According to a report from the Lindsey Wilson Athletic Department, former University of Louisville freshman forward Ashley Rainey has transferred to the school and will participate in women's basketball there during the 2011-11 season.
Rainey started in sixteen games for the Cardinals during the 2010 season but left campus over the Thanksgiving break and did not return. Rainey's sister and father played basketball for Lindsey Wilson. The school is a member of the NAIA...so Rainey would be elgible to play without having to sit out a transfer year.
Rainey came to Louisville from Warren East high school and was a Ky. Girls High School All State first team selection her senior year. Front line injuries for the Cardinals early last year pressed Rainey into immediate playing time and she responded well for the Cardinals at times but had a tendancy to foul out or get into quick foul trouble in games.
Rainey was also involved in an off-campus incident before Thanksgiving where she and a couple of other Lady Cardinals broke curfew and disobeyed a coach's order by going skating and then created a cover up story concerning the curfew violation.
Rainey did not return to the Cards after the Thanksgiving break and a statement was released that Rainey was undergoing some personal and family issues at home. Reports of a car accident near Bowling Green involving Rainey also surfaced but no official statement was releaseed concerning this.
Her rebounding and scoring skills were useful to a thin Lady Cards front line last year. The Cards should fare a little better in that area next year with Asia Taylor, Keisha Hines, Laura Terry, Polly Harrington, Shawnta Dyer, Sherrone Vails and Antonitia Slaughter available to compete for power forward and center spots.
**********************************************************************
Rainey's departure frees up a scholarship for the Lady Cards who have their eye on Portland, OR point guard Shoni Schimmel. Returning Cardinals on scholarship are:
Dez Byrd
Tia Gibbs
Becky Burke
Nikki Burton
Rachel Story
LaToya Johnson
Keisha Hines
Asia Taylor
Laura Terry
Monique Reid
A player from 2010...Shelby Harper, a walk on who played point guard last year is currently not on scholarship.
Louisville currently has five incoming freshmen that are also on scholarship. Teams are allowed 15 scholarship players...so the Cards do have room and a scholarship available for Schimmel when she decides.
Written by Paul
5/17/10
Am I missing something? You list 10 returning scholarship players plus you say there are 5 incoming scholarship freshmen. That's already the maximum of 15 without adding anyone else like Shoni. Is there a typo somewhere?
ReplyDeleteThe possibility of a redshirt (medical) or player on academic scholarship is being considered at this time....according to my source down at UofL. Nice eye, though!
ReplyDeleteWhy is Asia Taylor not on scholarship?
ReplyDeleteOops...not Taylor, Gwen Rucker.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteRucker will be playing volleyball this upcoming season for Louisville and her scholarship will be thru that sport. That was originally the plan last season but she was needed for the wide net and the small one both.
ReplyDeleteSo, Rucker will not play basketball at all this year?
ReplyDeleteRucker will be a key component for Leonard Yelin's volleyball squad this year. She'll start and is a valuable front line player. I don't expect she'll play basketball but you never really know.
ReplyDeleteLast year she didn't really practice with Walz's squad very much she was working mostly on volleyball. She was All-State in high school playing volleyball.
I guess we'll find out when practice starts.
Rainey will be missed. But you have to listen to the coaches. It appears she had issues with that.
ReplyDelete