SOFTBALL WINS IN ACC TOURNAMENT -- W. GOLF GOING TO NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDS TAKE 2-1 WIN OVER SYRACUSE TO ADVANCE

#8 seed Louisville Softball got a two-hit pitching performance from junior Megan Hensley and defeated #9 seed Syracuse 2-1 yesterday in the ACC Softball Tournament. With the win, Louisville gets #1 seed Florida State today at 11 a.m....the first of four quarterfinal games. 

At Mewborn Stadium, on the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta, Louisville put up a run each in the second and third innings to get the victory and played excellent defense with no errors in the process. 

The Cards hit the scoreboard first when Nicole Pufahl drew a walk, went to second on a Celine Funke sacrifice bunt and scored when Jenna Jordan double to right center field.  

Louisville added their final run when Maddie Newman beat out an infield single in the third frame, stole second base and came around on a Kyra Snyder single.

Hensley allowed a solo home run shot to the Orange's Alicia Hansen in the fourth. 

Hensley was masterful in the circle, with five strike outs and no walks in seven innings. She picks up her 17th win of the season and Louisville gets their 33rd win, thanks to good defense and Hensley's effort. Celine Funke's diving catch in left field prevented extra bases for Syracuse in the first and her sprint to catch a long foul later in the contest were two key outs for the Cards. 

Syracuse briefly threatened in the top of the seventh with a single and a sacrifice to put a runner in tying position...but Hensley and the Cards got out of trouble with a ground out to third and a strikeout to end the inning and game. 

Mewborn Field has shorter fence lengths than Louisville's Ulmer Field, with just 190 feet down each line. Surprising that there were only two home runs in yesterday's action...another occurred in the second game of the day, where #10 seed Virginia Tech advanced past #7 seed Duke 4-0. 

A tall order today for UofL against the Seminoles...but anything can happen in the single-elimination ACC Tournament format. The Cards were 0-3 vs. the Noles in the regular season series in Tallahassee. Louisville managed just one run in three outings against FSU back in late April, while the 'Noles plated 15 runners. 

Good vibes to UofL today. Hopefully the pitching will be solid, it's my guess Danielle Watson will draw the assignment, and the bats can knock out a few runs against a strong FSU pitching staff. 



GOLF ADVANCES OUT OF NCAA REGIONAL TO NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

An incredible final round finish by the Louisville women's golf team boosted them from seventh to fourth and secured their spot in the NCAA Championships yesterday. Playing in the San Francisco Regional qualifier, the Cards fired a 5 under par 283, lowest in school NCAA Regioanl history, to stake their claim as a participant in the NCAA Championship, which will be held May 18-23 in Stillwater, OK. 

Delaney Shah carded a 4 under par 68 to lead the Cards on the final day. She birdied the final two holes and finished tied for 13th in the regional's individual efforts. The North Potomac, MD native climbed an amazing 25 spots on the final day. Molly Skapic was also under par on the final day with a 3 under par 69. She birdied the final four holes to key the Cards fantastic finish. 

It was the girls from Kentucky who carried out the rest of the heroics. E'Town's Lauren Hartlage finished the final day with an even par 72. She tied Shah with a three-day total of 215 and for 13th place overall. Kristen Engle (Barbourville) shot a +2 /74 for the final 18 holes and Owensboro's Olivia Cason put up a closing +3 / 75 for the 'Drive and Putt" Cards. Louisville advances to the round of 24 for the second time in program history...the first happening in 2007. 

Team golf depends on contributions from all the members, just like any other athletic team event on campus and these Louisville women's golf swingers exemplified that with a strong finish and excellent scores from all five student-athletes after travelling across the nation, after being selected as an at-large participant in the regional.



Courtney Trimble, Louisville women's head golf coach couldn't be prouder of this group's effort:

“It was an incredible finish,” head coach Courtney Trimble said of taking her first team as a coach to an NCAA Championships. “We knew that it would come down to the last six holes, and we just tried to win each hole. I am so proud of this team and all that they have accomplished. They were so determined this week and really believed in themselves. This was a total team effort, and I couldn't be happier for their hard work to pay off.”

"Look What We Can Do" is the closing music we play on The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour radio broadcasts each Saturday. We may need to change that to "Look What Louisville Golf Can Do" this week...in tribute to the fine finish these five forged on Wednesday. 




paulie
xxxxx