VB beats Miami in 4 sets - WBB adds two grad transfers - SB schedule altered; FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL

Good morning L'ville fans.. It has been a roller coaster of basketball experience over the past week so I'll give a few thoughts on that.  Want to also include a personal note that my work schedule has picked back up since last year's shut down.  I'm excited to get back out at the ballfield at Slugger this year for Bats baseball games as well as continuing to work at the ACCN building for Olympic sport video production.  I plan on being out there for the entire ACC tournament!

Now that basketball is over in the Ville, I'm flipping to the diamond sport mode!

A quick reflection- We were blessed with an Elite 8 berth by the WBB program, a #1 ranking and regular season title, another ACC Championship appearance and the fierce, fabulous and classy career of Dana Evans, who took this program to new heights.

  

On Sunday the Cards beat the Ducks to advance to face the tournament's overall #1 seed, Stanford.  I do believe we witnessed Dana return to the confident scoring machine we know and love as well as the establishment of next year's team leader, Mykasa Robinson.

Speaking of next year's squad... The Cards did end up being a landing spot for a couple grad transfers!  One of them I am particularly a fan of!

Louisville Adds Emily Engstler, Chelsie Hall to 2021 Class

Engstler joins the squad after three seasons at Syracuse, Hall the last four seasons at Vanderbilt.

Engstler, a 6-foot-1 guard from New York, N.Y., started all 31 games for the Orange as a sophomore prior to coming off the bench as a junior last season and earning ACC Co-Sixth Player of the Year honors.

As a junior, she nearly averaged a double-double with 10.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. She had 12 double-digit scoring games and seven double-doubles last season. She finished with a season-high 21 points, while adding 10 rebounds in the ACC Tournament matchup against Louisville. She also had 16 points, 11 rebounds and a steal on 7-14 shooting % against the Cards as the team debut their first ever #1 ranking.

Engstler was named the 2018 New York State Gatorade Player of the Year and a McDonald's All-American.

"We are thrilled to add such a talented player and quality person to our roster. Emily is one of the top rebounders and shot blockers in the country," said head coach Jeff Walz. "Emily's versatility, size and strength will be a huge addition to our team. Her passing, basketball IQ and toughness will be contagious. We are looking forward to getting her on campus and beginning her new journey in a Cardinal uniform."

"I'm grateful to be given a new opportunity during this time in my life," said Engstler. "I hope for a new beginning that's filled with hope and much to celebrate."

Hall is a 5-foot-7 guard from Boca Raton, Fla. She spent the last four seasons at Vanderbilt. She was named to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2017-18 after starting all 31 games and averaging 11.9 points and 3.5 rebounds during her rookie campaign. During that rookie season, she played at the KFC Yum! Center with Vanderbilt, finishing with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists.

As a junior, she started all 30 games and was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll after leading the team in free throw percentage (.813), assists (117) and minutes (972). Her 3.9 assists per game ranked eighth in the SEC. She averaged 10.6 points per game and reached double-figures in 18 games, including two 20-point performances.

In 2020-21, Hall started all eight games of Vanderbilt's shortened season. She reached 1,000 career points on January 10 against Alabama.

Hall attended Seffner Christian in Tampa, Fla., and was a first team all-state selection as a junior and senior.

"We are excited to announce the addition of graduate transfer Chelsie Hall from Vanderbilt. Chelsie is a consummate floor general who is poised and plays with great pace," said Walz. "She is a seasoned SEC guard who has started all four years for the Commodores. She brings with her a career positive assist-to-turnover ratio and she is a 1,000-point scorer."

"I am grateful and excited for this new journey," said Hall. "I can't wait to be a part of this special program."

VOLLEYBALL WINS AT MIAMI

#13 UofL got the 3-1 win over Miami in ACC volleyball action Thursday evening in Coral Gables, Fla. 25-12, 23-25, 25-23 and 25-16 were the set numbers. The VolleyCards clinched a tie for the regular season ACC title with the win. 

Nena Mbonu tied a career-high with 14 kills to lead. UofL hit .276 with seven aces, 14 blocks and 49 digs. Joining Mbonu in double digit kills was Anna Stevenson with 10 kills and seven blocks and Anna DeBeer with 11 kills and ace. Alexis Hamilton paced the defense with 12 digs and Amaya Tillman recorded six blocks. Tori Dilfer ran the offense with 49 assists and added six blocks.
Miami hit .127 with four aces and eight blocks. The Canes were led by Elizaveta Lukianova's 18 kills and four blocks.

The win clinches at least a share of the ACC crown as the Cardinals move to 12-2 in the league as Notre Dame (13-3) swept Georgia Tech to bump the Yellow Jackets out of the top two. Louisville will need to take down North Carolina to clinch the ACC's automatic qualifier for the NCAA Tournament.

The Cardinals face the Tarheels this afternoon in the regular season finale. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. It will be the Heels' 4th consecutive ranked opponent.. UNC 1-2 in those matches, losing the previous two.

SOFTBALL

UofL softball series at Pittsburgh has been altered due to cold weather projected in the area. This will be the second delay for the series. The teams will now open the series on Saturday with a doubleheader starting a 2 p.m. at Pitt's Vartabedian Field. The Cardinals and the Panthers will also play a single game at 2 p.m. on Sunday with the series finale taking place on Monday at 12 p.m. All games will be shown on the ACC Network Extra.

The Cards will return home following the series to face #8 Kentucky on Wednesday night April 7th at 7 PM. The Cats will face the #21 Tennessee Volunteers on the road this weekend before meeting the Cards at Ulmer Stadium for a midweek matchup.

NCAA WOMENS FINAL FOUR

If you happen to still care... the WBB Final Four starts tonight in San Antonio.  Personally, I'll be rooting for Dawn Staley and the USC Gamecocks to cut down the nets.  Not sure I'll actually tune in for the games, however. 

Stanford vs South Carolina 6:00PM

UCONN vs Arizona 9:30PM

I have a few meetings planned for Saturday with softball out of town so I am out for radio, Jared might be tied up with family so it should be Jeff Paul and Case to dissect the weeks events.  

Until next time Cardinals fans! 
~Daryl