with Miami, as the Canes were just 7-4 entering the match, and Anna DeBeer was resting in this one after tweaking her leg last week. There were rumors that she would be able to play through the pain if necessary, but she sat nevertheless. 

From the jump, it looked like Louisville would cruise. The Cards forced Miami to take their first timeout at 5-1 and then stretched that lead to 9-1. Miami finally scored again on an Elena Scott service error that ended a 8-0 run for Louisville which consisted of two Scott aces and six errors by Miami (two blocks). The joy was short lived for Miami, as their two straight points were answered by another 8-0 run from the Cards, again forcing a timeout in the middle of the run when it was 16-3. This time, Louisville showed their offense, as the eight points came from an ace, two hitting errors (one block), a lift, and four kills by the Cards. A couple of service errors gave up free points, but Miami's offense seemed to spark a bit towards the end of the set as Louisville closed it out 25-12 with Miami on a 5-2 run. Louisville hit 0.526 in the first and Miami was -0.083. An 8-1 advantage in errors is hard to duplicate.

Miami brought out a capacity crowd in the James L. Knight Sports Complex, and the Canes weren't looking to disappoint them. Despite Louisville's thumping first set, Miami came out ready in the second. The teams traded points for the first 20 points, reaching a 10-10 tie without either team gaining more than a two point advantage. Surprisingly, Louisville was the first to blink. After tying it at ten, Louisville gave up four straight points on a kill, a lift, and two attacking errors. They got two of those points back before Aiko Jones hit her second service error of the set and Miami responded with an ace to make the score 16-12. Coach Dani Busboom Kelly wanted to talk about it. Louisville came out of the timeout winning the next two points and then began trading serves with Miami once more. This time, though, Miami was holding onto a three point advantage. Louisville needed to close the gap or they'd lose the race to 25. 

Close the gap they did. At 16-19, Nena Mbonu (filling in for Anna DeBeer) came through with a kill to give the Cards the serve just as she was rotated out. Ayden Bartlett came in and took over the serve. She won the next four points, including an ace, and Louisville had flipped the advantage 21-19. The teams traded points a bit more before Miami tied it at 23. Unable to capitalize, the Canes erred on the serve to give Louisville set point. Louisville couldn't close it out on the first opportunity, but back to back kills at 24-all gave Louisville the 26-24 second set victory. 

If you expected Louisville to have taken Miami's best shot and survived, you wouldn't be quite right. The two teams came out after halftime and picked up right back where they left off. I'm sure the Cards would have loved for Miami to just roll over down 2-0 but that didn't happen. They opened with an off sequence kill and an ace, seeming to have everything going their way, but Miami shut it down after just two points won. Miami had the upper hand in the next few exchanges, trading two points for one twice in a row before an error gave Louisville a 6-5 lead. Unrattled, the Canes became the first team of the set to win three straight points to retake the lead and stretch it to 8-6. The entire set was back and forth, with Louisville winning three points in a row to take a 13-12 lead but neither team scoring three in a row for nearly the remainder of the set. As they traded punches, Louisville slowly extended their lead, finally seeing a Miami error give them a 23-20 lead. They got a bit ahead of themselves, though, as a Miami kill and two Louisville errors brought the set back to even. Louisville finally buckled down, and Claire Chausee's 14th kill of the match gave Louisville match point. Fittingly, Miami erred to give Louisville the win.

After a blazing start, Louisville's hitting cooled to a 0.329 for the match. That's still pretty good, as 14 total errors in the second and third sets still didn't see Louisville hit below 0.258 in either one. Miami recovered a bit from their negative first set, but they finished with just an 0.078 hitting percentage. Louisville was able to block decently, but they only finished with nine on the night. They did have a four point advantage on blocks, though, and they held a 5-2 advantage in the third set. Louisville was outblocked in the second set 3-1, which was the one Miami came closest to winning. Gee, I wonder if that says anything.

Claire Chaussee was fantastic again, and she picked up the slack with DeBeer out. Chausee finished with 14 kills and hit 0.292. She wasn't involved in any blocks and had an error in both serve and receive, but she did what she was out there to do. There wasn't much slack to pick up, either, as Nena Mbonu stepped in seamlessly. Mbonu hit 0.636 from the outside with eight kills and just one error on 11 attempts. She added two block assists for good measure. Amaya Tillman continued to play well in the middle, turning 12 attempts into seven kills and just one error. She had a solo block and five block assists to lead the team. Aiko Jones poured in eight kills as well, though her efficiency was a bit lower. She had three block assists (PK and Raquel Lazaro also had three apiece to finish Louisville's blocking number), but she really struggled from the serving line. Jones had one of Louisville's six aces but she also had four of their ten errors. Though the Cards would still have been negative from the line without her serves, that needs to be cleaned up.

