The Cards in WNBA in 2025 -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 HINES-ALLEN, EVANS AND ENGSTLER IN WNBA

Following former Cards in the WNBA..the 2025 participants are Myisha Hines-Allen (Dallas Wings), Dana Evans (Las Vegas Aces) and Emily Engstler (Washington Mystics). With all the 13 teams having played at least none games now, let's take a look at how the past cards are doing in the "W".

Hines-Allen enter her eighth year in the WNBA. The first seven were with the Washington Mystics,but she wears the Dallas Wings jersey in the 2025 season. After 12 games,the Wings are at 1-11 and in seventh place in the WNBA Western Conference and has the worst record ni the league.  Hines -Allen is averaging 21 minutes a game, and scoring 6.7 ppg. She's pulling down 5.6 rebounds a game. The Wings lost yesterday to the Las Vegas Aces 84-88.

UofL Women's Basketball Mount Rushmore -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Today feels like a good day to stir the pot. There's no better way to create controversy than creating a debate topic that you know will have several different opinions. A topic that makes its rounds about once per season is "Who Should Be on Louisville Women's Basketball's Mount Rushmore?"

People take different approaches with their reasoning such as individual stats and success, overall team success at the time, fan favorites, and success that continued on post-graduation. Our only requirement is that the four names you pick must have played women's basketball at Louisville at some point in their life, so no Jeff Walz, Sam Purcell, Steph Norman, or beyond eligible.

Jared's Mount Rushmore

Angel McCoughtry (2005-2009): In four years played at Louisville, McCoughtry was the team leader in multiple statistical categories for three of them. She is Louisville's all-time leading scorer and rebounder. She helped the Cards get to their first ever Final Four, before falling in the title game. McCoughtry broke several single season and career records at Louisville during her career. Currently, McCoughtry is the only women's basketball player to have her jersey retired at Louisville.

Asia "AD" Durr (2015-2019): Another four year player at Louisville, AD became the go-to player almost from day one. They led the team in scoring for three seasons and is second in school history in total points. AD became one of the top three-point shooters not only at UofL but in the ACC and country during the back half of their career. They were a part of the Final Four team that made its way to Columbus after winning the ACC regular season and tournament titles. They won ACC Player of the Year multiple times.

Dana Evans (2017-2021): Evans' career came to a close during the COVID-19 pandemic but that didn't stop her from becoming a prolific scorer while also being tabbed as one of Louisville's best ever defenders. She became the first player to ever win ACC Sixth Player of the Year one season and follow it up with as ACC Player of the Year the next season. She won ACC POTY multiple times. She was a part of the Final Four team her freshman season.

Myisha Hines-Allen (2014-2018): Hines-Allen was a walking double-double in the back half of her career. She is one of the few to be a part of the 2000-point club and even fewer to break 1000 rebounds. Hines-Allen was named the ACC Tournament MVP after the Cards won the title en route to the school's third Final Four appearance. In her senior year, Hines-Allen set the Louisville single season rebounding record.

Honorable Mentions

Sara Hammond

Becky Burke

Mo Reid

Sam Fuehring

Cortnee Walton

Shoni Schimmel

Mykasa Robinson

Jazmine Jones

Asia Taylor

Jazz Covington

Does your Mount Rushmore look different? We'd be happy to hear yours! No answer is a wrong answer on this one.

We may talk about this on a future Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards in the WNBA -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Four Cards Currently on Active Rosters

We're a few weeks into the WNBA season and several former Louisville Cardinals are currently active for their respective teams. Here's how these players have fared.

Dana Evans, Chicago Sky

One of the more well-known graduates from Louisville, Evans has played a crucial role for her team. In 11 games played, Evans is averaging 27.8 minutes per game. She's posted strong numbers with 9.9 points per game, 1.5 rebounds per game, 3.9 assists per game, and 1.4 steals per game. The Sky are currently 4-7.

Liz Dixon, Phoenix Mercury

Dixon is another recent graduate from Louisville, having been with the program during the pandemic. So far, she has played a reserve role averaging 12.4 minutes per game. Dixon has contributed so far with 2.5 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, and 0.8 assists per game. The Mercury are currently 6-6.

Emily Engstler, Washington Mystics

Having played only one season with Louisville, Engstler is the only one on this list that did not play all or most of her career with the Cards. Engstler has moved around the league some and is now on her third team. Washington is slowly easing her into the normal rotation as she has averaged 6.9 minutes per game across seven games. She is averaging 1.9 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, and 0.7 assists per game. The Mystics are currently 1-12.

