Cards Still Idle; Transfer Portal Isn't -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

In Paulie's absence, you may get a bit of whiplash as the writing schedule bounces around a touch. We had hoped to introduce our fill-in writer today, but we haven't quite been able to nail that down, so it will wait for a little longer. We're still wishing Paulie the best in his recovery and hoping you all get the chance to hear from him soon.

Volleyball Transfers Galore

Louisville volleyball hasn't landed any major transfers in the portal since the season wrapped up, but they have seen a player depart. Nina Moorer will transfer from the University of Louisville to Texas State University to continue her college career. Moorer's transfer comes after her first season following a redshirt saw her play just two sets in one match. Moorer had three kills on three attempts and added two digs on September 22nd against Syracuse. While Louisville ultimately turned out to not necessarily be the right fit for Moorer, we hope for her success in a return home. Moorer is from Missouri City, Texas (a suburb of Houston), and Texas State is in San Marcos, about 2.5 hours away between Austin and San Antonio.

In other Texas news, a few players have decided to jump on the Burnt Orange Bandwagon as they work to try to three-peat. Last week, the Longhorns got a commitment from Nebraska transfer Whitney Lauenstein. Lauenstein sat out in 2023 to focus on her family after losing her father. She has two years of eligibility remaining. Yesterday saw Jerritt Elliott pick up a couple of more big names, one that Louisville fans are likely to recognize: Reagan Rutherford and Averi Carlson. Rutherford leaves UK after four seasons, and Louisville fans will likely be glad to not see the outside hitter across the net from the Cards in blue again. Rutherford was slowed by injury a bit this past season, playing in just 78 sets after eclipsing 100 sets in the last two seasons, but she still put up 271 kills and hit .315 on the season. Not too shabby. Averi Carlson is a setter from Baylor who transfers after two seasons with the Bears. Carlson had 1188 assists in 2023 after putting up 1258 as a freshman in 2022. Her season high came when she had 60 against SMU. Carlson will likely be excited to set to Rutherford after watching Reagan smash 14 kills on 19 attempts against the Bears in the NCAA tournament. 

Louisville will certainly have their work cut out for them if they run up against the Longhorns in 2024, and it seems everyone will be chasing Texas to prevent back-to-back-to-back championships. We'll be on the lookout to see who the Cards may add now that the floodgates of the transfer portal appear to have opened. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case