Soccer Takes on Miami -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Look for Third ACC Win

As Paulie wrote in his column yesterday, Louisville women's soccer is off to a great start, but the road gets very tough soon. The Cards will work to stay on track when they take on the Miami Hurricanes tonight at Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium. It's Throwback Night tonight, so who knows what exactly that promotion will mean, but it should be a nice night to take in a match if you haven't had the opportunity to get out to the stadium yet. Louisville has just two regular season home matches after this one, so you're getting into now or never territory. 

Miami is having a fairly strong season themselves, currently sitting at 6-3-1. Their biggest head scratcher is a 1-0 loss at App State in their second match of the season, but the opening conference losses to #17 Wake Forest (away) and #2 Duke (home) aren't terrible. The Canes lost that Duke match just 1-0. Miami's draw came against Princeton to open their September slate. 

The Cards and Canes are both coming off of a Sunday bye, but Miami is actually more rested than Louisville, having played on Thursday instead of Friday last week. Miami also hasn't played a conference game since the Duke match on Sunday the 14th. Their Thursday match last week was on the road against VCU; they won it 2-0. 

Miami has already surpassed their win total from last season, as they finished the year 5-8-4, and they were just 1-6-3 in conference play. Their lone conference win in 2024 came against Syracuse, who finished last in the conference at 0-9-1. Miami's improvements must be compared against Louisville's, though, as the Cards seem to be a completely different team than last season. Louisville didn't play Miami or Syracuse last season, but they picked up wins against NC State and Cal, and closed the year on a 1-1-3 run in which they allowed just one goal each to Stanford and Cal. The Cards would likely win some of those draws last year if they had the offensive performance that we've seen so far this season, as evidenced by turning last year's 0-0 draw at Clemson into a 1-0 victory this season. 

Louisville and Miami have faced off in women's soccer 10 times, all coming since Louisville joined the ACC. The Cards hold a 7-2-1 advantage in those meetings, with the draw coming in the first game they played back in 2014. Miami took their second win over the Cards in 2023. All three results earned by Miami have been in Coral Gables, with the Cards sitting at 4-0 against Miami at home. As such, tonight's match will see Louisville trying to maintain two home undefeated records: the one against the Canes and the one for the 2025 season overall. 

Miami has give up just nine goals on the season, and six of those came against Princeton, Wake Forest, and Duke. The Canes have earned clean sheets in every win except for a 3-2 victory over Lipscomb. They've scored 16 goals overall. Miami's offense can be a bit one dimensional, though, and their defense can be broken down. Of nine opponent goals, nine have been assisted. On 16 Miami goals, they've earned just seven assists. Louisville, on the other hand, has 45 assists on 39 goals, with opponents earning three assists on six goals. (Louisville is a bit more generous with second assist scoring.) Two of Louisville's six conceded goals have come on penalties and all six of their goals have been given up in just three games. We'll look for the defense to continue to be stout tonight. 

Action is scheduled to begin at 7PM, and the weather currently looks like it will cooperate. I'll be keeping tabs on this one virtually, unfortunately, as other obligations will keep me away from the stadium. You can tune into ACC Network Extra to watch it for yourself. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

WSOC at 9-2 -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 WOMENS SOCCER OFF TO GREAT START

So...let's see a show of hands of folks that thought Louisville women's soccer would get off to a 9-2 start to the season?  Or, that they would be outscoring their opponents 39-6? Or that they would have eight shutouts on their list of accomplishments so far? 

A great start...no doubt...with losses to only FSU and Vandy, who are ranked #6 and #13 in DI WSOC. Both were away matches for Louisville, too. and each loss was 2-0 in score. The Cards are receiving votes to get in the top 25...they aren't there yet. Amelia Swinarski leads the Kickin' Cards in goals with seven, Mackenzie Geigle has 6, Liza Suydam has five and Emersen Jennings and Karsyn Cherry have three each to lead the way for UofL. 

In conference...Louisville is 2-1 and plays Miami next...on Thursday. 