Myisha Hines-Allen, Washington Mystics

A veteran to the WNBA at this point, Hines-Allen has proven to be a reliable contributor during her career with Washington. She is seeing 17.7 minutes per game, right on par with her career. Hines-Allen is averaging 7.3 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.3 assists per game, and 0.7 steals per game.

There are several other former Cardinals who are free agents.

AD (formerly known as Asia Durr)- most recently with the Atlanta Dream.

Jazmine Jones- most recently with the Washington Mystics.

Arica Carter- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Phoenix Mercury.

Kiki Jefferson- most recently with the Minnesota Lynx.

Kianna Smith- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Connecticut Sun.

Kylee Shook- most recently with the New York Liberty.

Sam Fuehring- currently playing overseas, most recent WNBA team is Washington Mystics.

With just 12 teams in the WNBA, trying to maintain a career playing in the states is a tall task. With the expansion to 14 teams next season, we hope to see more former Cards playing in the pros. The 2025 expansion teams will be located in Toronto and Golden State (San Francisco).

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

Jared

WNBA Opener -- Mystics Fall short in 4th quarter to Liberty 85-80 -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

WASHNGTON FALLS SHORT IN FOURTH QUARTER TO NEW YORK IN WNBA SEASON OPENER

FOLLOWING the Louisville WNBA players this season in the WNBA will be something I will try to stay fairly regulary with this WNBA season, and on last night's opening night  Tuesday night, Emily Englstler and Myisha Hines-Allen had their squad, the WashIngton Mystics, in action. So did Liz Dixon's Phoenix Mercury. The Mystics will probably be the team I follow the most, since they have two of my favorite Cardinals great on roster in "E" amd "Mooks"

The Mystics ran into a NY Liberty squad that caught fire in the fourth quarter and caught and passed the DC team, doubling up the score on them in the fourth quarter 26-13 and winning 85-80. 

Not much from the Louisville contingent in the opener. Neither Hines-Allen or Engstler drew the start. Emily didnt play at all and Hines-Allen saw just 19 minutes, putting up five points and grabbing five rebounds in the loss. 

Karlie Samuelson and Shikira Austin drew the starts at forward for the Mystics but the former Stanford and Maryland veterans were not all that effective, combining for just 20 points and nine rebounds in 47 total minutes. 

We all kinda figured that Washington's Dolson, Atkins and Sykes might be prominent scorers this season for the Mystics and they held true to form in the season opener. with 59 points between them. 

It was Washington's game to lose after three  quarters, having built up a 67-59 lead after three,,,but let the visitors take over in the fourth quarter. 

In other early, first night action, the Connecticut Sun ruined Caitlin Clark's opener with the Indiana Fever, thumpimg the visiting WNBA Fever squad 92-71.

The other two opening night contests were later affairs. with the Aces and Mercury hookng up and the Lynx and Storm going against each other. The Mercury are without Brit Grinner, who is oit with a toe injury, so we hoped to see a bit of Liz Dixon, who is on the Phoenix roster. Dixon was in a reserve role and saw six minuues, grabbing three rebounds but not scoring. The visiting Phoenix squad fell 89-80 to the two-time champion Las Vegas Aces. The Minnesota Lynx defeated the Storm 83-70. DI star from last year Taylor Soule saw one minute of action for the Lynx in the win. 

I'll agree with several readers here,...it's good to see basketball's bouncing again and some of Jeff Walz's stars from years past out there. Dana Evans and the Chicago Sky get their start tonight against  Dallas at Dallas. Unfortunately, it'll only be shown on You Tube Primetime WNBA League Pass,  a subscription service.. 

paulie

Myshia's Mystics lose Elena Della Donne (again) and to the Sun -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CONNECTICUT 92 - WASHINGTON 84

It was a double blow for the Washington Mystics Sunday, first, losing Elena Della Donne for second half with an injury to the same ankle that had her on the sidelines for a couple of games, and, secondly, losing (again) to the Connecticut Sun..  

We got the treat of having two Cards WNBA players ion the rosters in the nationally televised matchup between the Washington Mystics and the Connecticut Sun yesterday. Myisha Hines-Allen, who came in for an injured Elena Della Donne, saw 18 minutes for Washington, scored 14 points, hit three of her four three-point attempts and four out of her eight shots overall. Nope, not a misprint, either on the stats... Mooks went 3-4 from beyond the arc. I guess playing all those years with AD at Louisville finally paid off, in terms of long-range bombing. 

The Mystics lost this one in the fourth quarter after leading by one after three quarters. You can't blame MHA for the loss...but the squad scored just 18 points in the final stanza, while the Sun put up 27 points 

On the winner's side, Liz Dixon is on the Connecticut roster. She did not play in the contest...a coach's decision apparently, since we know of no injury to Liz. 

The two Cards greats have the distinction of being on the second (Connecticut) and third (Washington) best teams in the WNBA's Eastern Division and third and fourth best teams overall in the league. 

The Connecticut (14-5) win makes them 3-0 against the Mystics (10-8) this season. Ageless Dewanna Bonner hit six threes in the game for homestanding Connecticut  and had 28 points for Stephanie White's Sun. 

I

It had to be a heart-breaking ordeal for Mystic fans and players to see "E.D.D" leave the court again hobbling after just getting back out there again. Although limited to 13 minutes and not scoring, her leadership on the floor and respect she draws from opponents makes life a lot easier for the rest of the Mystics when she's on the court. She came down on another player's foot with 1:20 left in the first half and did not return. 

The injury was to the same ankle that she had injured earlier this season. No report has been released on the extent of this injury, but E.D.D. was helped off the court by a couple of Mystics.

Here's hoping Liz can start seeing a bit of playing time at Connecticut and Myisha continues to shine 

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

SAILING, SALING,,,

We'll be tossing a few off-sped pitches at you this week, with Jared "on a boat, "%$#@&" -- his honeymoon cruise with wife Katy. They've told me Case will write Tuesday and Jeff Thursday. I just smile and nod. Glad to see the lads showing a bit of planning...

paulie

Summer Seasons Roll On -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards in the Pros

As we hit July, we get a decent look at how some of Louisville's former stars are performing at the next level. Some of those players are getting chances for the first time, as is the case with Morgan Jones and Chrislyn Carr. The other day, Louisville women's basketball boosted the announcements of the two signing with AC PAOK of Greece and the Tokomanawa Queens of New Zealand, respectively. We'll keep an eye on both of these players who, while they weren't Cardinals for long, quickly made their presences on the court known. 

Another player getting another chance is Emina Ekic. Ekic has been out since around Christmas after fracturing her ankle in a game in the W League in Australia during the NWSL offseason. Ekic returned to the pitch for Racing Louisville FC in their home game against Houston on June 14th. Ekic subbed on late in the game and recorded no stats, but her return has been much anticipated by fans of the Cardinals and Racing alike. We're excited to see the former star in red and black return to form for her hometown team.

Moving into the WNBA, some former Cards are doing their best to make the most of their opportunities. 

Liz Dixon has played in two games since being picked up by the Connecticut Sun in late June. In games at Minnesota and Chicago, both times seeing her former teammates on the floor, Dixon combined for six minutes, four points, and one rebound. She's definitely being utilized as a role player, but will surely add production as she is given more time. At the beginning of the year in Phoenix, she had ten points, four rebounds, an assist, and a block in two games where she played more than ten minutes. 

Emily Engstler is also trying to establish herself in a new team. After being waived by the Fever and added to the Mystics roster, Engstler looked like she had found a new home. In a May 10th game against the Dream, Engstler scored 11 points and added eight rebounds, a steal, and a block in 13 minutes. For some reason, Washington decided they didn't want that kind of production around. After sitting idle for a month, Engstler was signed by the Minnesota Lynx. In her first two games, she combined for 27 minutes, eight points, 11 rebounds, and five assists. In the last two games for the Lynx, though, both against Seattle, Engstler saw just seven minutes of court time. She got up just one shot in those two games, but had a steal and a rebound in each.

After a big game earlier in June, AD has slumped a bit in Atlanta. Durr, who was leading the bench in scoring, scored just 4.2 points per game in four games from June 18th through the 28th. That game on the 28th was the first of a double header in Washington. With a bit more knowledge of the Mystics, Durr got the better of the matchup in game two. They picked up 17 minutes, scoring 15 points on 4/7 shooting, going 2/2 from beyond the arc, and added two rebounds and two assists. 

On the other side of that game was Myisha Hines-Allen. MHA has been working to get resituated with the Mystics after getting a late start to the season, though her role may expand with Elena Della-Donne going down last night. In three games against the Sky and Liberty last week, MHA averaged just under 14 minutes but scored no more than five points and averaged a shade under two rebounds per game. On the 22nd, she added two assists and two steals to her two points, two rebounds, and two fouls, creating quite a box score. Her big game came in the first of the two against the Dream, and it looked like it could be a catalyst. MHA played 17 minutes and scored 16 points, going 3/4 from three-point land, and added three rebounds and a block. However, the second game saw a bit of a fall off. Hines-Allen played 14 minutes last night but took just four shots, scoring two points and contributing four rebounds and an assist. 

Dana Evans continues to be a steady role player for her hometown (ish) Chicago Sky. Evans is averaging almost 20 minutes per game, but her scoring hasn't been quite what you might expect. That said, she is obviously a big part of their team in other ways, as evidenced by her minutes. In the back half of June, Evans scored 31 points over five games, with two big games coming this week against the Sparks. Evans scored 11 and eight points in the last two games. She is averaging about one rebound over the last five games but has dished out 14 assists over the four games she played at least 20 minutes.

We're rooting for continued success for all of our former Cards here at Cardinal Couple, and hope you'll join us in supporting your favorites even after they've moved on from the University of Louisville.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

I'm back this week as my normal July 4th weekend plans have been altered due a friend coming into town. We may even manage a full house as the storms will surely put a damper on any golf or Louisville Bats obligations that would keep Daryl away. Join us as we discuss the happenings of the week, driven mostly by a look ahead at the schedules that have been released. 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 in WNBA...Sunday report -- MONDAY CARDUNAL COUPLE

 

CARDS, BERGER IN SUNDAY ACTION

All five of the UofL WBB stars and Sacred Heart's Grace Berger (IU) were in action in WNBA contests Sunday. 

Although none of the six started for their respective teams, they all did see action except fot Dixon.  

WASHINGTON MYSTICS 77 -- CHICAGO SKY 69

Washington jumped out to a 10-point first quarter lead over Chicago, built it to 16 by halftime and held on for the eight-point win. Dana Evans saw 22 minutes for the Sky (5-7) and had three points, three assists and a rebound. For the Mystics, Myshia Hines-Allen saw 13 minutes totaled four points and had a rebound for the 7-4 Mystics

ATLANTA DREAM 100 -- INDIANA FEVER 94

Atlanta also got out to an early successful start against their foe Sunday -- the homestanding Indiana Fever -- and held on in a wild fourth quarter where 63 points were scored. A.D. put in 15 minutes for the (5-5) Dream and contributed seven points and an assist. The Fever drops to 4-7.  Grace Berger played six minutes for Indy and gave them two points and a rebound.

LAS VEGAS ACES 93 -- MINNESOTA LYNX 62

The Aces held the Lynx to just 21 second half points in the blowout win on the road. Las Vegas goes to 10-1 with the victory. Emily Engstler played 10 minutes off the bench and had four rebounds and two points. Minnesota drops to 3-8 with the loss. 

CONNECTICUT SUN 83 -- LA SPARKS 74

(Give em "L", Beth and Liz !) 

The Sun shone brightly in the 4th quarter and took the quarter and game by 11 points. No record of playing time in this one for Liz Dixon. It looks like Beth Burns drove across town to catch this one, though. Connecticut improves to 9-3 on the season and Los Angeles squad drops to 5-6. 

Have a hopeful Monday!

paulie

Guess Who's Back - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Myisha Hines-Allen Returns

After an off-season knee procedure, Myisha Hines-Allen had been conspicuously absent from the active Washington Mystics roster, but yesterday marked her return to play.

The Mystics played the Minnesota Lynx in a close game, losing in the end 78-80.

Hines-Allen returned only in a limited form, playing only eight minutes, but in that time she did get a layup, a rebound at each end of the floor, and a steal.  Those numbers are expected to go up, of course, as she gets back into full game condition again.

Other UofL WNBA Action Today

Two other Cards in action today in the WNBA.

After yesterday's news that just snuck under the wire to get into Case's article that Liz Dixon joined the Connecticut Sun, they'll be in action today against Dallas at 1pm on NBA TV.  How much court time will Dixon get?  Obviously we all want to see her succeed, but one day after joining the franchise, I'm not sure I have my hopes up that she'll get too much time on the court.

Dana Evans has become a fixture in Chicago, being one of the most productive bench players in the league.  The Sky will have a 2pm game on CBS Sports Network.

Where's Emina?

If you've been following Racing Louisville FC, well first you've probably noticed a significant uptick in their quality of play over previous season, certainly a reason to rejoice.  The squad had their first ever 3-game win streak, for example.  They're still not burning up the pitch, but improvement is there at 4-3-5 on the overall season.

Emina Ekic has been distinctly absent from the active roster, however.  She is recovering from a fractured ankle (or leg?  Reports were not clear.) that she suffered in January playing in Melbourne Australia.  She did post a picture to social media from Derby with several other Racing players in which she was wearing wedge heals and no cast or brace or anything, so presumably recovery is proceeding well.

Claire Chaussee

Claire Chaussee joins the ranks of "Cards in the Pros", though you may not hear too much about her this summer.  Chaussee signed on with the Grand Rapids Rise, a team in a new professional volleyball league forming here in the states.  The PVF, or Pro Volleyball Federation, has been going through the beginning stages of putting the league together.  At this point we're seeing the announcements of initial franchise locations as ownership groups signing on, including Grand Rapids, San Diego, Atlanta, Columbus, and more.  We've seen some head coach announcements, and the Grand Rapids Rise seem to be ahead of the game as the first, that I've seen, announcement of player signings with Chaussee being one of three to join.

