Lax Wins, Selection Season -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Lacrosse Handles Duke in ACC Home Opener

After falling to Notre Dame in South Bend last Saturday in the conference opener, the Louisville lacrosse team evened their conference record with a win over Duke yesterday afternoon. It was considered an upset, with Duke being ranked 15/17 and Louisville falling into the "receiving votes" category. The 11-8 loss pushed Duke to 0-3 in conference, and they'll certainly be looking to right the ship.

The game opened with a flurry of goals, as the Cards and Blue Devils traded two goals apiece before Louisville picked up the fifth overall goal of the game in the first nine minutes. Action was a bit more stagnant for the next 15 minutes as Louisville clung onto a 3-2 lead. The Cards extended that lead to 4-2 but Duke was able to pull it back within one. Starting with a Meghan Siverson goal with 1:26 remaining in the first half, Louisville scored four straight spanning into the second half to go up 8-3 and effectively put the game out of reach. Duke scored three of the next four goals to bring the tally to 9-6, but Louisville went up 11-6 with four and a half minutes remaining. Duke could only score two more to set the final score. 

It was an eventful second half when, after only one yellow card in the first, five yellow cards were awarded. Three went to Louisville and the other two to Duke. After a big scoring game, Hannah Koloski picked up her 33rd goal of the season to lead the team. Meghan Siverson is hot on her tail with 32. It was also a great game for Louisville goalkeeper, Brittany Read, who picked up ten saves in the win. Louisville is still struggling to replace the reliable draw control from years past. Duke handled Louisville in that category with a whopping 16-5 deficit. Like the rebounding battle in basketball, you can win the game without winning the draw control battle, but you make it a lot harder on yourself. 

Louisville, who looks to climb back into the rankings in the next poll, travels to Coastal Carolina on Wednesday.

KELLIE YOUNG POST GAME COMMENTS

MEGHAN SIVERSON POST GAME INTERVIEW

Softball Set to Brave "Inclement Weather"

After cancelling yesterday's games of the Louisville Softball Classic due to what was announced as "inclement weather," the tournament will conclude today on an even colder day. The Cards will play the middle game on this final day against Northern Iowa. The game is set to begin at 2, an hour and a half after the originally scheduled time.

March Madness is Officially Here

As Championship Week concludes today (which I still think is obnoxious), the Selection Committee will lock themselves away to determine the fate of the 68 teams who will vie for the title. The men's team looks well in line for a three seed, with talk of a potential two. However, we've seen crazier things happen in the past. Whatever happens, being in the tournament again will be step up from last year's heartbreak.

Similarly, a committee will convene tomorrow night to select the 64 women's teams that will battle it out. Louisville is hoping to grab a top four seed and play host at the Yum! Center. We've mentioned it before, but the selection show watch party will be tomorrow night at Sports & Social Club on 4th Street Live. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

Everyone's favorite hour (ish) of local radio aired yesterday and saw the triumphant return of its fearless leader, Paulie. We were also joined by Cards superfan, Julie "JC" Sullivan. The show centered mostly around basketball, which seems appropriate for this town around this time of year, but we also squeezed in a bit more as time allowed. Check out this link to hear yesterday's show and tune in to WCHQ next week for more wild antics.

Until next time, Go Cards.

-CH-