The ACC does have several top 25 teams in the polls. Virginia is ranked #1, Notre Dame #2 , Stanford #3, FSU #6, Duke #9, Wake Forest #18 and North Carolina #22

The Cards have allowed just two goals in their last seven games while scoring 23. 

I do apologize that I haven't been able to get an interview with head coach Karen Ferguson Dayes yet about the season's successes. Due to health issues, I haven't been straying too far from home except for my dialysis treatment three days a week and to Indianapolis to talk with the kidney transplant team for IU in Indianapolis. Sadly, my oxygen levels now tend to drop pretty quickly and I do use oxygen...a rather tough thing to transport to an outdoor contest....where the press boxes involve a whole lotta steps.  

I am very fortunate to have three great writers on board in Jared, Daryl and Case. Jared, as we all know , takes excellent pictures. It does sadden me that I have not seen a live, at the facility, Field Hockey or Soccer game this season...but I follow them all on ACCNX and the other broadcast venues Louisville has access to. 

A look at the upcoming schedule for the Cards is a doozy, to say the least. Notre Dame, Virginia and Wake Forest are three of the next five opponents.

Let's hope the Cards can do well in their final seven regular season games and get a bid to play in the NCAA Tournament.

paulie

VBall sweeps WKU 3-0 at Yum! -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

Good morning readers!  

Its great to be back online (for the most part) after two weeks of music festival madness.   Really appreciate the gang for allowing me the time to step away from sports (I still managed to follow what I could..) and indulge in some local music with friends that are family :D 

Volleyball

Photo: Jared Anderson

*random thoughts*

Real quickly, I was bummed the way the rivalry volleyball match with UK played out.. was following online and got pretty excited when the Cards got ahead 2-1 in the battle.  Bummer the way the squad fizzled out to finish in front of the home crowd and drop in the rankings but hey! Im not gonna dwell on that one and I have a feeling this wont be the only time the Cards see the Cats this season (if the NCAA has its way)  and Ill take the Cards chances in a rematch!!

Photo: Jared and Katy Anderson

Louisville 3 vs WKU 0 

But the Cardinals were back in action on Monday night so Jared spent his birthday (Everybody say HAPPY BDAY JARED!) with the VolleyCards down at the KFC Yum! Center where we witnessed the squad sweep the visiting WKU Hilltoppers 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-20).

Louisville moves to 8-2 on the season with the win.

Photo: Jared Anderson

The Louisville offense hit at a .274 clip while holding WKU at a .080 rate. Cara Cresse lead all with 10 kills on 17 swings and also added 8 blocks. Payton Petersen and opposite hitter Kalyssa Blackshear each posted nine kills and combined for three blocks on the night. Outside hitter Chloe Chicoine hit .217 with 14 digs, eight kills and one block.



from gocards.com

Set 1
WKU 15, UofL 25
Schrand served an ace for the first point of the match before the Cards eventually got out to an 11-6 lead and forced the Hilltoppers to use their first timeout. A solo block and three kills from Cresse highlighted a run that put UofL ahead 18-12 and made WKU to burn its second timeout. Blackshear put Louisville at set point with a kill, and Hannah Sherman stuffed a solo block to clinch the set 25-15.

Set 2 
WKU 17, UofL 25
The Cards and the Hilltoppers kept the second set close through the first 15 points, with neither team taking a lead larger than two. A 3-0 scoring run gave UofL an 11-7 lead and saw WKU use its first timeout of the set. Louisville extended its lead to 18-13 before Western Kentucky climbed back within reach at 18-16. The Cards went on a 4-0 run to lead 22-16 and cause the Hilltoppers to burn their second timeout. Blackshear put UofL at set point once again with a kill and sealed the second set herself, 25-17.

Set 3
WKU 20, UofL 25
Louisville combined for three blocks and six kills to lead 15-9 and on a 4-0 run at the media timeout. The Cards pulled ahead 21-15 after kills from Petersen, Blackshear and Cresse and a second ace from Ava Utterback, forcing a Hilltopper timeout. Blackshear gave UofL set point once again with a kill and Schrand's second ace secured the match, 25-20.