The PVF plans to start play in 2024.

Trent Dilfer, former Super Bowl Quarterback, but known more around here as father of Tori Dilfter Stringer, is a partner in the league, and Tori has been prominently features in much of the marketing materials for the league, though I haven't seen an actual signing of her with a team yet.  I would presume that will happen in due course.

Numerous VolleyCards do play professional volleyball, although nearly all are overseas.  Anna Stevenson Hall, Claire Chaussee, and Raquel Lázaro all played in Italy this past season, and yes they all played against each other.  Tori Dilfer Stringer played in Puerto Rico along with Wilma Rivera, which is, of course, home for her.  And Tess Clark has played several years in Spain.  Unfortunately, news from overseas leagues is extremely difficult to find.  Erin Fairs is the only former Card to play professionally in the US, as part of Athletes Unlimited, but they have a very limited season.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

Former Cards that went pro in other things did get together as usual for the CCRHP.  Case, Jared, and myself were on the call, and...well...it's getting to be summer, and news is thin on the ground, so expect some diversions and tangents.

We did cover some spring sport accolades, including some academic ones, most of the CC crew are keeping up with the rest of the Softball Tournament, even after Louisville's departure, so we chatted about that, some.  Mostly, we're cheering for "Not Oklahoma".  And we chatted a bit about WNBA and other "Cards in the Pros".

Check it out at it's Anchor/Spotify home:

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cardinal-couple/episodes/The-Summer-Slump-Begins-e255mi0

-- JMcA

Volleyball on Tour; Engstler on the Move -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Volleyball Headed to Brazil This Summer

UofL officially announced a Brazilian Tour for the volleyball team over the summer yesterday. The Cards will make their way south of the equator to get to know each other on the court as well as off. In addition to having five planned matches, the trip will include a cultural whirlwind as they travel to four cities over ten days from June 8th to the 18th. You can check out the full list of experiences on the itinerary over on the Go Cards website, but the team will travel to Arraial Do Cabo, Saquarema, Rio De Janeiro, and Sao Paulo. Amongst other things, they'll visit the Corcovado statue in Rio and meet with local students in Saquarema. 

The trip will be key for the Cards to prepare for the upcoming season. Though the opponents of the planned matches aren't named, any competition will help the team gel as they work to integrate new members. With key departures from last year's national runner-up team, Louisville will be adding transfers Charitie Luper and Brigitta Petrenko to the mix along with upcoming underclassmen looking to fill a bigger role. The experience should be exciting for all the players and we're looking forward to hearing more about the trip as it happens.

Engstler Joins Jones, Hines-Allen in Washington

Last week saw Indiana waive Emily Engstler, their 4th overall draft pick from 2022. Engstler's departure from the team means that the Fever have waived their first pick from the last three drafts. They moved on from Lauren Cox (Baylor) in the middle of 2021 after selecting her 3rd overall in 2020 and from Kysre Gondrezick (West Virginia) in January of 2022 after selecting her 4th in 2021. Emily Engstler had 40 blocks in her first season, tying for the team lead and falling just four short of tying Tamika Catchings' rookie franchise record. Engstler's 35 games played added her to a list of just three players in franchise history to play more than 34 games in a single regular season. In those games, she started just six and averaged 5.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.1 blocks. Her 181 rebounds were the fifth most ever recorded by a Fever rookie. 

She wasn't on the street for long. After being waived on April 26th, she was signed yesterday, just one day after the beginning of training camp. It was a heck of a birthday present. Her deal is with the Washington Mystics, a familiar home for former Cardinals. Though she only has a training camp contract, her numbers suggest she should be able to find a home in the W. Seeing her, Jaz Jones, and MHA on the floor together could be quite a sight (and might make us wonder what could have been in red and black instead of red and blue). 

The Mystics and former Cards had fun with it being Emily's birthday as part of the photo shoot as well: https://twitter.com/WashMystics/status/1653084599210197001?s=20

We wish Emily (and all the Cardinals working to make rosters in the woefully under-teamed WNBA) the very best!

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Jaz Jones Signs with Mystics -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Jazmine Jones Signs with Washington Mystics

Adversity doesn't hold back current and former Louisville Cardinals. After being a free agent a majority of the current WNBA season, Jazmine Jones has signed with the Washington Mystic.

Jones will join the Mystics for their final two regular season games, a home-and-home with the Indiana Fever, and any postseason games. Washington has already clinched a playoff birth. Indiana is the first team eliminated from playoff contention.

Mystics head coach Mike Thibault mentioned that Jones would play more of an "insurance" role on the roster and her minutes would most likely be sparse. Still, it's a foot in the door for Jaz and a step in the right direction to continue her professional playing career.

Jaz joins her old Louisville teammate Myisha Hines-Allen. MHA has averaged 8.9 ppg and 5.3 rpg this season.

WSOC to Host Cincinnati Tomorrow

Louisville women's soccer is slated to host Cincinnati in an exhibition tomorrow night. This is the first time we'll get to see the 2022 squad in action.

Louisville finished last year 7-7-2 overall and 3-6-1 in the ACC. Cincinnati finished last year 7-7-3 and 2-4-2 in the AAC.

Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. on the UoL campus at Lynn Stadium and admission is free. The clear bag policy is expected to be enforced.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Asia Durr and Other WNBA News -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Asia Durr Traded to Atlanta Dream

Louisville women's basketball alum and former #2 pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft... Asia Durr... will call a new team their home. The New York Liberty have traded Asia Durr to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for forward Megan Walker and the draft rights to Raquel Carrara, who was the second overall pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft.

AD, an Atlanta native, will have a bit of a homecoming and reunion by playing in front of family and childhood friends.

AD has been through a lot in the last couple of years after suffering serious setbacks from COVID-19. After sitting out for two full seasons, AD took the court this season and averaged 7.0 minutes and 1.4 points per game.

Recently, AD came out as non-binary and uses they/them pronouns. Instead of going by Asia or Durr, the former Cardinal now prefers to go by AD. Out of respect for their wishes, we will refer to one of our favorite Cards by their preferred pronouns and name.

Other WNBA News

Besides AD, three other former Cards are currently active in the WNBA.

Myisha Hines-Allen continues to be a staple with the Washington Mystics. Hines-Allen is averaging 6.0 ppg and 4.4 rpg on 19.0 minutes per game.

Emily Engslter has made a name for herself as a rookie with the Indiana Fever. Engstler is averaging 6.8 ppg and 7.0 rpg on 20.7 minutes per game.

Dana Evans is in her sophomore campaign with the Chicago Sky. Evans made the highlight reel recently with a buzzer beater shot from a little beyond half court. In 18.3 minutes per game this year, she is averaging 8.9 points per game and 2.6 assists per game.

Angel McCoughtry started the year with the Minnesota Lynx before agreeing to a contract buyout after two games. Currently a free agent, it is unsure if McCoughtry plans to retire after battling injuries late in her career.

Kianna Smith, Kylee Shook, and Jazmine Jones are all currently listed as free agents.

We hope to see some of our other Cards on WNBA rosters soon!

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Softball Struggles at Notre Dame -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball

Sam Booe pitching in relief

A number of Louisvillians make it a point to get out of Louisville for Derby Day, and Softball is no exception.  The squad went north to 20th ranked Notre Dame, and dropped a pair of games, 5-0, and 5-1.

After inclement weather prevented play on Friday, the Cards and Irish made yesterday a double-header and will finish the three game series today.

In the first game, Taylor Roby started in the circle and pitched four innings and started the fifth inning before getting relief from Sam Booe.

Korbe Otis drawing the walk

Notre Dame played some small ball and took advantage of some fielding errors to get a pair across the plate in the 3rd inning.  A similar story in the 4th with the run getting around the field almost completely on mistakes by the UofL squad in the field.

Roby would be finished for the game, though not quite for the day, after a inning opening solo shot by Notre Dame.  As mentioned, Booe came in as relief at this point, and despite giving up a pair of walks in the inning prevented anything further.

Carmyn Greenwood at bat (that's a "7"
not a "1")

The Irish would finish their five runs in the game in the 6th inning, again with mostly small ball.

In the later game, the Cards would get a run across in the first inning, but that would be it.  It started out with Korbe Otis drawing a walk, getting to third on Taylor Roby's single, and scoring on Kendall Smith's ground out to first base.

Notre Dame would tie it up in the bottom of the second and then the scoring would go quiet until the bottom of the 5th.  More small ball and mistakes in the field would get another across the plate for the Irish.

Taja Felder in mid-hover-pitch

Taja Felder would get a couple of outs early in the 6th inning, but with a runner on 2nd and two outs the Irish would score a trio on a couple of singles and a fielding error.  It would be enough enough to sit Felder and let Roby enter to finish the final out of the game.

The Cards and Notre Dame will finish out their regular season schedule with the 2pm game on ACC Network.

Ally Alexander at shortstop

Special thanks to Ryan Greenwood for again supplying us with some away game photos, a special treat for us here at Cardinal Couple.  He's not just out there cheering his daughters, Carmyn and Cassady on, he also slings a pretty impressive DSLR.

