Saturday Cardinal Couple -- Win, lose and draw

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball sweeps Syracuse

-Soccer ties Virginia Tech

-Field Hockey falls to Virginia


Louisville Volleyball travelled to State College, PA and knocked off future (and former) conference foe Syracuse last night in a 3-0 sweep. The Cards put-pointed the Orange 25-20, 25-19 and 25-17...getting 11 kills each from senior Emily
Juhl and freshman Maya McClendon.

Head volleyball coach Anne Kordes was pleased:

"It was a great match. Syracuse is a big team and a future ACC opponent so it made for a great opener. WE jumped out to a good lead and then dug ourselves in a hole and dug ourselves out of that same hole and that is what made it gratifying. I saw some excellent things from the newcomers and good leadership from our seniors."

The Cards also got stellar play from Brooke Mattingly and Randi Ewing in the season opener. Defensive specialist Haley Pouliezos had ten digs for UofL...who takes on #2 Penn State tonight.

Our columnist Jeff McAdams was at the match and hopefully we'll get some comments later today from him on the action.

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Karen Ferguson-Dayes took the Kickin' Cards to North Carolina for the Wake Forest Invitational and Louisville battled to a 1-1 overtime tie with future ACC opponent Virginia Tech.

Dayes speaks about the outcome:

"I thought we played very well against an excellent team tonight. I am very pleased with the adjustments we made from last weekend to this weekend. WE were a much better soccer team tonight and we will use this to build on."

Louisville got their lone goal in the first half when Casey Whitfield collected a Christine Exeter pass and drove it into the net with 32 minutes left in the first half.

Freshman goalie Paige Brown had three saves for the Cards...who play Wake Forest today at 2 p.m.

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Field Hockey is in Charlottesville, VA for the first of two road games this weekend. They fell to a talented Virgina squad 3-2 after battling the Cavs to a 1-1 halftime time. Justine Sowry was satisfied with the result:

"Overall, despite not getting the outcome we wanted, we are satisfied with progress. WE must now come back on Sunday (against Richmond) and build on what we started."

Alyssa Voelmle got the Cards on the board in the first half on an unassisted score. Freshman Gianna Perrone added a score in the second half for UofL.

Virginia outshot the Cards 16-9 in the contest. Louisville faces Richmond Sunday at 1 p.m.

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BE sure to catch our weekly radio show CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR today at 11 a.m. on Crescent Hill Radio. We have a great 12 minute interview with Jeff Walz. Arthur Albiero discusses Portugal and swimming and Bud Goode and Don Paulie stop by the studio. It's a pre-recorded edition...so we won't talk about the results of last night's action...but we have a quiz for you on the show.

Send sympathy flowers to Jenny...she didn't fare too well on our quiz about "hard working" Cardinal women's athletes.

http://www.crescenthillradio.com




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Friday Cardinal Couple -- Better late than never

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Starr Breedlove headed to campus


We broke the news Thursday evening and we're sticking by our informed source on the matter...Starr Breedlove, one of the 2013 recruits for the women's basketball team, will arrive on campus in the next couple of days and enroll for fall classes.

I know, the town has gone crazy about Louisville Football's opener against Ohio U. Sunday and, no...she isn't going to spell Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback.

What she will do is give the Cards depth at the point guard
position and provide Jeff Walz with 14 players for the limited player workouts he can do that began yesterday.

Lest we forget what the Teaneck, NJ resident is bringing to the 'Ville...here a scout on her from a recruiting source:

Everything that's been there in the past was on display. The speed, quickness and attack kept the Gauchos up tempo game going and she seemed more willing to sacrifice her own scoring to distribute the ball. The pull up was dependable on her penetration but she did struggle finishing in among the bigs on defensive rotations.

Breedlove is a lightning quick point-guard that committed to Louisville last year and has been involved in personal workouts in New Jersey ever since. We don't have all the details on the delayed arrival...let's just say that course crediting and clearance can take as long sometimes as trying to head southbound on I-65 during rush hour with two lanes blocked because of an accident.

Breedlove is no accident. She'll fit in well with the attacking, ball-hawking guards on the Cardinal roster. She can score, too...something that Coach Walz likes to see. As he once eloquently said:

"I can find shooters everywhere. I want scorers."

No, she isn't the 6'5" domineering post-player that some readers and commenters insistently think the program needs. Here's a news flash for all of you. The Lady Cards got to the final game of the NCAA Women's Tournament with team play and a hobbled Sherrone Vails...our current 6'5" roster dweller that will most likely redshirt this year because of her knee.

Shoni Schimmel is back. So are Bria, Sara, Jude and Nita.

