It may only be January but the preparation for the spring
sports has begun. In fact, today is the media day for spring sports.
Representing the Cardinal Couple team will be Paulie and JC.
Media day is also a good chance to get insight into the
teams and how they are preparing for their season. In this case here’s what we
will probably be getting out of the different teams:
Scott Teeter has been active in the offseason. He had half a
roster and many coaching positions to fill. We will hear about the changes to
the program he is making. With so many new faces and a program coming from a
negative situation this is a chance to see how the atmosphere may be changing.
Softball
Pearsall’s squad is half new faces too, but for different
reasons. Having graduated four and a few players transferring out to further
pursue their careers there was no dirt being covered up (no pun intended). The
addition of so many new players was in the game plan following the conclusion
of last season. There were two things coach was after: speed and pitching.
There’s seven active pitchers on the roster… one per inning perhaps? No, none
of them are named “Baryssa Mecker”. From the praises coach has given this team
has some serious speed on them, which will help cover the loss of one of the
fastest people I’ve ever seen, Jordan McNary. How will this team bounce back
from last year’s tournament-less finish?
Golf
I know nothing about our golf team other than that they have
a fine-looking facility down I-64. Oh yeah, they are also ranked 23rd/24th in
the country depending on what poll you look at. I don’t follow golf much. I
prefer to attend the sports I’m allowed to cheer and go crazy at. However,
since the Battle of the Bluegrass is this coming weekend maybe we’ll get a
little out of the golf team today.
Track and Field
This is another sport I know nothing about except that
Emmonie Henderson is a killer shot-put player. The Cards won the Notre Dame
Invitational recently. Coach Cowper can give us a better look at how our track
and field team is doing and what we should expect from them this season.
Tennis
Their season already picked back up and based off Twitter it
appears they’re doing well. Louisville spends much of its season at Bass-Rudd
(free if you ever decide to go see them play) which it is always nice to play
at home. The Cards aren’t ranked but they do compete against several ranked
opponents. We don’t have Serena Williams or Maria Sharapova playing for
Louisville (sad face) but they still deserve some support.
It won’t be until Mid-March until the boats see any
competition, but this program has gone from begging for people to sign up to
join my freshman year (2012, yes, I’m getting old) to having people from
overseas commit to the rowing program. Unfortunately, the Cards don’t host any
regattas at home so the most action we’ll see is through Twitter.
If you add the men’s sports to anything the list grows substantially.
I’m starting to feel bad for Worldwide, as his scheduling part of the Cardinal
Couple Radio Hour will begin to consume the entire 60 minutes. Grab him a drink
and some oxygen!
Fall and Winter Sports News
Nadege L’Esperance has been on fire with the Canadian Soccer
Women’s U-20 team. They went undefeated in the qualifying round, winning their
three matches 11-2, to advance to the semifinals.
Mallory Comerford was named ACC Women’s Swimmer of the Week.
The highly decorated swimmer won three races and finished second in another in the meet against Kentucky last weekend.
Be on the lookout for interview clips from media day. If
they turn out anything like the softball dinner the other night you will surely
be entertained. Nine programs, coaches and a selection of players -- plus a free lunch. Sounds like a good day!
Jared
I will admit that the spring sports hold less interest for me than basketball but it should be interesting to read how Lacrosse is doing with the new coach softball without Becker and McNary, two favorite on here from previous years
ReplyDeletePaulie does the best interviews.
-- The Real Joe Hill --
I agree with you, Joe. It’s hard not to love women’s basketball here at Louisville. Coach Walz has a fiery passion for what he does and the high success has drawn more fans into the sport. This year has really helped grow the UofL WBB fan base.
ReplyDeleteI just wish it was not a 11 a.m. start time Thursday. Speaking of spring sports, are the Cards going to have any NCAA Tournament chances with any of the teams?
ReplyDeleteBaseball should be very good again and is a most likely for the NCAA Tournament. Softball has a shot. Track and Field has several runners and jumpers capable and so does women's golf. Rowing is off to a good start, as is women's tennis.
DeletePaulie