UP NEXT

Louisville vs Boston College 

Friday 9/26 on ACCNX

7:00pm

Photo: Jared Anderson

As Always, 
Go Cards! 
~Daryl 

FH Earns Ranked Win -- SB Sweeps UK in Scrimmage -- VB Tonight -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Upset Saint Joseph's on Road

Courtesy of GoCards

Louisville field hockey continued their hot streak with a second straight ranked win. This time, the Cards went on the road to #15 Saint Joseph's and left with a 2-0 victory.

UofL got on the board early on, just six and a half minutes into the game. Taking advantage of a penalty corner, Annabel Sep found the back of the cage for her fourth goal on the year, tied for second best on the team.

Photo by Jared

The second goal came during the second quarter. In similar fashion, Louisville capitalized on a penalty corner with Tyler Everslage earning the honor of scoring the goal, her first of the year.

While the offense did its damage early on, the defense proved to be the true hero of the match. Saint Joseph's threw everything they had at Louisville with 18 shots and 13 corners. Emily Young put her pads to good use with seven saves and her second shutout this season.

Photo by Jared

Louisville improves to 5-3 this year. They open up conference play at Stanford on Friday before getting Sunday off.

Cards Sweep Cats in Fall Scrimmage

Courtesy of GoCards

Mother Nature could not halt Louisville softball from playing this weekend. The weather may have delayed the start time by nearly 90 minutes, but Louisville and Kentucky found a way to play a double header.

Little information was provided due to this being a fall scrimmage and Cardinal Couple not having anyone available to cover the event, but we do know the Cards won both games.

Courtesy of GoCards

Game One: Louisville 7, Kentucky 6 (9 innings)

The two foes needed a pair of extra innings to decide a winner. Kentucky plated two runs in the top of the ninth, but Louisville scored three to win in walk off fashion. They played international rules with a runner on second base in the extra innings.

Game Two: Louisville 3, Kentucky 2 (5 innings)

This game was equally as close as the first. The Cards scored a run in the fifth inning to take the lead before the game was called due to incoming inclement weather.

Let's hope this is a good sign come the spring season!

Volleyball Hosts Western Kentucky

Photo by Jared

Coming off a much-needed three-day break, Louisville volleyball has a rare Monday night match. The Cards host in-state foe Western Kentucky at 6:30pm at the KFC Yum! Center. It will be aired on ACCNX.

Louisville is coming off a five-set loss to top-10 Kentucky on Thursday, the Cards fifth match in nine days, four of those on the road and three against ranked opponents. Having Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off should help provide fresh legs.

Photo by Jared

Western Kentucky has kicked off the 2025 year hot with a 9-3 record. They swept then-ranked Dayton and also swept a receiving votes Indiana squad. Louisville is the highest ranked opponent the Hilltoppers will face in the regular season this year.

The Hilltoppers have posted a strong .300 attack percentage on the season while limiting opponents to just under .200. WKU has also blocked extremely well this season, which could put some pressure on the Cards' outside hitters. 

Photo by Jared

We do plan to have coverage for the match. There are still plenty of tickets available with many being less than $20, per Ticketmaster.

Happy Monday and Go Cards!

Jared

Field Hockey in battle of birds today -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 FH HEADED TO PHILLY TO PLAY ST. JOSEPH

Justine Sowry's squad has had an interesting season so far, and takes on another tough team today in the St. Joseph Hawks. The Cards are 4-3 and unranked and St,Joseph is 4-2  and went 20-4 last year. 

The Philly based school has had losses to Penn State and Maryland. Both those schools are in the NCAA Top 25 and the matches were road losses. This will be St. Joseph's second home game of the year and ESPN+ will have the coverage at noon...so yu'll have to shell out a little money if you aren't already paying for the service. 

Riley Guy, a freshman on the St. Joseph squad went to Assumption High school in Louisville. She was a part of two state championship teams and two runner-up team in her four years as a Rocket. Opponents fans have been known to yell "Whose that Guy on your team?" when St. Joe comes to visit, 

Her sister Parker plays for St. Louis. 

Hannah Prince is the Hawks head coach in her fourth season at the helm. If the name sounds familiar, Prince was an associate coach at Louisville in 2020 and 2021.

Hannah Prince

Have a great Sunday and...Go Cards!!

paulie

WSOC and FH Notch Key Wins -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Soccer Beats Clemson 1-0

Louisville women's soccer picked up their second straight 1-0 ACC victory last night, this time over the visiting Clemson Tigers. The loss was just Clemson's second of the season and their first in ACC play. The Tigers are now 3-2-5 (0-1-2) on the year. They opened their ACC slate with back-to-back 2-2 draws against #3 Stanford and Cal. Clemson has also drawn against #12 South Carolina and #15 Georgia. It may not seem like it based on their rankings, but this was a very big shutout win for the Cards. 

Even better than a shutout, Louisville held Clemson to zero shots on goal. Louisville's defense was relentless, albeit a little aggressive. The Cards finished with seven fouls compared to just three for the Tigers. Both teams totaled only five shots, but Louisville put three of theirs on target. It was an extremely defensive second half for Louisville, as they managed just one corner and one shot in the second. They did most of their attacking in the first half, including scoring their goal. 

That goal came in the 20th minute by Amelia Swinarski with assists from AG Gibson and Liza Suydam. Swinny continues her emergence as a key member of the Louisville offense and a player that is getting national recognition. Louisville's shift from the 4-5-1 formation most commonly used in recent years to a more balanced 4-3-3 continues to put more attacking players, like AG Gibson, in position to do something with those instincts. The Cards have missed out on scoring opportunities in the past and have lost games like this one due to giving up a single goal and being unable to respond. While the 1-0 victories aren't as thrilling as Louisville being on double-digit watch, they're still wins, and that's all that matters. 

The Cards move to 9-2 on the season and 2-1 in ACC play. Their lone losses came in ranked road matches. It's now very realistic to say that Louisville has a chance to finish the regular season undefeated at home. There are three matches left to play at Lynn Stadium, and one will be much more difficult than the others. The Cards take on Miami next Thursday, then Virginia on October 18th, and finish with SMU on October 30th. A draw still isn't a loss, so the Cards just need a point in each of those matches to accomplish the goal, but wins would be sweet. 

With their ninth win, Louisville guarantees that they will have their most wins since 2019, and they ensure a finish of at least .500. That said, finishing the season at .500 now would be an absolute disaster. Road matches against Notre Dame and Wake Forest will be very difficult, as will the home match against Virginia, but Louisville should consider themselves capable of competing in those games and should feel good about the other matches remaining (Miami, @ BC, @ NC State, SMU). The Cards are currently tied for 2nd in the ACC with ND and Wake all on 6 points, but that will likely shift around after Sunday. Louisville is on bye this weekend and they are among the only teams to have played three ACC matches so far. 

Louisville's next opponent is Miami. The Canes are 6-3-1 overall but 0-2 in ACC play. They opened their ACC season with a 3-1 loss at Wake and then a 1-0 loss at home to Duke. Those results aren't bad, but Miami's other loss came at Appalachian State and their draw was at home against Princeton. They could be frisky, but Louisville will be happy to have this game at home. That match will be Thursday at 7PM. 

Field Hockey Upsets Ohio State 3-2

Louisville field hockey bounced back from a tough weekend last time out by knocking off the 14th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes late Friday afternoon. The Cards win means that they finished their Big Ten season (haha) 3-2. The losses against Northwestern and Iowa stung, but the Cards can claim victories over three teams (MSU, IU, and OSU) in one of the top field hockey conferences in the country. If Louisville can also finish their conference season over .500, they'll be back in contention for a strong seed in the NCAA tournament. 

In this one, the two teams played a tough scoreless first quarter before exploding on offense in the second. Louisville scored goals just over a minute apart but Ohio State took one back right before the half to keep the Cards in touch. Louisville picked up their third goal halfway through the third quarter and found themselves on defense for the remainder of the match. The Buckeyes went empty net with four minutes remaining and found a goal 30 seconds later. They took another shot right after scoring, but Louisville's defense was able to control the ball for the remaining three-and-a-half minutes to secure the victory. 

Cardinal goals came from Rylie Wollerton (6), Gracie Potter (2), and Gigi Edwards (4). Wollerton's goal was assisted by Trijntje Herfkens and Edwards' came from Wollerton. It was an extremely hectic game for both defenses, with Louisville taking 17 shots (10 on target) and Ohio State taking 15 (8). Six of OSU's shots came in that fourth quarter. Both goalies were very active, and very efficient, as OSU finished with seven saves and Emily Young had six for the Cards. 

Despite 12 total penalty corners taken in the game (7-5 Cards), none of the five goals were directly counted as PC goals and only one of Louisville's really came as a result of the PC. Potter's goal came after she put a corner into play and she took a rebound shot after Annabel Sep had her attempt saved. 

Louisville hits the road today for a match against Saint Joseph's tomorrow afternoon. The Hawks are 4-2 on the season with their two losses coming on the road against #18 Penn State and #10 Maryland. The 15th-ranked squad from Philly has just one home match so far, a 3-0 win over St. Louis yesterday to open conference play. They've also got wins over #11 UConn, New Hampshire, and American, with UConn and American being neutral and New Hampshire being a true road match. 

The Cards will have their hands full with their penultimate non-conference opponent of the season. Louisville moves into conference play after tomorrow's match, but they'll also play Bellarmine on October 7th. Tomorrow's match is at noon and will be available on ESPN+. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We're planning a show this week, but it will be a two-man game, with both Jared and Daryl over near UofL's campus. Jared will be at L&N Stadium for a noon kickoff and Daryl will be headed to the Fairgrounds for early sets on the third day of Louder Than Life. Paulie and I will talk some big wins and one disappointing loss. You can check out the show after it posts around 1PM, and be sure to subscribe so that it comes to your feed automatically. 

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

Cats best VolleyCards in five sets -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CATS DOMINATE FINAL TWO SETS IN WIN OVER CARDS

From what went to a match that anyone could win after three sets to a UK blowout, the Cats defeat the Cards in five sets in the KFC Yum Center before about 11,000 fans. 

Louisville had a 2-1 set lead after three sets, winning a nail-biting 26-24 game...but UK came out hot in the fourth set and took the final two sets 25-12 and 15-7. The Cards blocking success seemingly caught a cab and left the premises in the final two sets...still winning the block totals 18-17 but only getting three in the final two sets. 

25-21, 21-25 , 26-24, 12-25 and 7-15 were the final set totals. 

UK had four players with double digit kills...Brook DeLeye with 24, Eva Hudson with 17, Brooke Bultema with 11 and Lizzie Carr with 10. The Cards had Payton Petersen with 14. 

The Cards looked tired at the end and they had good reason to be...having played their previous four matches in eight days against an 2024 NCAA opponent....all on the road.

A huge task, playing five matches in nine days ...four of them against NCAA Tournament teams from 2024, three of them top 20 teams this year and going five sets in two of the matches. The only thing missing were three French hens, two Turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree. 

Give UK credit, though...for solving the Cards blocking superiority and taking control of serve and volley. Hannah Sherman had 11 block for the match.

The Cards continue in-state contests when they welcome WKU for a visit on Monday. That day is National Ice Cream Cone Day... maybe the Cards will skip the soft serve and give WKU a rocky road.

Volleyball alums Elle Glock, Elena Scott, and Ceci Rush

Women's soccer is back home again tonight when they welcome Clemson to Dr Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium at 7:00pm. The Kickin's Cards put their 8-2 record on the line. We hope to see Case and Jared out there for some of this one.

Field hockey is also back home, looking to avenge their two losses last week... a heartbreaker to #1 Northwestern in overtime and a butt whooping from Iowa. The Cards and #14 Ohio State are set to begin at 4:00pm. Due to the early start time on a weekday, we will not have in-person coverage for this game.

photos by Jared

paulie

RIVALRY DAY -- CARDS vs kitties Preview -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Good morning readers, 

Daryl here for a quick check in in-between the festivals in town to preview the other big event going on in town tonight.  Volleyball between UofL / UK downtown will draw a great crowd as well!  