Last I checked, none of them were 6'5" and the Cards did pretty well with them and the other returning players from the run...Cortnee and Megan. I checked. Neither of them are 6'5" either.

So, spare me the rhetoric that the Cards must have a towering post to achieve success. Seems to me I remember that Asia and Shawnta were pretty fair rebounders when they were previously active. They're healthy and back again. I doubt they've forgotten how to go to the boards. I'm fairly sure they aren't 6'5" either.

They may not need to much. If the three-point splendor that graced the Cards offense during the tournament run (yes...all the principals are back) comes back with a year's experience and Tia Gibbs re-discoverers her long-range bombing skills...the paint players may spend a lot of time jostling for position to watch threes trickle through the net.

The brilliance of a Jeff Walz attack is in the simple fact that if the players buy in, listen to the coaches and run the sets...it works. Don't doubt the mad scientist or his partners in plotting. They've got a plan. Or two. Or nine.

We wish Louisville Football well this weekend and all season long. As they roll up the wins...it serves as a reminder that...

Women's basketball season is getting closer. Whether they're 6'5" or not.

(We have a great 12 minute interview with Coach Walz that will be on our Saturday radio show. I spent another five minutes chatting with Coach that isn't on there. Turns out he had a pretty lively teenage enterprise cutting lawns. Sometimes he misses it. I gallently offered him the opportunity to take my Toro self-propelled around our yard if the angst got too strong. I'm still waiting for him to accept. I'd even throw in a Powerade or beer after he finishes...)

That's just the kind of guy I am. The offer is even extended to Starr Breedlove. Or anyone under 6'5".

-Paulie

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Thursday Cardinal Couple

THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDINAL COUPLE UPDATE:

Word gets to us from an informed source close to the UofL WBB program that Starr Breedlove could be on the UofL campus by Saturday. Her academic pursuits went well this summer and she is purportedly VERY excited about joining her 2013-14 Cardinal teammates and enrolling in 1st semester classes.


( JEFF MCADAMS brings us the Thursday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE...providing a look at UofL women's sports that recently happened and that are on tap. We pre-recorded the CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR last night and...as Jeff points out...it was our version of "WHO'S ON FIRST" even though there isn't any softball going on right now. The finished product should be a joy to listen to Saturday at 11 a.m. on CRESCENT HILL RADIO.  -Paulie)

Last night, Paulie, Jenny and I pre-recorded the Cardinal Couple Radio show for this weekend due to scheduling conflicts.  Be sure to listen in Saturday at 11am so you can laugh at us...ok, mostly me...trying to keep track of what events will have happened by the time the show airs and which ones will still be in the future.  Hilarity ensues!

The Week That Was in UofL Women's Athletics

Women's Soccer

Women's Soccer split their season opening weekend.  With a 2-0 victory over Butler Friday, and a 5-4 overtime loss to Illinois Sunday afternoon.  Illinois is a good team, ranked...depending upon which poll you look at...and when...somewhere from 17th to 25th to "also getting votes".

Field Hockey

The Louisville Field Hockey team played a preseason scrimmage Saturday afternoon in Bloomington taking on our northern neighbors in Indiana... IU.

The teams played two 25 minutes sessions, a 20 minute session, and 10 minute overtime session, then the teams did two shootouts, with the first being a best of five and the other being a "sudden victory".  Even if the scrimmage were to reflect the actual playing time of a game, scoring would only be marginally related to expected results during regular season games due to the teams substituting more players in and out during scrimmages to get a chance to see different players in action against an outside opponent.  That having been said, the stated result of the scrimmage was a 4-4 tie.  UofL took the regular play periods with a 4-3 victory.  The 10 minute overtime session saw an IU goal to tie the overall score at 4-4.  UofL took the best of five shootout on a 3-2 margin, while IU claimed the "sudden victory" shootout on their first shot, preserving a notional tie.

Volleyball

The Volleyball squad also played a scrimmage game, in this case a mostly intra-squad scrimmage.  Anne Kordes' team "won" over Alex Wilharm's team two sets to one.  Again, scoring for an event of this nature is a bit nebulous as players switched back and forth between the two teams several times during the event.  And with Alex and another (male) practice player playing on Alex's team, the idea of scoring just doesn't mean a great deal for this event.  This was a good opportunity for a crowd of several hundred UofL Volleyball fans to see the 2013 squad, and learn the names and faces of some of the new players.  More importantly, it gave the team a chance to play in front of a crowd in a more realistic atmosphere for playing matches.

The evening also doubled as an opportunity to honor a number of UofL Volleyball Alumnae that were in attendance.

The Week that Will Be

Soccer

This weekend sees Karen Ferguson-Dayes' team playing in Winston-Salem, NC against a couple of future conference mates in the ACC in the Wake Forest
Invitational hosted by, shockingly enough, Wake Forest.  This event will see the UofL squad playing a late afternoon/early evening Friday game against future ACC conference foe Virginia Tech.  First kick is at 4pm.  We'll also get to size up another future ACC conference opponent by playing against host Wake Forest in a Sunday game at 2pm.

Field Hockey

Field Hockey, coached by Justine Sowry, gets their regular season under way with a Friday evening game at future ACC conference foe Virginia starting at 6pm.  They follow that up with a noon start on Sunday down the road taking on the Richmond Spiders.

Volleyball

The Volleyball team will also be getting their regular season under way this weekend, and starting off with some of the most challenging opponents of their season at the Penn State Invitational in State College Pennsylvania.  First serve happens Friday at 4pm against past and future, but not current, conference foe Syracuse.  Syracuse is coached by former Louisville Head Coach Leonid Yelin.  UofL Volleyball fans may also remember one of the Assistant Coaches, Lana (Svetlana) Dukule, from her playing days here with the Cardinals.

Saturday evening, with a 7:30pm first serve, sees the Cardinals take on the #2 team in the country in Penn State.  The story of the night will be the matchup between Penn State senior Deja McClendon and her little sister, Louisville freshman Maya McClendon.  Those looking for some sister-on-sister spikes (or blocks) may end up disappointed, however.  Both Maya and Deja are primarily left-side hitters, so they'll probably spend most of the match on opposite ends of the net.

Cross Country

Cross Country is also a fall sport and gets underway Saturday with the Mid-America Opener in Evansville, IN.  The event starts at noon.

Two quick conference notes

While most sports at UofL will be playing in The American (AAC) conference this year, a few, including Field Hockey, will still be participating in The Big East.

Volleyball will be playing in The AAC, but there will be no conference tournament for Volleyball.  The regular season champion will get the NCAA tournament automatic qualifying bid.

One More Thing

We hear there's a football game on Sunday, too.  If you have time between all of these events, you might want to check in on that as well.

-Jeff McAdams

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Basketball schedule (or lack thereof) and more recruiting

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

(Staff Columnist Jenny O'Bryan discusses schedules for WBB today and rules from the NCAA.)

In the recent weeks many teams have started to release their schedules for the upcoming basketball season.  The slow release usually starts with the out of conference (OOC) slate followed by conferences releasing their schedules. 

To date Louisville Women’s Basketball has not released an OOC slate nor has The American released their conference schedules.  The men’s schedule has been released and message board fodder suggests the women’s schedule will be released very, very soon. 

In the meantime I have been able to glean a few games on the schedule by perusing others’ releases.    The women will open at YUM Center in the preseason NIT.   The first game against Loyola University Chicago will be 11/8 with a guarantee of at least two more matches.   The Cardinals will travel to Bowling Green/WKU to face former assistant Michelle Clark-Heard’s crew on Thanksgiving Eve, 11/27.    December 1 the Cards are back on the road to UK for the annual Battle of the Bluegrass. 

Additionally, ESPN has announced their women’s basketball coverage and
Louisville makes it on the big screen twice, both times against Connecticut.  February 9 the Cards travel to Connecticut and March 3 the Huskies make the trek to The YUM Center. 

For the full slate of ESPN coverage of women’s basketball:

 

2014 ESPN2 Big Monday presented by Bud Light Women’s Basketball Schedule

Jan 13, 7 p.m. Connecticut at Baylor

Jan 20, 7 p.m. Notre Dame at Tennessee

Jan 27, 7 p.m. Notre Dame at Maryland

Jan 27, 9 p.m. USC at Stanford

Feb _3, 7 p.m. Baylor at Oklahoma

Feb 10, 7 p.m. North Carolina at Duke

Feb 10, 9 p.m. Vanderbilt at Tennessee

Feb 17, 7 p.m. Maryland at Duke

Feb 24, 7 p.m. Penn State at Nebraska

Mar _3, 7 p.m. Connecticut at Louisville

2014 ESPN Sunday Women’s Basketball Schedule

Feb _2, 2 p.m. Notre Dame at Duke

Feb _9, 1 p.m. Louisville at Connecticut

Feb 16, 1 p.m. Kentucky at Tennessee

Feb 23, 1 p.m. Duke at Notre Dame

Mar _2, 1 p.m. Duke at North Carolina

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As I have been known to do, I wanted to touch base on recruiting.  If you listen to us on The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour, we are constantly bemoaning the myriad of rules the NCAA has.

It appears there are some changes in the rules as it pertains to recruiting.  One of the biggest changes I am hearing about is the important date of September 1.  Historically, this date pertains to seniors; when coaches can call, text and email seniors on an unlimited basis.   However, new recruiting rules have backed this timeline up a full year!  As of September 1 coaches can now have this unlimited access to juniors in high school, specifically this year, the class of 2015. 

This presents an interesting balancing act on the coaches part, I presume.   The class of 2014 is at a pivotal point in their recruitment.  If kids are still uncommitted, and we know Louisville is after a lot of kids in this class, they will be making their official visits, home visits will be made, culminating in many signing in the early signing period in November.    All the while, coaches will start courting the class of 2015. 

There are two other rule changes that I am aware of:

1) In-home visits can be made to recruits in the class of 2015 during the month of September.  This previously happened with recruits in their senior year.   (We are aware of a minimum of two home visits that are scheduled for juniors, Asia Durr (9/25) and Napheesa Collier (9/27).  Other big names in this class that are likely to be visited (but that I have not found information about) are Te’a Cooper, De’Janae Boykin and Katie Lou Samualson.  All are in the top 25 of their class and have Louisville associated with their name).

2) Official visits.  We have covered that a lot here at Cardinal Couple.  Anofficial visit historically happens in the fall of one’s senior year.  It is paid for by the university the recruit is visiting and the recruit gets a maximum of 5 official visits.   The change in this arena will allow official visits to begin in the spring of one’s junior year, after the National Championship game.  The limit remains 5, but kids can start making them in April.  (For comparison sake, the current rising senior class of 2014 is just not setting and taking their official visits). 

How all these rule changes will impact recruiting depends on who you talk to.  As a fan of the game with no previous experience personally, the biggest drawback I see is the potential for earlier commitments from kids.  I personally find this problematic.  

As we all know Louisville was on the unfortunate side of losing two elite recruits in the class of 2013 who verbally committed to the program at the end of their sophomore year in high school.  As any parent of a teenager will tell you, wait a minute, and you will get a different answer from a teen.  Deciding one’s future, by way of choosing a college that is responsible for their education and basketball career, at such an early age I believe is most often times a mistake. 

My concern with these new rules is that it will lead to, if not encourage, earlier commitments.  If that in fact happens, by nature of the population one is dealing with, it will also likely increase decommitments.   Decommitments hurt the university most, I believe.  If one believes they have a recruit, they will quit recruiting said position.   A change of heart by the recruit leaves the university vulnerable to not being able to fill their needs with a high quality recruit, having lost out on prospects while they assumed their position was filled.   I understand a recruit having a change of heart.  What one may think they want as a sophomore in high school can absolutely change by one’s senior year, if for no other reason than maturation.  Not to mention any number of other things that could lead one to change their mind.   It’s too risky for all involved.   I don’t like it.  I would much rather my teenager make a decision as late as possible to weigh all options fully and understand the full impact of said decision. 

I have also read several opinions that these rule changes will change the
very nature and meaning of the current
summer circuit of basketball played by athletes and likely remove AAU coaches from the middleman role they currently hold between coaches and athletes. (Under current rules if a coach was interested in a young prospect that they could not yet contact, the AAU coach would be contacted and word would be gotten to the athlete that a school is interested.)  Again, whether these changes are good or bad, likely depends on who you ask. 

As we look forward to this fall and recruiting info on the class of 2014 and anticipate news from recruits on U of L’s radar, the class of 2014 is far from in the books. 
 

Meanwhile, a plethora of names are dropping in the class of 2015 as their recruiting accelerates in to full throttle.    It looks like a fun fall for recruiting junkies like me!

-Jenny

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TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE -Louisville releases 2013-14 women's basketball roster -Charlyn Corral named AAC women's soccer Player of the Week The official 2013-14 UofL Women's Basketball roster is now out and, on first glance...one notices that there are 13 players listed. This is down from the 16 that we've discussed most of the summer...but still looks quite impressive and still deep at guards, wings and post players. What happened to the other three? As we covered here at CARDINAL COUPLE a few days ago, DAVIONNA HOLMES had decided to transfer to Missouri to play basketball.  We learned Monday that JANELLE CANNON has also left campus and her next move or campus hasn't been revealed yet. From what we hear, STARR BREEDLOVE is finishing up some summer classes at a junior college and won't arrive at Louisville until later in the year. The Cards will miss Sherrone Vails in the middle (injury) but with a healthy Dyer and Taylor...plus Hammond, Walton, and Henderson available for paint duty...don't cry too long for Louisville. The Cards that are listed give Louisville one of the strongest rosters that this fan has seen in the history of the women's basketball program. Strong words? Maybe...but four out of five starters back and able to play, three former starters back and healthy from previous years,  three valuable contributors off the bench from last year's National Runner-up squad and two promising newcomers make Louisville look like a juggernaut in their only year in the American. Of course, UConn is still there. Sometimes, in regards to Cannon and Holmes...it just doesn't work out. Cannon has bounced around to three different Div. I programs now and we hope she finds her home somewhere. Holmes has landed closer to home...and sometimes that works best for a player. Fear not, fans. Still plenty of players to cheer for! The roster is listed below.	Last Name		Height			eligibility
00	hammond sara	Sara Hammond	74	6-2	F	5	JR	Mt. Vernon, Ky. (Rockcastle County HS)
2	niamke monny	Monny Niamke	65	5-5	G	4	RS SO	Rouen, France (Lindsey Wilson)
3	vails sheronne	Sheronne Vails	76	6-4	C	7	SR	Odenton, Md. (Arundel HS)
4	slaughter antonita	Antonita Slaughter	73	6-1	G	7	SR	Louisville, Ky. (Louisville Christian Academy)
12	dyer shawnta'	Shawnta' Dyer	73	6-1	F	6	RS JR	Marion, Ohio (Marion Harding HS)
13	walton cortnee	Cortnee Walton	75	6-3	F	3	SO	Surprise, Ariz. (St. Mary's HS)
15	deines megan	Megan Deines	73	6-1	G	3	SO	Springfield, Mo. (Glendale HS)
21	smith bria	Bria Smith	70	5-10	G	5	JR	Massapequa, N.Y. (Christ the King HS)
22	schimmel jude	Jude Schimmel	66	5-6	G	5	JR	Mission, Ore. (Franklin HS)
23	schimmel shoni	Shoni Schimmel	69	5-9	G	7	SR	Mission, Ore. (Franklin HS)
25	gibbs tia	Tia Gibbs	69	5-9	G	8	RS SR	Louisville, Ky. (Vanderbilt Univ.)
31	taylor asia	Asia Taylor	73	6-1	F	8	RS SR	Columbus, Ohio (Whetstone HS)
32	henderson emmonnie	Emmonnie Henderson	73	6-1	F	1	FR	Edwardsville, Ill. (Edwardsville HS)

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DESPITE the loss to Illinois Sunday, the UofL women's soccer team did get good news on Monday about "Char'

(thanks to Kim Pemberton for the release below)


University of Louisville senior midfielder Charlyn Corral has been named the
American Athletic Conference’s Offensive Player of the Week.  Corral opened the
2013 season scoring three goals and dishing out one assist.

Against Butler, Corral took a corner kick in the first minute of the second
period and bent it inside the box to teammate Christine Exeter, who headed the
ball into the middle of the net for a 1-0 lead.   In the 84th minute, Hannah
Konermann crossed the ball to a streaking Corral for a security goal as the
Cardinals handed Butler 2-0 shutout.

Against No. 17/25 Illinois, Corral gathered a deflection from a Kari Weinland
shot and sent it back at the keeper who deflected the ball back to Corral, who
then buried it into the back of the net, giving Louisville a 2-1 lead in the
25th minute.  Corral then scored on a penalty kick in the 51st minute for a 3-2
Cardinal lead before Louisville fell 5-4 in overtime to the Illini.

Corral finished the week with seven shots on goal for a 53.8 shot on goal
percentage.

-Paulie

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BREAKING NEWS UPDATE:
Janelle Cannon, JUCO standout, has left the basketball program.  Swish Appeal broke the story here:  

No Cannon's roar

We will have more information as soon as it is available.  The departure has been confirmed by several sources close to the WBB program. .


Update: WE do have Jeff Walz's comments on Cannon recorded and they will be a part of our Saturday CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR broadcast.

Show begins at 11 a.m. Saturday morning at:

http://www.crescenthillradio.com

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Monday Cardinal Couple - Women's Soccer falls to Illinois

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-CARDS FALL IN OVERTIME TO ILLINI
    
     -Paulie's report
     -Jeff McAdams report


-JEFF'S VOLLEYBALL COLUMN


Despite a late goal that tied the contest with 91 seconds remaining, Louisville falls to Illinois 5-4 in overtime at Cardinal Park Sunday afternoon.

Coach Dayes on the loss:

"Anytime you give up five goals it's a difficult day for sure," said head coach Karen Ferguson-Dayes. "I thought we did well to get ourselves in a leading position but didn't do very well to hang on to the lead with some careless mistakes that allowed them to score some very good goals. No disrespect to Illinois, I thought finished some great shots, I just think we could have been a step earlier or we could have slid. Just some extra effort would have really been the difference today. It's kind of a difficult game to swallow because I thought it was a game we could have gotten and we let it slip away. Now we have got to refocus and go on the road against two very good ACC teams next weekend."


Louisville trailed 1-0 before Erin Yenney set up Casey Whitfield to tie the game 14 minutes into the contest. The Cards got another score when Charlyn Corral rebounded a missed Kari Weinland shot and found net 11 minutes later. That 2-1 Louisville lead carried the Cards into halftime.

It took Illinois only four minutes to tie it in the second half. The Cards responded less than a minute later...Corral picking up her second score of the game on a penalty kick.

Illinois battled back. Goals by the Illini four minutes later and then at the 60 minute mark gave them a 4-3 lead which lead until Rachel Melhado bombed a 30 yarder that bounced off the top crossbar and landed in front of Christine Exeter...who guided it in to tie it.

Corral narrowly missed the potential game winner a minute into overtime with a shot that just barely went wide. Two minutes later, Megan Johnston got loose on a breakaway and scored the game ender past Louisville freshman goalie Paige Brown.

The Cards outshot Illinois (1-1) 18-17 in the contest and Brown had four saves. Illini goalie Claire Wheatley had seven for the visitors.

Louisville returns to action Friday when they face Virginia Tech in the Wake Forest Invitational.

-Paulie

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JEFF MCADAMS files this report on the contest also and has his observations below from Saturday's Volleyball Red/Black match:

-Soccer In Action
 

The Women's Soccer team took on a good Illinois team yesterday afternoon on a sunny and warm day at Cardinal Park. There were several swings in momentum as Illinois mostly controlled the first 14 minutes or so, culminating in their first score in the 13th minute. After that, UofL played good possession ball for the rest of the first half. Gathering goals with the 15th (Casey Whitfield) and 26th (Charlyn Corral) minutes, the Cardinals went into the locker room with a 2-1 lead. A look at the other stats showed a very tight game at halftime, with Louisville maintaining a slim lead on shots taken at 9-8, Illinois with a slim lead on corners at 2-1, and both goalkeepers having made 4 stops.

The momentum swung back Illinois' way in the second half, and it seemed that Louisville was having a difficult time getting the ball out of threatening territory and and back downfield. When the soccer ball spends that much time in, or just outside of your box, the opposing team is eventually going to start getting some shots in. Illinois chalked one up in the 51st minute, though Charlyn Corral was able to capitalize on a penalty kick from hand call in Illinois' box to get the Cards back on top at 3-2. The momentum really stayed with Illinois, though, and they continued to press the ball down into territory threatening scores on the Cards and capitalized on that with scores in the 56th and 61st minutes to take their first lead.

With only a minute and a half left to play, Christine Exeter was able to gather a rebound off the bar and find the back of a net to tie it up for the end of regulation.

Still, the momentum really stayed with Illinois, though. They ended it in the fourth minute of overtime period and took home the 5-4 victory.

Karen Ferguson-Dayes squad takes to the road with a trip to North Carolina to take on future ACC conference foes Virginia Tech and Wake Forest next weekend. They come back closer to home the next weekend with games in Lexington, KY and Oxford, OH against Kentucky and Miami (Ohio).

The next chance to see them at home will be Sept. 13th against Morehead State, and the 15th against Texas-San Antonio.

-Volleyball Analysis

 

Paulie wrote up the coverage yesterday of the Alumnae/Red-Black scrimmage from Volleyball, but I wanted to share some of my observations from the day.

• Alex Wilharm is good. Alas, he's not eligible to play. The assistant coach did play in the scrimmage for his team as a player/coach. The roster from his college playing days has him listed at 6'2", but he is very athletic and provides a very good foil for our players to deal with very hard hit attacks and big blocks.
• Speaking of staff...Sarah Drury Petkovic didn't play, but she has definitely gotten back in shape after giving birth to her second child and looks like she could get out there and play with the best of them.
• Keeping score at this event is mostly pointless as players switch back and forth between the two teams depending on the what lineups the coaches want to most work with.
• The new black uniforms look really sharp. I'm looking forward to seeing the white and red variants.
• Emily Juhl is back. Her jump serve is a thing of beauty. Her front row attack (right side) is also really impressive. Thanks in part to...
• Hannah Kvitle and Katie George are spreading the ball around very well, including their back sets to Emily, and they are really on target this year.
• Randi Ewing and Janelle Jenkins really do jump as well as Coach Kordes has told us. Really, though, about the only hitter we have that can't put a lot of room between their sneaks and the ground is Carly Sahagian thanks to some ongoing knee issues.
• Even Brooke Mattingly looks like she's getting some extra space under her soles, and she's not exactly known for her jumping ability, though with an extra 2 inches in height on everyone else on the team, she's still making herself a very strong presence at the net.
• 2013 Haley Pouliezos is definitely quicker than the 2012 model. She ran down a second hit at the far back corner almost off of the Sport Court and put it solidly back in play. 2012 Haley never would've gotten to that shot.
• I don't want to play against Javoni Faucette...in any sport. She is a great athlete, and I suspect she's probably good at any sport she attempts.
• Brooke Betts is wearing a knee brace while she's still recovering from her ACL surgery but she does look like she's moving well and isn't really hindered by it much, or at all. Its a little hard for me to say since I don't what what 100% looks like for her having not seen her play before.
• What year is Hannah Kvitle? The roster on the website lists her as a senior, but she introduced herself as a junior. She played a year at SLU, sat out for a transfer year and played for us last year. That means she should have another year of eligibility after playing this year. I think the roster is listing academic years, with Brooke Mattingly and Randi Ewing listed as "GS" for Graduate Student, but then they have Janelle Jenkins as "RS FR" for Red-Shirt FreshMan.

Volleyball starts their season Friday with a match against Syracuse at Penn State. Remember that Syracuse, for this year only, is not a conference foe. They go on to play #2 ranked Penn State Saturday evening.

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SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE-Field Hockey, Volleyball in action Saturday

Junior Alyssa Voelmle had a goal and an assist in the scrimmage against Indiana

SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE


-FIELD HOCKEY BATTLES IU TO 4-4 TIE


-VOLLEYBALL HOLDS RED/BLACK GAME


The University of Louisville field hockey team went to  Indiana for a preseason scrimmage that ended in a 4-4 tie. The format featured two 25-minute periods followed by a 20-minute period. An overtime session followed and the scrimmage concluded with a shootout.

"This scrimmage was a great opportunity to play against someone else besides ourselves," said U of L head coach Justine Sowry. "We were able to play 19 players, which gives us confidence moving forward that we have a number of different options and more depth than last season. With that being said, it was a reality check. We lost our structure at times, which created some problems and we must be able to retain more possession especially at the critical moments of the game."

Louisville opened the scoring in the ninth minute of action when sophomore Victoria Stratton connected on junior Alyssa Voelme's pass from the top of the circle. Indiana answered on Kate Barber's goal in the 14th minute to tie the contest at 1-1.  The teams entered the second 25-minute session knotted at 1-1. The Hoosiers pulled ahead on Kayla Cunningham's unassisted goal, but the Cards answered six minutes later. Senior Michelle Amon delivered pass to the right side of the circle to freshman Jennifer Pels who sent a shot into the cage to tie the game at 2-2. In the third session, Voelmle connected on penalty corner assists from Pels and junior Mallory Mason to pull the Cards ahead 3-2. Louisville increased the lead to 4-2 after a ball pushed from outside the circle deflected off of an IU player and rolled into the cage for an own-goal.

The Hoosiers pulled within one on Corinne Karch's goal which made the score 4-3.
 

After three complete sessions, the Cardinals led 4-3. Both teams entered a simulated 10-minute overtime session which went to the Hoosiers. Indiana's Mollie Getzfread collected a rebound off of sophomore Sydney King's pads and netted a goal to the score at 4-4. Overtime was followed by two shootouts, the first a best-of-five, and the second a sudden victory round. Louisville would take the best-of-five by a score of 3-2 with sophomore Katharine Gwynne-Wood, freshman Lotta Kahlert and Voelmle. In the sudden-victory session, Indiana's Heilman would convert on the Hoosiers' first to give the second round to Indiana.  On the day, IU held a 13-10 edge in shots, but Louisville had eight penalty corners to the Hoosier's two. King collected six saves for the Cardinals.

"We don't have a lot of time to prepare for our opening weekend but for now we have a good base in which we can build upon," said Sowry.

Louisville will officially open the 2013 season at No. 7 Virginia on Aug. 30. They will stay on the road to face No. 21 Richmond on Sept. 1.

(Thanks to IU...some information in this article from IU Sports Information Department)

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Cardinal volleyball fans got a glimpse of the 2013 squad as the University of Louisville held a scrimmage at Cardinal Arena. Coach Anne Kordes' team won 15-25, 25-15, 25-17 in a competitive matchup featuring various lineups.


"I thought our seniors looked good. Emily Juhl and Brooke Mattingly lived up to being named Co-Preseason Players of the Year," said U of L head coach Anne Kordes. "After we got going, I thought the defense on both sides was exciting. I am very happy to see that because our system relies on our grit and our scrappiness and I saw that on both sides. Janelle Jenkins also showed what she was capable of and our phenomenal crowd made for a great atmosphere."

Mattingly and Juhl each had eight kills with defenders Caitlin Welch and Haley Pouliezos leading in digs with eleven and nine respectively. Carly Sahagian and Jenkins each had five kills and freshman Maya McClendon added five as well. Randi Ewing led blocking with four.   The Cardinals open their regular season at Penn State Invitational with Syracuse on Friday in State College, Pa.

Our Jeff McAdams will be at State College, PA and give us a report on the action.

(Thanks to gocards.com for information used in this report)


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Our Saturday Radio Show is now up and posted on the SoundCloud at Crescent Hill Radio. Give us a listen, take the quiz and use caution when opening doors in public places. Give it a click below...

RADIO THE WAY IT USED TO BE (in the Czech Republic)


-Paulie

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Saturday Cardinal Couple - Defense dominates in Women's Soccer win over Butler

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Corral, Exeter with goals in 2-0 Cards win over Bulldogs


The University of Louisville women's soccer team opened the regular season Friday night in Cardinal Park with a convincing 2-0 win over Butler. Seniors Charlyn Corral and Christine Exeter produced second half goals and the Cardinal defense limited the Bulldogs to just four shots on goal in 90 minutes in front of a rowdy and full contingent of Cardinal fans.

Karen Ferguson-Dayes:

OPENING REMARKS

" Definitely to get a win in the first game of the season is a nice to start off. I thought we were a little unfortunate in the first half because their was a penalty kick that the referees didn't call and we scored a goal that they didn't call....so it could have been 2-0 at that time...but to have the fortitude to fight back and get a goal about a minute into the second half and to get that second goal at the end of the game was really nice. I think Butler is a really good team...they double teamed Christine (Exeter) and Charlyn (Corral). It was obvious that anytime either of those two got the ball there were numbers around them but we were able to fight them off."

On any second half adjustments by the coaches:

"No, good players got it done. We told them we thought they were playing good and just stay aggressive. Really, I thought  if we could get a goal in the first ten minutes, it would give us a chance to settle into the game. We did get that goal but I don't think we ever settled into a good rhythm."

On Butler:

"I have a lot of respect for Terri and what she's done. We've played them regularly each season and I think what we saw tonight was what we expected we would get. They're a good team and they're going to win some games in the BIG EAST."

After a scoreless first half, Christine Exeter found the back of the net with a header just 53 seconds into the final stanza on a nice set-up pass from Corral. The defense stayed strong and with 5 1/2 minutes left in the game Corral took a pass from Hannah Konermann and performed a nifty cross to get open in the box and drive a kick past Bulldog goalie Julie Burton.

The kickin' Cards outshot Butler 20-9 and had nine attempts on goal...four by Corral. Louisville freshman goalie Paige Brown had her first shutout of her career and the Cardinal defense of Rachele Armand, Chelsea Hunter, Rachel Melhado and Megan Berberich frustrated Bulldog attackers for most of the evening.

The Cards return to action Sunday. Illinois visits Cardinal Park for a 1 p.m. contest.

You can see Paulie's hand and digital recording device in the post game interview...plus hear his brilliant questions at:

http://www.gocards.com/allaccess/?media=400888



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Coach Sowry lookin' chic in her ballcap!

Field Hockey begins their exhibition season with a Saturday game in Bloomington against IU. Start time is 1 p.m. We'll review the action in the Sunday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE.

The Cards split with the Hoosiers last year, winning the exhibition match and losing in the regular season.

You can follow the action on GAMETRACKER over at

www.gocards.com


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SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR has a jam packed 60 minutes with pre and post game comments from Coach Ferguson-Dayes, post game remarks from Charlyn Corral and interviews with Justine Sowry, Arthur Albiero and Kellie Young. We'll also cover the latest on basketball recruiting, volleyball news and the upcoming Saturday night Alumnae game.

Be sure to join us at:

BALLS, BUMPS, BREAKAWAYS and O'BRYAN

We tee it off at 11 a.m.

-Paulie

LouisvillemifielderCharlynCorralspentherfirsttwoyearsofcollegeattheUnversidaddeMexicoCityandhasonlybeenspeakingenglishforacoupleofyearsSheisadorable!