Louisville will continue their Florida road trip on Sunday when they take on the Seminoles of Florida State. FSU is 6-0 at home and 9-3 overall. This match will be part of a volleyball double-header on ESPN, so be sure to tune in. The folks over at the House of Mouse must have liked what they saw from ratings last week when the Cards took on Kentucky, but let's hope that they aren't discouraged by a potential reduction in viewing when they are counterprogramming NFL Sunday. Louisville and FSU are set to get underway at 3PM.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

I'm finally back in the booth this week, and we'll have three on the call to cover the week that was. Daryl is rocking out with fellow Loudmouths over at the fairgrounds and Jared will be a few streets over at Cardinal Stadium for a noon kickoff. Paulie, Jeff, and I should have plenty to discuss, though, so be sure to tune in for a great show. 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

Cards Vie to Represent USA -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Sends Four to Nexus Championship

Formerly known as the Young Women's National Championship, the USA Field Senior Nexus Championship is a step on the Olympic Development Pathway Program. The invite list for the event is 144 players long and includes all eligible players from the Rise, U-21, Development, and Senior US Women's National Field Hockey teams as well as other high school, collegiate, and post-grad players that have trialed and trained at one of the USA Field Hockey High Performance Centers this spring.

The Louisville representation for this year's event includes three currently rostered athletes, one being an incoming freshman, and a recent graduate. Carter Ayars won't have known any of the other three, having graduated before they arrived, but it will be the first opportunity that Mia Duchars and Jane Ramsey will get to play with and against Izzy Bianco. The event is to be held in Virginia Beach from July 17 to 22.

Six T&F Athletes Competing to Qualify for Worlds

It shouldn't surprise you to hear that the six Track and Field athletes from Louisville that will compete for spots in the World Athletics Outdoor Championships are names that you've heard a lot recently. Five will be attempting to qualify for the Championship event held on July 15-24 in Eugene, Oregon while one, Ty McPhail, will compete for the U20 event, which will be held in Cali, Colombia on August 1-6. 

Hayward Field at the University of Oregon will host the 2022 event, making it the first time the event has been held on US soil. Hayward Field will also host the Toyota USA Track & Field Outdoor Championship, the qualifying event, on June 23-26. Gabriela Leon, Aliyah Welter, Trey Allen, Sterling Warner-Savage, and Jeremiah Willis make up the UofL contingent at the event. Leon and Welter will both compete in the pole vault. Leon will look to continue her success after winning the national championship and being named the USTFCCCA Southeast Region Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

As Daryl mentioned yesterday, she'll be out today, but we'll have three and a half voices to bring you this week's show. Jeff only represents half a voice today at his own admission due to a bit of "overcelebration." Gravelly voices aside, we'll do our best to keep a good show on deck for everyone. 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

Breaker: 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!

McFerran to Olympics -- YMNC -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 McFerran to Compete in 2020 Olympics

Anyone familiar with the Louisville field hockey program from recent years will recognize the name Ayeisha McFerran. McFerran was the program's first four-time All-American. The goalkeeper  graduated from UofL ranking near the top in wins, shutouts, and goals against average.

McFerran was selected to be a part of the 16-person field hockey roster for Ireland.  The Louisville alum has been a member of the Irish National Team, but this is the first time the INT has qualified to compete in the Olympics.

McFerran is the first former UofL field hockey player to compete in the Olympics on a field hockey roster. Cardinal alum Jessica Javelet competed in the 2016 Olympics, but with the US Rugby Team.

As someone who loves sports and loves the Olympics, I wish I could take off work for those few weeks and watch the events around the clock. But work and sleep and life say otherwise, but I will certainly find time to tune into watch Ireland compete and cheer on Ayeisha McFerran.

Four Cards Participate in YMNC

Sticking to the topic of field hockey, we turn our attention to the USA Field Hockey 2021 Young Women's National Championship, which was held at Virginia Beach June 15-20.

Katie Schneider, Sofia Pendolino, Mia Duchars, and Carter Ayars all competed in the event on different teams.

Schneider's squad, the Courage, took the gold with a 3-0 record and winning the title game 3-1. Duchars was on the Freedom, who fell in the title game and took the silver.

Ayars' squad, the Spirit, finished fifth while Pendolino's team, the Patriots, placed 10th. A total of 10 teams consisting of 16 players each competed.

Only one person from the state of Kentucky was on any of the rosters. 16-year-old and rising junior Mia Schoenbeck from Christian Academy of Louisville played on the Patriots. Schoenbeck is currently uncommitted and MAX Field Hockey ranks her as one of the best in her class around the country. She is sure to be on Justine Sowry's radar.

On a Personal Note

Digging into my personal life some, Katy and I are back to wedding planning, which is mostly me saying "Sure, whatever you want." I learned that trick already. We're still a couple years out from our date range, but we are all ears if anyone has any tips for wedding planning, especially since we both live in Louisville and we are looking at venues in Fort Mill, South Carolina.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared