Women's soccer defeats Toledo 4-1

SATURDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE

-Freshman Christine Exeter leads soccer to the win

-UofL vs. UK in football today!

The University of Louisville womens' soccer team went to 4-0 with a 4-1 win over Toledo last night in Cardinal Park. Christine Exeter, pictured left, scored twice for the Cards...now ranked #23 in the nation.

Toledo took an early lead in the contest, scoring their only goal in the 20th minute on chip shot by Erin Flynn. Louisville was up for the challenge, though and quickly tied the game when senior Caitlin Rehder slammed a shot in from close range. Exeter got her first goal of the game a few minutes later..driving one by Toledo goalie Vicki Travern...thanks to key assists by Rehder and Angelika Uremovich. The Cards took the 2-1 lead to the end of the first half.

Louisville got a charged up in the final half early from a flying save by sophomore goalie Taylor Vancil of a shot on goal. The Cards picked up their third score when Uremovich nailed a penalty kick past Travern at the 67 minute mark of the game. Exeter scored her second goal and closed out the scoring late in the match with an exciting takeaway and drive to the Toledo goal...where she booted one deep into the net from about 18 yards out.

The Cards (4-0) are off to their best start in school history. They out shot Toledo 18-10 and goalie Vancil contributed two spectacular saves for ensure the victory.

Next for the Cards, the Kentucky Wildcats at Cardinal Park on Thursday, Sept. 9th. Fox Soccer Channel will televise the 7 p.m. game.

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We're off to the Parrish House in a few to tailgate and enjoy the 3:30 p.m. football game against Kentucky today. A sold out crowd of 55,000+ will enjoy clear skies and mid-seventy degree weather for the nationally televised contest.

I expect to see a close game that features the running skills of both teams and the difference maker in this one could very well be who has the ball last. Both Sonja and I are predicting a Louisville victory this afternoon and we'll have a summation of the epic battle...along with updates on field hockey and volleyball tomorrow.

Thanks for checking out this abbreviated version of CARDINAL COUPLE today and....

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CARDSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS !!!!!!!!!

Women's teams take to the road this weekend

FRIDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball, field hockey hit the highway

-Women's soccer in Cardinal Park tonight

-We poll people about the football game Saturday

-We take offense to the LEO cartoonist


" Have a safe trip, fun time and bring back victories" is the wish for the Volleyball and Field Hockey teams this weekend. Both squads are taking part in major tournaments this weekend.

Volleyball goes in the Arizona Wildcat classic in Tucson, AZ. They have a full schedule with games Friday against Cal State Bakersfield and Arizona and Butler on Saturday. A quick turnaround for Leonid Yelin's team after the Wednesday night contest in Lexington but good experience for a young and talented bunch of spikers. WE liked what we saw against the Cats despite the close loss. Emily Juhl, Anastasia Artemeva, Gwen Rucker, Lola Arslanbekova and Amanda Simmons have big time net skills and freshman Caitlin Welch has promise with the set and dig portion of the game. The Cards return to Cardinal Arena on Sept 17th for four straight games...three of them on TV. Louisville will serve it up in front of the cameras a total of nine more times this year...we recommend that you get out and watch the action live if you can, though.

Pam Bustin's Field Hockey flock plays Saturday and Sunday in Harrisburg, VA. against James Madison and American. A pretty patriotic weekend for the stick swinging Cards, let's hope Nicole Youman is at top form and duplicate the five goals she scored against Central Michigan the last time the field hockey team hit the field. Field hockey gets four in a row at the Trager after the trip...beginning with Ohio State on Sept. 8th. California, Georgetown and Radford are also headed to town. No mention of any television for these Cards...but it's an idea that has merit and potential because of the strong field hockey following and high school teams here in the Louisville area.


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Women's soccer puts on a Friday night under the lights at Cardinal Park...hosting Toledo. The Kentucky Wildcats come to town on Sept 9th. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. At 3-0, the kickers are in mid season form already and tough to score on with sophomore sensation Taylor Vancil guarding the net. Louisville has outscored the opposition 7-1 so far this season and the win over South Carolina was particularly meaningful...the Gamecocks made it to the sweet Sixteen last year in the NCAA Championships and returned a veteran team this year.


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OK, whose bright idea was this? That free publication circulating around town has done an injustice to UofL head football coach Charlie Strong. The cartoon image at the top of the page looks more like Bill Cosby than the Cardinal coach. The intent at LEO seems to always be to create shock and awe.

If I was Mr. Strong, I'd hunt down the drawer and demonstrate that I don't have toothpick biceps or bug eyes. Just when we thought racial profiling was beginning to subside, the bozos at the bird cage liner rear their ugly heads...




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The opening game of the football season is less than 72 hours away and it's a hot topic wherever you go in the city. We've talked to dozens of people about the contest and decided to take a little poll. You're welcome to chip in and provide your prediction in the comments section below.

No prize for being right...but, speaking of prizes...this is the last week of the PANERA BREAD gift card giveaway. Hurry and get those entries in...

The poll:

What will be the outcome of the UofL vs. UK football game?

a) Cards win by 7 or more (11 %)

b) Cards win by less than 7 (33%)

c) Cats win by 7 or more (6%)

d) Cats win by less than 7 (50%)

SONJA goes with "a" and I am choosing "b". I'll be happy if either of us are right.

Cards drop a tough one in Lexington to UK

THE THURSDAY EDITION OF CARDINAL COUPLE

- Cards fall in five sets to the Cats in Volleyball

-Laura Terry update

Louisville jumped on Kentucky early and late in the match last night but could not hold on in the final set as Kentucky won the decisive fifth game to win the hotly contested match in Memorial Coliseum last night...3 games to 2.

Hotly contested is a perfect way to describe the event in ancient Memorial Coliseum. The facility is sans adequate air conditioning and the two teams played in the equivalent of a boiler room for 2 1/2 hours in front of a wildly appreciative and rowdy fan base of both Louisville and Kentucky fans. Kentucky head coach Craig Skinner seemed to be toweling off his bald head every time the cameras caught him on screen and Louisville head coach Leonid Yelin spent a lot of time flapping his shirt to get air. The humidity, referred to often by the announcers on the Big Blue Sports Network..which showed the game on the Fox Sports South channel..caused frequent stoppage of play as the match progressed, so that the court could be dried.

Louisville roared out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first set and eventually built that lead to 20-11 thanks to the strong net play of Gwen Rucker and Lola Arslanbekova. The Cards closed out the Cats in game 1 25-14 and it looked like Louisville was much the dominant squad.

Kentucky came back in game 2, though and built a 6-2 advantage on the Cards. Heady play by the Wildcats at the net made sure that the Cards would get no closer than four points and UK took the second set 25-19. Despite some excellent slams by Arslanbekova, Louisville could not catch the Cats and the match was tied 1-1.

The teams battled tooth and nail in set three and Louisville led 9-8 after a spectacular spike from Anastasia Artemeva. Kentucky regained the advantage with the score tied 18-18 and would go on to outscore Louisville 7-4 the rest of the way to win the third game 25-22.

Up against the wall, the Cards knew they had to find a way to win game four and force a fifth contest. They battled the Cats to a 10-10 tie early in the set. UofL gained the lead at 13-12 but then went into a hitting slump and UK took a 18-15 advantage. Emily Juhl picked up the sagging Cards with a couple of power kills, though and Louisville roared back to tie the game at 22-22. UK actually had two chances late to eliminate the Cards in the game and match, but a couple of unforced errors and some heads up net play allowed Louisville to score the final three points of the match and win 27-25.

In the fifth game, Louisville jumped out to an early 6-1 lead and appeared to have UK on the ropes...but some impressive serving and blocking at the net got UK back in the contest and they outscored Louisville the rest of the way to win the final game 15-10 and take the contest.

Impressive for Louisville was freshman outside hitter Juhl, who finished with 12 kills. The Sacred Heart high school grad lifted the Cards repeatedly with her slams from the sidelines and baffling serves that UK had trouble setting. Amanda Simmons rose to the occasion for Louisville also with 13 blocks and 12 block assists...tying a school record.

This is a young Cardinal squad...made up of mostly freshmen and sophomores...and the play of Juhl, Arslanbekova...who had 12 kills for the evening...and Artemeva was encouraging against the veteran UK squad. Rucker plays well up the middle for Louisville and Caitlin Welch showed some excellent digging skills...leading Louisville with 13 digs.

A quick turnaround for Louisville...they head to Arizona next to play in the Arizona Wildcat Classic...where they'll start off against Cal State Bakersfield on Friday.