Its RIVALRY day in the Bluegrass

The Cards (7-1) and the Cats (5-2) will face off at the KFC Yum Center tonight. First serve is scheduled for 6pm and you can catch this one on ESPNU. 

Photo : Jared Anderson

 Louisville has won the last 4 matchups with the last one being a 3-1 win for UofL in Lexington. Of the leaders in that match, only Cara Cresse returns and she had 9 blocks for the Cards. Cresse was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Week after leading the Cardinals to the championship of the Bluejay Invitational last week.  

Photo : Jared Anderson

UK is returning 3 leaders from last years’ battle… Brooklyn Deleye (17 kills), Molly Tuozzo (17 digs) and Jordyn Dailey (2 blocks).  DeLeye leads the attack for UK and is 3rd in the SEC and 9th in the country in kills per set (4.88). Senior Eva Hudson gives the Cats another offensive weapon, averaging 3.67 kills per set.

The Cats have lost to #1 Nebraska and #7 Pittsburgh, but have beaten (at the time) #5 Penn State and #10 SMU.

I will be doing my best to catch these 'sets' in between 'sets' at the festival too.   Should be a great night!!   

As Always, 

Go Cards!
~Daryl 

Field Hockey Cards prepare for ACC slate -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 At 3-3 on the season, LOUISVILLE Field Hockey faces challenges. 

The Louisville Field Hockey squad has two more non-conference game before the start ACC play. A look at the conference standings shows us that none of the nine ACC schools that play field hockey have played a conference game yet...the Cards are one of three squads at .500 overall at 3-3 (along with Stanford and Boston College). No ACC teams are below .500 right now and three are still undefeated. North Carolina (6-0), Syracuse (6-0) and Virginia (4-0) sit atop the conference 

Preseason ACC predictions from the coaches have the Cards picked to finish eighth  .

Left to play on the non-conference slate are Ohio St. at Trager and St. Joseph..up in Indy. The Buckeyes are 3-3 like the Cards with losses to Harvard and two ACC schools in Virginia and Syracuse..

For the Cards, leading scorer is Rylie Wollerton with five goals. She's a senior forward out of Gibsonia, PA. Gibsonia is a suburb of Pittsburgh. She also led the Cards last season with seven goals and two assists. 

She was a prolific scorer in high chool with 139 goals, and the team calls her Ry. She's a Steelers fan and has been named to the ACC All-Academic team each year she has been at Louisville. 

She's one of the keys if Louisville is going to turn it around this year after a dismal 6-11 season in 2024. The Cards went 0-8 in the ACC last year, so they have their work cut out for them to establish a .500 season in conference, overall and even in making the NCAA Tournament. 

The squad has just three area players on it. Megan Mauzy. (Christian Academy) Tatum Bohnert (Sacred Heart) and Tyler everslage (Assumption). They also have three from The Netherlands. 

We wish Field Hockey the best of luck ging on in the season and we'll have all the results and news here for ypou to follow. 

paulie

Weekend Photo Galleries -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Weekend Photo Galleries

This past weekend saw some highs and lows for various UofL women's teams. Volleyball a4had the most successful weekend, going 3-0 on the road including earning wins over Rice, Northern Iowa, and ranked Creighton. Field hockey was suffered a heartbreaking overtime loss to #1 Northwestern and followed it by getting blown out by ranked Iowa. Women's soccer needed late-game heroics to secure a 1-0 win over Virginia Tech. Going back to Thursday for an 'extended weekend', the Cards fell on the road to a top-10 Florida State squad.

I was present for the field hockey loss on Friday and much of the women's soccer win on Sunday. While I wanted to swing by field hockey Sunday afternoon, the excessive humidity and then-5-0 deficit deterred me from swinging by.

Field Hockey

Women's Soccer

We will see some women's games later this week with volleyball hosting Kentucky and women's soccer hosting Clemson so I plan to be out at both of those to get some pictures.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared