Louisville Women's Athletics' 2022 Highlights and Best Moments -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

The last days of 2022 are winding down now that Christmas and many of the major holidays in December have come to a close or are wrapping up. As we all-too-eagerly jump into 2023, it's nice to look back at 2022 and reminisce on many of the great moments that happened.

(whatcha gonna do, with this crew?) 

For Louisville Athletics, there were plenty of major events to celebrate and reflect on. We do not cover the men's sports at UofL, but many of the teams had success and postseason appearances such as swim and dive, baseball, tennis, soccer, and football, and we do wish to congratulate those teams on their successes.

We love to cover the "Joy and Excitement of Louisville Women's Athletics" and 2022 was not short on those joyful and exciting moments. We'll take a look at some of the best moments for many of those teams.

Basketball

Without a doubt, the best moment for Louisville women's basketball was their fourth Final Four appearance in program history. The Cards had another impressive season last year and earned a 1-seed before defeating UAlbany, Gonzaga, Tennessee, and Michigan en route to the national semifinals. This season, the Cards are riding a five-game win streak into conference play that includes commanding wins over in-state foes in Bellarmine and Kentucky.

Field Hockey

Louisville field hockey played one of the toughest schedules in the country this season and handled it well. They had five ranked wins and another NCAA Tournament appearance, which is quite a feat seeing only 18 teams make the tournament. The Cards went into a shootout just once this past season- a victory against Duke. After trailing 1-0, Louisville evened the score with seven seconds left in regulation before going on to claim the win in a shootout.

Golf

Making the NCAA Regional round has become a common sight for Louisville women's golf and 2022 was no different. The Cards are fresh off a third place finish (out of 13 teams) at The Club at Old Stone Intercollegiate event, hosted by Western Kentucky.

Lacrosse

ACC play has been brutal the last few years for Louisville lacrosse. The Cards got their first ACC win in program history when they took down Virginia Tech 14-11. Louisville also extended their all-time record against Cincinnati to 15-0.

Soccer

For Louisville women's soccer, the last few years have been anything but kind. The ACC slate has been brutal and over half of those contests this year were against ranked opponents. The best moment for the Cards this year would have to be going on the road to beat ranked Memphis 3-2. The Tigers held a 2-1 lead in the second half before Louisville scored two goals in seven minutes.

Softball

Injuries plagued the season for Louisville softball, but the Cards tried their best to make the most of it. Carmyn Greenwood wrote herself into the Louisville softball record books and became the ninth All-American in program history and the first since 2013. UofL stole a game from a Top 10 Arkansas team early in the season and won three conference series in the back half of the schedule.

Swim and Dive

Success surrounds Louisville Swim and Dive. After taking down Indiana, Kentucky, and Cincinnati in January, the Cards went on to finish third at the ACC Championships and sixth at the NCAA Championships. Several individuals and relay teams posted school records with multiple podium finishes at the NCAA Championships. Else Praasterink also helped pave the way for Louisville divers by setting a program record when she finished 10th in the platform diving at the NCAA Championships. 

Track and Field

Did someone say NCAA Champion? Gabriela Leon wrapped up her Louisville career with the track and field program by winning both an NCAA championship and an ACC championship in the pole vault, earning herself All-American honors. She became the first Louisville women's outdoor individual champion and first ever pole vault champion. The Louisville women's pole vault team dominated as a whole all season. The 25th place finish was the highest finish for Louisville women's outdoor track and field team in program history.

Volleyball

Not much could top a 2021 Final Four appearance but Louisville volleyball did just that in 2022. The Cards had another spectacular season that resulted in a national runner-up finish, the highest finish in program history. Louisville also added its third Elite Eight appearance, second Final Four appearance, and a partridge in a pear tree. Well, not quite on the last part, but a baby Busboom Kelly did join us in 2022. The Cards won 12 matches against ranked opponents this year.

Cheer

Although not considered a recognized DI sport, Louisville All-Girl cheer and Louisville Small Co-Ed cheer each won an NCA Championship in 2022, adding to the continuously growing number of championships for the Louisville cheer squads. Combining the All-Girl, Small Co-Ed, and Large Co-Ed squads together, Louisville cheer has accumulated 48 titles.

Talk about one heck of a 2022 year for Louisville women's athletics! We are excited to see what 2023 has in store!

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We also want to wish Case a happy birthday! Our normal Saturday writer and one of our Cardinal Couple engineers celebrated his birthday yesterday. Rumor has it, Louisville volleyball is undefeated when he attends their matches so maybe we'll have to work on gifting him season tickets next to Jeff next year.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared