From the mailbag

You have 3 days to get your entry in for $10 of Panera gift cards. We'll do the drawing Sunday night and announce the winner for the week in
Monday's column. Just drop us an e-mail at:

cardinalcouple@insightbb.com

and let us know what you like about Panera. We'll have weekly winners up to the Labor Day Weekend, so get your entry in today...and thanks to those of you who have sent us some great reasons so far.

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

Time to review the inbox this Friday. We always welcome your comments and suggestions at CARDINAL COUPLE and try to respond to each one with a return e-mail. (Even the UK ones.)
You can also reach us at psykesads@aol.com


DONNIE writes:

I really enjoy the articles about UofL women's sports and want to know if you'll be doing anything about men's sports at UofL down the road?

CARDINAL COUPLE:

Thanks for writing Donnie! There are a ton of good sites out there that cover the guys at UofL. We are primarily focused on the women's sports at UofL and don't plan on expanding on that...though. If you check the sites that we recommend on this blog, you'll find some great reading. CARDINAL DOMINANCE and UofL CARD GAME are two of them that we contribute articles to...and all the ones listed are worth your time to check out.

AUDREY writes:

Where do you think the UofL women's basketball team will finish in the BIG EAST this year?
Also, will Shoni Schimmel start for UofL?

CARDINAL COUPLE:

Preseason predicitions on Jeff Walz's team can be tricky, since there are so many new players, but we'll take a stab at it. Obviously UCONN is still loaded for bear and deserves a preseason top ranking. GEORGETOWN comes back with a lot of starters and NORTE DAME still has Skylar Diggins...plus some other returning starters. RUTGERS has recruited well and any C.Vivian Stringer team has to be respected. This would be my top four in the BIG EAST preseason rankings. I do think LOUISVILLE has a great chance to finish within the next four teams, though. Monique Reid is a proven scorer...and other returning starters are Becky Burke, Keisha Hines, Asia Taylor and Shelby Harper. Dez Byrd, a former starter is back and Tia Gibbs, from Vanderbilt, is very talented. The freshman class will compete for all the starting jobs and the depth and talent of this team should have the Cards in contention for at least 5th in the BIG EAST...if not better. You, the fans, are really going to be surprised how good these freshmen are and Tia Gibbs also.

As far as Shoni Schimmel starting...let's see what she brings to the court. I'll trust in Jeff Walz's judgement here...

ONE CRAZY CARD writes:

Who do you think will be the freshman that will produce the most for the basketball team this year?

CARDINAL COUPLE:

Boy. that is the $100,000 question! All six incoming freshmen are talented and will see significant court time, in my opinion. If Schimmel is all that is hyped and promised, she could easily be that second scorer that the Cards will need this year. I like Charmaine Tay's guard abilities and think she could be part of the rotation at guard. Antonita Slaughter has a great all over the court presence and will fit in well with Walz's fondness for the transition game and creating off the defense. Both Sherrone Vails and Shawnta Dyer will add depth and skill to the Cards front line. The surprise factor could be Polly Harrington. She's a rebounding machine and has great quickness and defense.

OK, this didn't probably help you any, CRAZY...but if I had to pick one of these talented freshmen as the biggest potential contributor...I'm going to go with Schimmel. I reserve the right to change my mind, though...and feel that all the freshmen will be a valuable resource this upcoming season.

BURTON ERNIE writes:

What is CARDINAL COUPLE'S favorite women's sport at UofL?

CARDINAL COUPLE:

We really like all the women's sports at UofL. Sonja was a field hockey player and she leans a little more toward that and hoops. Paul absolutely fell in love with the softball team this spring and is a big hoops fan also. We also like lacrosse, volleyball, soccer, rowing, golf, track, tennis...well, you get the picture.

We'd like to know how you feel about this. What is your favorite women's sport at UofL? Feel free to leave your answer in the comments column or send us an e-mail.