WNBA

The WNBA has gotten their season underway with two days of games.  I'll be heading up to Indianapolis today with the family to watch the Fever's home opener against the Sparks.  We were, of course, originally expecting...hoping?...to see a trio of former Cards in this matchup, but WNBA roster sizes being what they are, we won't have the opportunity to watch Kianna Smith or Jaz Jones.  It's a shame, but it will be good to get a chance to see Emily Engstler play in a professional game.

Engstler played 16 minutes in the season opener against the Mystics, grabbed nine rebounds, stole a couple, and scored four.  On the Mystics side of the ball, another former Card, Myisha Hines-Allen scored nine, pulled down six rebounds, and had a trio of assists.

As we look around the rest of the WNBA at other Cardinal Alumnae, Angel McCoughtry is still recovering from another knee injury with the Lynx, but AD (Asia Durr) is back on the court, at least for limited minutes.  She played six minutes with the Liberty yesterday, but had no stat entries.

Dana Evans up in Chicago, is the big success of the weekend so far.  The Sky would go down to defeat in overtime, but Evans was only barely edged out by Emma Meesseman for the most time on the court for the Sky, but she would lead the team in scoring with 24 during her 35 minutes.  A pair of threes, 4-5 from the charity stripe, five assists, and four steals made for a very nice stat line indeed for Evans as she shows why she has earned that starting shooting guard position.

On tap for today, the Fever game that I'll be at with family at 3pm, you can find this one on Amazon Prime, on the Fever's page on Facebook, and Spectrum SportsNet apparently.  And then at 8pm, the Mystics and the Lynx will be on ESPN2.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

The CCRHP was silent yesterday as the crew took the day off to celebrate Derby.  I must admit my level of "horse race junky", as Case put it yesterday, is, "Why do we have to interrupt this nice party to watch a horserace?"  I did have a good friend there that had Rich Strike across the board as one of her bets, so that's a nice bit of payout for her.

We'll be back next week with more joy and excitement about UofL women's sports!

SHOOK, LIBS DOUSE SPARKS IN L.A. -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 LIBERTY 76  - SPARKS 73

The New York Liberty, of the WNBA, and featuring Cardinal greats Kylee Shook and Jazmine Jones were far away from their Brooklyn home court yesterday in their Fathers Day WNBA tilt with the Los Angeles Sparks in the L.A. Convention Center .  They got a huge fourth quarter from Shook and got the three-point win to improve to 7-6 in an exciting fourth quarter. 

Shook had five points in a key stretch in the final quarter, nailing a three and getting a wide open layup to keep NYL in the lead against the Sparks, who fell to 5-7 on the season. New York survived two late three-point attempts by LA, one of which was blocked by Rebecca Allen, in the final possession of the game to hold on.

 

It's a bit of a different look currently for the Libs, second-year guard Sabrina Ionescu saw just 21 minutes and totaled nine points for the visitors. Allen, Australian Sami Whitcomb picked up the scoring slack, though with 36 points combined  Jazmine saw 13 minutes of action and contributed a couple of rebounds and assists but no points. 

The Libs were facing their center from last year in Amanda Zahui B, now in a LA jersey, and Shook did the job defensively on her -- limiting her to four points in 11 minutes.   

It was a celebratory game of sorts, 24 years ago the Sparks and Libs squared off in what was the first official game of the WNBA. The league has been through some ups and downs in this almost-quarter century, but is riding an all-time high in popularity currently and providing some very exciting basketball. 

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A quick Monday Morning check of the league standings shows New York in second place in the Eastern Conference, a game back of the Connecticut Sun and in fourth place overall in the conference standings. The Western Conference has the two current powerhouses with the Seattle Storm holding a 12-2 mark and the Las Vegas Aces sitting at 10-3

Myisha Hines-Allen's Washington  Mystics are at .500 in the East, with a 6-6 record and Dana Evans and the Chicago Sky are also at .500 in the East at 7-7. 

Hines-Allen will be out for a few upcoming games with a strained left patellar tendon strain, but the good news is that she doesn't appear to need surgery. 

Watching the end of the Mystics vs. Dream game Saturday nigh, t I was amazed to see so many Mystics on the sidelines in street clothes. Besides Hines-Allen, Alysha Clark is out with an ankle injury, Elena Della Donne is still having back issues, Erica McCall out with a knee injury, and Natashia Cloud injured an ankle in the game. The Mystics had just six available players by the end of the game against Atlanta. Fortunately for them, one of them was "the black hole of Washington"  Tina Charles, who ended up with 39 minutes,  30 points and 15 rebounds, 

It's rumored the last time Tina passed on a shot opportunity was in the Obama Administration. But, in the words of Jeff Walz and Deb Antonelli -- scoring wins games and brings in fans, so ice up the shoulder, Tina, and keep hoisting. 

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A nice slate of games are on tap for Tuesday -- the Libs finally get back home and will entertain Dana and the Chicago Sky. (Three Cardinal greats in the same venue!) The Mystics will face a tough task at league-leading Seattle (most likely without Myisha)  and the Dallas Wings will travel to Connecticut to face the Sun. 

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FINALLY...

If you're here looking for an update on the Shoni Schimmel situation, we are Sgt. Schultz on the issue, (we know nothing.) When main-stream media reports on it, you'll find out as soon as we do. 

Have a Marvelous Monday! 

paulie

Cardinals Outside of UofL Athletics; WCWS Storylines -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Louisville Swimmers Among Olympic Hopefuls

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics being postponed to later this year (and still hanging on by a thread), US Olympic qualifying trials are getting underway for various sports to nail down the teams. Among the summer games are those that take place in a pool. Games in a pool during the summer? Professional athletes: they're just like the rest of us. Anyway, the University of Louisville has a pretty good history when it comes to swimming. They're still working toward that first team championship, but individual Cardinals have seen a lot of success at the collegiate level and beyond.

This year, more Cards will hope to add their names to the list of athletes that will get to wear the year's hottest Polo Ralph Lauren outfit (the US Olympic uniform). On the women's side, three Cards are at the event: Christiana Regenaur, Diana Dunn, and Paige McCormick. Regenaur made the finals for the 100M Freestyle yesterday and touched 6th in her race, 9th overall out of the 16 swimmers. Her placement is not terribly relevant based on how they are doing the advancement to Wave II (only the top two advance), but you can advance on time as well. The cut for Wave II is a 55.56. Regenaur's swim yesterday was only a 56.29, so unless she had a better time somewhere during the past year's qualification period, she'll be hoping for another race to attempt to improve or she'll look to go forward in another event.

The only woman racing today for Louisville is freshman Paige McCormick. McCormick is swimming in the 400M IM today. She'll also participate in the 200M Backstroke tomorrow. Regenaur and Diana Dunn will be back in action on Monday for the 50M Free and the 200M IM, respectively.

Cards in WNBA Action

Paulie gave you a look at the result from Thursday night, but the WNBA season is jam packed with games. There are three on the slate today and former Cards will be involved in all three. The day tips off with a Mystics vs Aces matchup at 1PM. If not for injury, this would be an opportunity to MHA vs Angel, but McCoughtery is back on the road to recovery. The game will be broadcast on ABC. Game two is also on ABC, and will tip off at 3PM. In that game, we'll see if Dana Evans can break into some more playing time for her new team. The final game of the evening sees the Connecticut Sun hosting the NY Liberty. That one is at 7PM and is not listed for a national channel. Availability is NESN, YES, and SN1. 

WCWS Providing Tons of Excitement

James Madison has come to win the whole dang softball tournament. After knocking off Oklahoma on opening day of the tournament, the Dukes were at it again last night when they took on the second home team at the tournament. Odicci Alexander was in the circle again and she flashed her glove in addition to her pitching skills. Late in the game, the Cowgirls put down a suicide squeeze and Alexander showed her athleticism as she raced the runner to the plate, diving for the tag herself rather than wasting time trying to get it to the catcher. She made the out and ultimately held on for a 2-1 win. 

The Dukes are now in the driver's seat for bracket one, waiting until tomorrow to face their next opponent. Oklahoma can still make their way to the championship series, but they'll need to win two games today and then beat JMU twice tomorrow to do it. Advantage JMU. The team on the other side in the same position is Alabama. The Tide made headlines last night as well when Montana Fouts took the circle on her birthday. It was a 21st birthday to remember as Fouts threw just the fifth perfect game in WCWS history while Alabama thumped UCLA 6-0. 

All four games today will be broadcast on ESPN, as will tomorrow's Game Ones. If a Game Two is required tomorrow, it will be on ESPN2. The championship series, starting on Monday, will all be on ESPN.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

Paulie alluded to my return yesterday but it's not quite here, yet. Today should be the last week of my hiatus, and I'm excited to return to the booth. It's been a hectic last couple of months, and I'm sure we'll talk next week about where all I've been. The rest of the crew will still bring you a great show this week, as Paulie prepares his next nefarious quiz. Tune in to the Cardinal Couple YouTube Channel at 11AM for the live show and be sure to subscribe to the channel to see the rebroadcasts as well as any other video interviews we post to the page.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-