Smart Cards -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

I apologize for this late posting. I actually posted it originally at about 9:30, but apparently Blogger decided my article was so good it needed to be written twice.

Cards Proving Dominant in the Classroom as Well as on the Field

When Louisville joined the ACC, a lot of teeth were gnashed regarding Louisville's academic record. This came despite the facts that Louisville was the first school in the country to have bachelors and masters accreditation for its engineering school, that its business school is consistently top 5 in the country, that the other schools at the university are acclaimed in the state and the region, that the athletic teams consistently perform significantly above average in APR, that Florida State is a shining beacon of the conference, and that UNC has been creating fake classes for their athletic teams for more than 20 years. Since joining, though, Louisville has proven that these fears that the other conference members seemingly had were for naught. Louisville has had their issues recently that many could point to and say that the naysayers were correct, but the problems Louisville currently faces with the accreditation board stem from improper University and state leadership failing to follow guidelines (and laws) set in place, not from poor academic showings.

In addition to the countless perfect APR awards Louisville receives, players are earning impressive individual honors. That continued this spring as some ACC awards have come out recently. The softball All-ACC Academic team was announced Thursday and Louisville players snagged 1/10th of the 30 player list. Jordan McNary, Morgan Meyer, and Caitlyn Ferguson were chosen for the honor, which, in addition to on field performance, requires players to maintain a 3.0 GPA for the semester in which the season takes place as well as a cumulative 3.0 GPA for their academic career. Congratulations go to all three but especially to McNary and Morgan who accomplished this as seniors. Another Louisville player made an All-ACC Academic team as well, this time in women's tennis. Junior Mariana Humberg was granted the honor, which requires the same stipulations. UNC's Hayley Carter, the conference record holder for wins, was granted the Scholar Athlete of the Year Award for the second year in a row. She is the first player to achieve that honor.

Not to be outdone, Louisville baseball held down the fort as well. Ten Louisville baseball players were named to the 54 man All-ACC Academic Baseball team. Nick Bennet, Sam Bordner, Drew Ellis, Colby Fitch, Devin Hairston, Lincoln Henzman, Colin Lyman, Josh Stowers, Logan Taylor, and Adam Wolf were the honorees. In addition to an All-ACC nod, Colby Fitch was awarded the Elite 90 Award in Omaha. This award is granted to the player remaining in the tournament with the highest GPA. Drew Ellis led the Cards in the conference award by being granted the baseball Scholar Athlete of the Year Award. In addition to meeting all of the stipulations for the academic team, Drew was in the top ten in the conference in every major offensive category this season. He signed his contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks organization last week.

All of these athletic academic awards are the tip of the iceberg for academic success at the University of Louisville. Whatever happens with the SACS Accreditation auditing visit this fall, I believe the University will repair its damage and continue to promote success for its students in the classroom, on the field, and in life. I am happy to call myself a (now almost official) two-time alumnus of the University, and I will always be proud to call myself a Cardinal. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-