Regular Season on the Horizon
We have almost made it. The days of fabricated stories and filler commentary will soon come fewer and farther between. Regular season sports at the University of Louisville begin in four short days. We've had other events to cover here and there over the summer, but the return of regular sporting events at UofL is welcomed wholeheartedly. Whether you are a fan of soccer, field hockey, volleyball, cross country, football, or you're just pining for basketball to return, the beginning of fall sports season means it's all here. With other sports underway, time will fly to basketball season. We'll relish in all of these seasons as much as we can, knowing that next summer is right around the corner. So let's see what this week brings us.
First up comes a treat for our basketball lovers at the site. Team USA has already beaten Australia and Canada in the U-23 Three Nations Tournament in Japan and Louisville's Asia Durr has had a solid hand in both victories. Coach Jeff Walz will lead his team against the host nation of Japan at 3:30 AM eastern time tomorrow morning. I've still found nothing on streaming opportunities, but the USA Basketball twitter has done a great job with live tweeting. If you're jonesing for a basketball fix so badly, I encourage you to stay up and constantly refresh your computer, tablet, or smartphone for the information.
Back on campus, we can look ahead to the beginning of women's regular season competition this week. We teased about it on the show, but field hockey will beat women's soccer to the regular season opener by a mere six hours on Friday. The stick gals will host Miami (OH) at Trager Stadium just 47.5 hours before the soccer team does so at Lynn Stadium. Field hockey took on Miami (OH) in their second game last season, coming away with a 2-0 road victory. Coach Justine Sowry will surely be pleased with a similar result from this matchup to get their season underway. The Cards' quick turnaround to the alumnae game on Saturday may give the alumnae an edge against tired legs, but I wouldn't count on it too much.
Later in the evening, Coach Karen Ferguson-Dayes' Kickin' Cards will spring into action against Boston University in their regular season opener. Louisville split a pair of exhibition games last week and will have a few days of practice ahead of this year's true debut. The Cards looked pretty good Saturday against a DePaul team that finished second in the Big East last year and should finish near the top of the league this year. There are a few areas to sharpen up, for sure, but a coach should always be able to find a place to improve. A 2-0 victory in an exhibition is nice, but it will take a lot better performances across the board to turn in a really solid season this year. The team has promise, and how they can perform against lesser competition like BU will be a good indicator of how much they've matured.
Finally, volleyball gets their season started this week with their traditional Red vs Black scrimmage. Given their new permanent home in Cardinal Arena, I can't imagine there being much confusion about where this one will take place. I already know Jeff and many other Cardinal Couple readers are looking forward to seeing the new volleyball team under Coach Dani Busboom-Kelly's leadership. There are new players to learn about and old players in new positions to watch. It should be a fun day as always for the team to get their legs beneath them before next week's matches against coach's familiar Big 10 foes in Wisconsin and Minnesota.Congratulations to Justin Thomas
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| Picture from USA Today |
Justin Thomas is neither a female athlete nor a Louisville Cardinal. However, Thomas is a product of the metro area, hailing from Goshen, Kentucky (like our good friend David Levitch) and graduating from Saint Xavier in 2011 (he's only about 8 months older than me). Thomas, an Alabama graduate, won his first major tournament yesterday coming from behind at the start of the day to win the PGA Championship. It is his fourth PGA win this year and his fifth overall. Thomas is just the next in a line of successful golfers to come from Kentucky, joining fan favorite, Kenny Perry, and Ryder Cup alumnus (and my cousin), J.B. Holmes. I wish congratulations to Justin and look forward to seeing him continue representing the state of Kentucky on the big stage of golf.
Until next time, Go Cards!
-CH-
Thomas took charge yesterday and broke that four way tie on the back nine. i knew he went to BAMA but didn't realize he was from Louisville. I had the pleasure of playing a foursome behind him a couple of years ago. Had a few chats on the tee boxes waiting for an incredibly slow group in front of us to clear out. He never mentioned Louisville, though. Big hitter.
ReplyDelete-- The Real Joe Hill --
I think Women's soccer's win over DePaul is big in terms of looking how far the program has come. Last year, the Blue Demons defeated the Kickin' Cards in Chicago 3-1 in pre-season. Kennadi Carbin is the real deal and should be quite the contributor this year on the attack.
ReplyDeleteLet's also not forget Louisville was without freshman Nadege L'Esperance...still playing with Canadian National team and Shelby Cohen...done for the year with an ACL injury.
I talked briefly after the game with a DePaul parent who made the trip down and who watched last year's scrimmage up there. He was impressed with Louisville's ability to control things offensively and felt the Cards could be a factor in ACC play this year.
I told him to say "Hi!" to Doug Bruno for me. Funny enough, he said he would (he knows him) and took my business card.
Paulie
You just a schmoozer Paulie
DeleteI just learned via Twitter that Friday's field hockey game against Miami (OH) is an exhibition. Therefore, I'd like to recognize women's soccer as the rightful UofL fall sports regular season openers!
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