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Lady Card Laura Terry will finish her career at the University of Louisville as an student assistant basketball coach for Jeff Walz in the 2010-11 season. The popular Terry played bits and pieces for Louisville over the last three years but three knee surgeries kept her off the court most of the time and eventually ended her career as a Cardinal player.

Terry and Keisha Hines are the only two Cardinals that are left from Walz's inaugural season at Louisville and we never really got to see the full talent Terry possessed at Louisville after a stellar high school career at Rose Hill Academy in Ashland, KY.

Terry's experience and knowledge of Walz's system will help greatly in the development and tutelage of the younger Cardinal players and it's good to know that she'll be an active part of Team Cardinal during her senior year at Louisville.

Battle of the Bluegrass gets an early start Wednesday

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE COMMENTS ON:

-VOLLEYBALL AGAINST THE CATS TONIGHT

-SOCCER SUCCESS

-THE WEEKEND AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Bill the Goat, our IT specialist, sticks his tongue out at a passing car sporting a UK flag. The goat-in-residence on the Drunken Amish farm in Prospect is hoping for a ride to Lexington this evening to watch Leonard Yelin's UofL Volleyball team (2-0) face the #14 ranked Wildcats (0-2) in wide net action tonight. The match will be televised on Fox Sports South and starts at 6:30 p.m. Got a feeling that lofty UK ranking will slip a bit after tonight. The Cards haven't lost in volleyball to the BigBlue since 1999 and Louisville won a hotly contested match in the SAC last year in 5 games in front of a standing room only crowd.

The Cards should move into the top 25 if they can tame the Cats tonight on the road. Louisville defeated North Dakota State and Ohio over the weekend and UK lost to Nebraska and Iowa State...two very good DI programs...in the AVCA Showdown in Omaha. Louisville has won 19 out of the last 20 matches against UK and CARDINAL COUPLE will give you a volley by volley recap of the action tomorrow. WE just don't want to share the ride up and back with Bill. Anyone got a pickup truck?

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The surprising UofL women's soccer team is 3-0 after winning the Gamecock Challenge at South Carolina this weekend. They're now ranked #23 by Soccer America and will go into battle with Toledo Friday night in Cardinal Park at 7 p.m. Could be a good chance to get in some cheering and rooting practice, Cardinal fans.

One of the key components to the Cards early success has been sophomore goalie Taylor Vancil. She's allowed only one goal in the Cards 3 games and was recently selected National Player of the Week by TopDrawer Soccer. She also gained BIG EAST goalie of the week honors for her fantastic performance in the South Carolina tournament. Cardinal head coach Karen Ferguson Dayes told us last year that Vancil, who started as a freshman for UofL, would be a superstar at the position by the time she graduated. Looks like Dayes' foresight is 20/20

Speaking of awards, Louisville field hockey midfielder Nicole Youman was named BIG EAST player of the week for her 5 goal, 2 assist performance against Central Michigan Sunday. The senior has had 35 assists in her career and is only four assists away from setting the school record.

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Labor Day weekend will be a big time recruiting period for many of the on campus sports at UofL. Potential Cardinals in men and women's basketball, football, volleyball, field hockey and soccer will be checking out the campus, facilities and meeting their possible 2011 teammates this weekend. If you see any of them strolling the grounds with the coaches or current players, don't be shy...walk up to them and tell them that you want to see them in Cardinal red and black down the road. We're fortunate enough to usually get the UofL women's basketball team to visit the Parrish House prior to several football games each year and have some great memories of the girls interacting with the fan base. Seeing Dez Byrd beat a soldier from Fort Knox in pushups is one of my favorite womens' basketball visits and mistaking former Cardinal Janae Howard for Candyce Bingham one of my biggest gaffes. Blame it on the Bud Select. I also remember a visit from a shy, skinny freshman girl by the name of McCoughtry gazing wide eyed at the cabooses and tons of people during the pre-game party. Wonder whatever happened to her?

Fall tennis looks promising

TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE BRINGS YOU :

-EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH WOMEN'S TENNIS COACH MARK BECKHAM...PART OF OUR EFFORT TO GIVE YOU COVERAGE OF ALL THE WOMEN'S SPORTS AT UofL...

-Also...update on Dez Byrd


Mark Beckham, the Cards women's tennis coach enters his fourth year guiding the squad. No novice to tennis on the Belknap Campus...he was previously assistant coach on the men's team for 13 years before accepting the women's position. His vision and master plan ranks up there with the best on campus. The Cards home matches are played at the Bass-Rudd Center (pictured above) which has both indoor and outdoor courts.

Women's tennis actually plays in both the fall and spring sports seasons and Mark gave us some insights and information on the who, what and where for them this fall.

CARDINAL COUPLE: When does the fall season begin?

MARK: We start off our fall tournaments with the Spartan Invitational at Michigan State from Sept. 24th. to Sept. 27th. This will be a good test to start things off for this young team. The competition there will be good but if we play well I think we can make it to the finals or even win some of the events in this tournament.

CARDINAL COUPLE: After that?

MARK: The next tournament we'll go to is the Virginia Tech Invitational and it goes from Oct. 1st. thru 3rd. The competition will be higher at this tournament...so this will show us where we truly are at this time of year. I hope it will also show us what we need to work on and what kind of team we can be.

CARDINAL COUPLE: The ITA Regional in Knoxville is a big one also, isn't it?

MARK: It's the biggest tournament of the fall and goes from Oct. 14th thru the 17th. All the teams in our region will send their best players there to determine who the best player in the region is.

CARDINAL COUPLE: The Cards had some success in this one last year...didn't they?

MARK: We had Mandy Brown, a freshman, make it to the round of 16...which is a great showing for a freshman. I'm hoping we can have her and a few more players that do well for an even bigger showing than last year. It will help with our national rankings and I think I can possibly get a player or doubles team ranked nationally this year. That's definitely our goal.

CARDINAL COUPLE: How does the team look for this year?

MARK: I have 3 juniors,(Gabrielle Duncan, Amelia Harris and Sarah Miller), 4 sophomores ( Mandy Brown, Kaysara Mandry, Louise Noe and Stefanie Villajuan) and 3 freshmen (Sonia Bukhari, Julie Fellerhoff and Becca Shine). I think this is a good core that will take Louisville womens' tennis into the national rankings and challenge for a Big East title for this year and many years down the road.

Thanks to Mark for the positive and informative report on the squad and for taking time out of his busy schedule to keep CARDINAL COUPLE readers up on one of the sports we report on here at the site. Serve 'em hard, inside the line and charge that net!

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CARDINAL COUPLE has learned that junior point guard Dez Byrd will not play for the University of Louisville in the 2010-11 season. Byrd has left school for personal reasons, according to Louisville head coach Jeff Walz.

Byrd never fully recovered from the knee injury she sustained back in 2009 and played in only six games in the 2009-10 season for Louisville. A talented point guard and good playmaker, Byrd's presence would have helped the Cards in the back court this season with her experience and enthusiasm. Byrd was a starter on the 2008-09 team that made it to the NCAA Women's Championship game. Her leadership and support from the bench last year will be missed.

Get it together, Dez and come back next year strong and ready to handle the challenges and responsibilities that college athletes face in this demanding role of being a student-athlete.

UofL womens sports pulls off the hat trick on Sunday

MONDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Volleyball turns back Ohio in five sets

-Field Hockey blanks Central Michigan 9-0

-Soccer bests Bucknell 2-0

-Your weekly PANERA winner

-RACHEL runs second to longshot

University of Louisville women's sports teams swept the board and won all three events Sunday. If there was ever a better way to begin the week, it would be hard to fathom.

The Volley Cards, led by tournament MVP Anastasia Artemeva pictured here, outlasted tough Ohio University to win the Louisville Invitational in 5 sets...23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 16-25 15-9. It wasn't an easy win for the Cardinals but team play helped them finally turn back the Bobcats. Louisville fell behind early in the first match and despite a late rally that saw them take a 20-19 lead, couldn't catch Ohio and fell by two points. The Cards fought back in the second game and finally pulled away late to even the sets at 1-1...winning by three.

Louisville started out the third game with a 6-1 lead but Ohio battled back to tie the contest at 9-9. The Cards regained their confidence though and went on a run to take a 18-12 advantage and go on to win game 3 by 3. Game four was tight early but Ohio used a 9-4 run to grab a 13-9 lead that they would increase upon and even the match at 2-2...winning by nine.

In the final contest, Louisville jumped out to a 6-1 lead, thanks to some strong serving, but saw the Bobcats roar back and climb within one at 8-7. The Cards regained the momentum after that and took seven out of the final nine points to win the game by six and take the match.

Louisville got strong net play from Artemeva with 12 kills in the five game match. Teammates Gwen Rucker and Lola Arslanbekova also had 12 kills and Emily Juhl added 11. Taylor Brauneis led the squad with 36 assists.

Lindsey Mango and Juhl joined Artemeva on the All-Tournament team for Louisville. The Cards travel to Lexington Wednesday for a match against rival Kentucky.

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Pam Bustin's field hockey squad rebounded nicely from Saturday's loss to Duke to whitewash Central Michigan 9-0 in the consolation game of the Champions Challenge at Michigan State. Nicole Youman tied a team record by scoring five goals in the win. Louisville roared out to a 6-0 halftime lead against the Chippewas and coasted in for the victory. Louisville struck early in the contest with Youman knocking one in just two minutes into the contest. Just a few minutes later a Youman shot was tipped in by Amber Thomas to make it 2-0. Youman scored the third goal of the game seven minutes into the game on an assist from Thomas.

Rachel Hollenbach joined the scoring frenzy for goal 4 off an assist from Youman. The half drew to a close with Youman scoring on two unassisted goals, putting the Cards up by six.

The second half saw Louisville increase the margin to seven on a second Hollenbach score off a Thomas set up and Youman increased it to 8-0 minutes later on a penalty shot with assists from Jenna Ahern and Hayley Turner. Thomas closed out the UofL scoring late in the game on another penalty shot...Ahern and Karah Nall assisting.

The Cards outshot the Chippewas 38-3 in the game and goalie Erin Conrad got the shutout with two saves. The road trip continues for The Flock with a trip to Harrisonburg, VA. to face James Madison on the 4th and American University the 6th.

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Soccer stayed undefeated with a big win in the Gamecock Courtyard Classic finals over Bucknell 2-0. The contest started out a defensive battle before Angelika Uremovich got Louisville on the board with a long attempt that slid into the net 19 minutes into the contest. Lousiville took that 1-0 lead into halftime and protected it until late in the game when Julie Casselman slipped by the Bucknell goalie and knocked in an uncontested shot for the final margin.

The Cards placed goalkeeper Taylor Vancil on the All-Tournament team and she took MVP honors as well for her stingy goal allowance during the tournament. Cardinals joining her were Christine Exeter, Caitlin Rehder and Uremovich.

The Cards (3-0) kicked their way to a 19-6 advantage in shots in the final and are now off to their best start to a season since 2007. They return to action Friday Night in Cardinal Park...hosting Toledo.

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Kenny Clay is the proud owner of $10 in PANERA gift cards with his response on why he likes PANERA:

"I travel around the area as a sales rep and I can dine at Panera in Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green and Owensboro. Even in Evansville. It's the same good food and friendly faces no matter which location I'm in. It's a relief to see that PANERA sign off the highway when I am travelling because I know I am going to get a good breakfast or lunch."

Good summation Kenny. This week will be the final week to win PANERA Gift Cards. Thanks to all who have submitted entries and good luck in the final week!

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RACHEL ALEXANDRA dueled with LIFE AT TEN for most of the Personal Ensign Stakes on Sunday at Saratoga...but it was longshot PERSISTENTLY that snuck up on the two in the stretch and passed to win. PERSISTENTLY has the champion filly PERSONAL ENSIGN in her bloodlines but was overlooked by the betting public. RACHEL ALEXANDRA finished second with a game try late to keep up with the flying winner...but it looks like a mile and a quarter just might be a little too far for Calvin Borel's mount to run...

An across the board wager on RACHEL ALEXANDRA didn't return quite what you wagered on it, but an exacta box wheel with RACHEL and all did double your investment money. With the loss, the owner and trainer of the 3 yr. old filly must now decide whether to place her in the shorter LADIES CLASSIC Friday in the Breeders Cup or try the tougher CLASSIC at 1-1/4 miles on Saturday. Here's guessing they opt for the LADIES CLASSIC... avoiding a tussle against ZENYATTA and some tough males that will go in the CLASSIC.

#13 Cardinal field hockey falls to #10 Duke

SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Field hockey takes Duke to O.T.

-Volleyball today at the Arena

-Ironman Triathlon

-Success, Success!!

-PANERA contest wide open

-Sara Rising

The University of Louisville field hockey team took Duke to two overtimes before falling 3-2 yesterday in the Champions Challenge at Michigan State. (Thanks to Tony Viscardi Designs for this great rendering of field hockey and check out his merchandise over at CARDINAL DOMINANCE).

The Cards and Blue Devils battled to a scoreless first half..a defensive struggle where neither team was able to get a shot on goal or a penalty corner attempt.

The Dukies fired out strong in the second half and put the first point on the board with less than three minutes elapsed. Louisville countered with a Amber Thomas shot into the net and the Cards took a 2-1 lead a few minutes later when Tuli Lim sent a penalty corner pass from Rachel Hollenbach past the Duke goalie.

Duke came back to tie the game and the Cards had a golden opportunity to win in regulation but Karah Nall's shot from a penalty corner got blocked.

The team battled to a scoreless tie in the first overtime but Duke managed a winning goal in the second extra session to take the victory.

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Louisville Volleyball returns to action this afternoon with a 2 p.m. match against Ohio University. Leonard Yelin's team will try to stay undefeated in Cardinal Arena against a talented MAC opponent. It's a busy week for the Volley Cards...they travel to Lexington to face the Kentucky Wildcats on Wednesday.

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Sara Hammond, Rockcastle County's talented senior girls basketball star has been upgraded to 12th in the nation in the latest ESPN national rankings. She's scheduled for a visit Sept. 4th to Louisville and also will visit UConn. Vandy and WKU have also offered scholarships. Hammond was previously 27th in the ESPN rankings. The only other Kentucky high school girl that made the top 100 was Calloway County's Averee Fields at 80th. Obviously, the crew at the four letter network's ranking panel needs to spend a little time in the Bluegrass state watching the ton of talent out there on the hardwood. Their East Coast bias is way too obvious...

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The Ford Ironman Louisville triathlon takes place today in and around town. Competitiors will start with a 2.4 mile swim in the Ohio River, proceed with a 11.2 mile bike ride and finish at 4th street LIVE after a 26.2 mile run. Last year's women's winner Nina Kraft returns to defend her title. Much admiration to those who can complete this course. I might be able to do the .4 mile swim, .2 mile bike ride and .2 mile run (or walk) in about the same time...

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SUCCESS, SUCCESS hit the wire first for our favorite trainer Paul McGee in the third race at Ellis Park Saturday. Corey Lanerie got the winning ride and roared past contenders in the stretch to win by 1- 1/2 lengths and pay $6.80 to win as the 2-1 favorite. Our pick in the Travers Stakes yesterday FIRST DUDE set the early pace and fractions but could not hold off AFLEET EXPRESS or FLY DOWN in the Saratoga stretch. The DUDE paid $4.60 to show, though and he has finished in the money in all 10 of his lifetime starts. Calvin Borel and SUPER SAVER finsihed a dismal 10th out of 11.

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It's your next to last chance to win $10 in PANERA BREAD gift cards. We're still accepting entries for this week and quite frankly...it's still wide open for a winner. Can you beat this (name withheld) entry that reads:

"I like Panera bcoz they got fresh bread and stuff."

Send those entries to: cardinalcouple@insightbb.com by midnight Sunday.

Volleyball Cards best North Dakota State

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE COVERS:

-Cardinal Volleyball defeats NDSU

-Women's soccer upsets South Carolina

-Atlanta Dream sweeps the Mystics

The University of Louisville volleyball team defended the Cardinal Arena home court with a 15-25, 25-19, 25-17 25-19 win over visiting North Dakota State last night in the season opener for the Cards. Despite losing the first match, the Cards roared back to sweep the final three games and got the win over the Bisons. A good crowd on hand to watch Louisville led Lola Arsanbeckova conquer the Bisons...the Cards won the battle of the kill shots 46-39. Louisville will take to the floor again on Sunday against Ohio in Cardinal Arena.

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Louisville women's soccer pulled a major upset in downing South Carolina 1-0 in the Gamecock Courtyard Cup. The Cards (2-0) got a second half penalty kick score from Assumption High School's Jennifer Jones to provide the win against the 13th ranked Gamecocks. Louisville's defense stood strong in the final minutes of the contest...keeping USC out of the net.

A great win for Karen Ferguson Dayes young team against a quality opponent yesterday on the road. Dayes predicted early on that this year's version of the Soccer Cards would be much improved over last year's team and so far, she's looking like a prophet.

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Angel's McCoughtry's first half heroics led the Atlanta Dream to a 101-77 win over #1 Eastern Conference seed Washington last night in Atlanta. Angel pumped in 17 points by halftime to give the Dream a lead that the Mystics could not overcome. McCoughtry totaled 21 points in the victory despite sitting out most of the second half.

Atlanta used a 26-0 run in front of the home crowd to pull away from Washington. Iziane Castro Marquez added 21 points for the Dream...who advance to the Eastern Conference finals. They await the winner of the New York vs. Indiana series...New York has a 1-0 lead in the semifinal series and those two teams face off tonight.

Atlanta seems to have shaken off the late season slump that had them losing 6 out of their final 8 regular season games. They're back to the run and gun, get the ball down the court style that propelled them to the top of the division early in the season and Marquez seems to be playing with a lot more confidence and aggression now that her face mask protecting a broken nose has been removed. McCoughtry's determination and leadership have the Dream flying high when it counts...crunch time, win or go home time. Would you expect anything else from #35?

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Five stakes races highlight the Saratoga card today...including the $1 million dollar Travers Stakes. Kentucky Derby winner SUPER SAVER, with Calvin Borel on board will face ten contenders...including Derby participants ICE BOX, FIRST DUDE and FLY DOWN. The early 7-2 favorite in the race is Saratoga's Jim Dandy Stakes winner A LITTLE WARM.

Todd Pletcher, trainer of SUPER SAVER has to be praying for the skies to open up and create a sloppy track for his horse. SUPER SAVER won the Derby in wet conditions and hasn't won on a dry, fast track since his Derby score.

We're looking for big things from FIRST DUDE in the Travers. He adds blinkers for today's race and the mile and a fourth distance could test his early running style. The DUDE finished a close second in the Preakness earlier this spring and third in the Belmont Stakes. He's also got a nice and profitable early morning line attached to him at 8-1.

Yo, DUDE...let's party today! Veteran jockey Ramon Dominguez rides again on the three year old that is 1 for 9 in lifetime wins with four second place and four third place finishes. 9 for 9 in the money...could make for a nice across the board venture.

Volleyball tonight!

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE PRESENTS:

-Volleyball tonight!

-She's back...

-Geno finds some creative financing

The University of Louisville volleyball team takes the floor tonight at 7 p.m. against North Dakota State in Cardinal Arena. You say you haven't checked out the Volley Cards before? Do yourself a favor and attend a match or two. This isn't your typical back yard Sunday afternoon knock the ball around stuff...where someone usually sprains an ankle and the big fat guy ends up face first in Aunt Ginny's potato salad.

It's a fast paced, exciting affair...where the spikes, blocks and serves whiz by on the court with incredible speed and accuracy. Sophomore Lola Arslanbeckova (pictured right) is one of the best kill shot artist in the college game and Louisville is the defending Big East Tournament Champions. Al Greener will have the pep band there, Louie the Cardinal Bird will be on hand and you'll also probably run into a few of Jeff Walz's Lady Cards watching the matches.

Can't make the Friday night game? Not to worry...the Volley Cards take the court again on Sunday against Ohio U. at 2 p.m.

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Our favorite filly RACHEL ALEXANDRIA returns to the track Sunday in the $300,000 Personal Ensign Stakes at Saratoga. She'll face four opponents in the 1 1/4 mile dirt race and could face some keen competition from Todd Pletcher trained LIFE AT TEN. It's the first time Rachel has gone a mile and a quarter. LIFE AT TEN has won six races in a row, including the 1 1/4 mile Delaware Handicap.

This race could determine which race RACHEL will be entered in for the Breeders Cup at Churchill Downs. A strong showing at this distance could make her a candidate for the $5 million dollar CLASSIC. against the boys. If she can't get the distance...they'll probably point her to the 1 1/8th mile LADIES CLASSIC.

Calvin Borel rides the Steve Asmussen trained filly. Go get 'em, RACHEL!

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Ok, who dressed this guy? This is a photo of a bank robbery. The criminal obviously wanted to bump his contribution level to the Connecticut women's basketball program...deciding to wear the 78 wins in a row UConn t-shirt.

(It almost looks like former UofL head football coach Bobby Petrino under the cap...but we know Coach is financially set until 2525.)

Detectives in the case should be casing the Huskies first home game to see if the robber is in the front row. According to witness, the assailant wasn't carrying a weapon...but had Tina Charles standing by the exit...ready to post up and take out any would be heroes (just kidding on that last part.)

If apprehended, he should be forced to buy season tickets and sit thru a season of Rutgers' womens' basketball. Nothing is greater punishment for a UConn fan....

I wonder if the perfect crime would be me knocking off a 7-11 in a UK t-shirt. No one would see that coming...

(Thanks to They're Playing Basketball owner Sue Favor for this great find...)

Angel and Dream take 1-0 advantage

THURSDAY AT CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Angel key in 95-90 Dream win

-"worst joke I have heard lately"

-another chance to spend your paycheck

Former UofL great Angel McCoughtry refused to lose last night and the visiting Atlanta Dream took a 1-0 lead in the WNBA Eastern Conference semifinals...defeating the Washington Mystics 95-90 in the Verizon Center. McCoughtry led all scorers with 28 points as Atlanta broke a two game losing streak.

The Dream began the game with a vengeance...jumping out to an early 10-1 lead...largely due to the efforts of Iziane Castro-Marquez. Washington clawed their way back into the contest, though and led 19-17 as first quarter action finished.

The Dream regained the lead early in the second quarter and put on an excellent shooting and fast break display...going 16 for 19 from the floor in the second stanza and taking a 48-33 advantage into the locker room at halftime. McCoughtry totaled 17 first half points and guard Coco Miller added 10. The Dream couldn't catch a break on fouls, though...and several players had 3 whistled on them in first half action.

Atlanta managed to sustain the double digit lead through the 3rd quarter. A late Mystic run cut the margin to 10 at 68-58 to end the 3rd quarter. McCoughtry was silenced most of the period...but still had 21 points on the scoreboard.

What followed was a wild and wacky 4th quarter. Washington methodically narrowed the Atlanta advantage and had whittled the margin to 68-63 with 8:59 remaining. They would climb within 2 at 77-75 and Atlanta looked to be on the ropes with 4:30 left in the game. Angel and Miller found some spare gas, though and the Dream went on a 9-0 run to hold a 84-75 lead with 2:54 to go. Washington would manage to cut the deficit to four several times in the final minutes but clutch free throw shooting by Miller and McCoughtry preserved the 5 point win.

The teams travel to Atlanta for game 2 on Friday in the best of three playoff format. If the Mystics win...game three returns to Washington on Sunday.

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The other playoff game last night featured the Seattle Storm hosting the L.A. Sparks. Seattle took the contest 79-66...getting 20 points from Swin Cash and 17 from Lauren Jackson. Two games on tap for Thursday night...New York and Indiana go to battle in the East and Phoenix and San Antonio square off in the West.

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I watched the Dream victory last night on WNBA All-Access from my laptop. Good picture, only one freeze up but the play by play and commentary was horrendous. Beside being blatant Mystics "homers"...the inept crew kept mispronouncing half the Dream's players names and was offering moronic advice like "if you allow Atlanta wide open shots in the paint...they'll score" and "if Atlanta could make more free throws...they'd have a bigger lead."

Really? I have no idea where they find these bozos...but wherever it is...it's a source they need to drop. Two hobos by a shanty near a railroad track could have provided better analysis and play by play.

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OK...this one is horrible but it had me going until the final sentence:

'Charlie Strong, UofL football coach has been replacing Rick Pitino in television commercials in the Louisville area market as of late. As we all know, most television commercials are 30 seconds in length. Pitino can only last 15.'

It's only going to get worse as basketball season gets closer and closer. Hang in there, Rick...maybe Calipari will do something stupid to take the pressure off you.

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Changes on tap for the football season and the goings on at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. The ticket office and Cardinal apparel store is now open next to the east entrance and offers 10% off any purchase if you are a season ticket holder. There is now a no-smoking policy in force inside the stadium (good luck on that one) and food and drink specials will be offered before the game on the new south side observation deck overlooking the Crunch Zone and end zone.

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Good luck to former Cardinal great Candyce Bingham who is leaving today to go play Euro hoops. Never felt that she got a fair break to make the WNBA after graduation...but she's probably making more money overseas...so go to the hoop and block out, C.B.